Can I Pull Up Nasty Carpet and Just Use Concrete as Flooring?

Carpet Removal

• Even if you've pulled up a corner of the carpet to see what type of flooring you have underneath, you won't know the condition of the concrete until you pull up all of the carpet. Work from the corners to pull up the carpet using a prybar. You might find carpet glue stains on the concrete. Soften the carpet glue with hot water; then, scrape it off using a razor or other sharp edge.

Finishing the Concrete

• Concrete floors naturally have an unfinished look -- after all, carpet covered them for years. You'll want to make the concrete attractive and protect it from everyday wear and tear. Scrub the concrete with a stripping agent after you scrape off any carpet glue. Next, you'll need to sand the concrete using a floor buffing machine with screen-mesh sandpaper, as suggested by Joe Nasvik of the Concrete Network. After sanding, thoroughly clean the concrete with strip pads, water and detergent with the buffing machine before applying a stain to the concrete. Vacuum up the water with a wet vacuum. The stain can transform it into a color that complements your decorative style and it will protect it as well.

Maintaining the Concrete

• Now that the nasty carpet is out of your house, you want to keep those concrete floors glistening. Concrete will attract more dust than carpet, so sweep it with a broom a couple of times a week. You can mop the concrete floors with a household cleaner, such as something you'd use on tile floors

Advantages & Disadvantages

• Getting rid of that nasty carpet is not the only advantage of concrete floors. Concrete floors are easy to keep clean. You don't have to worry about stains. If someone spills a drink on the floor, simply mop it up. Concrete floors are, of course, less plush than carpet, so you might be worried about comfort. Throw an area rug on part of the floor if you want something softer to walk on. That's cheaper to replace than a room's worth of carpet, if it should get dirty.