Do-It-Yourself Seaming Carpet Repair

Loop Pile Carpet

• 1

  Measure the length of your carpet seam. Cut a length of heat bond carpet seaming tape with utility shears equal to the length of your seam.

• 2

  Insert the seaming tape beneath the seam in the carpet, laying the seaming tape on the subfloor. Center the seaming tape beneath the seam in the carpet with the adhesive side facing up. Seaming tape is about 3-1/2 to 4 inches wide, so the weight of the carpet holds the tape in place until you heat it.

• 3

  Heat a carpet iron to 250 degrees Fahrenheit. Insert the carpet iron in the seam between the two pieces of carpet and allow the two sides of carpet to lie on top of the carpet iron. The thin, flat design of a carpet iron allows you to insert the iron beneath the two sides of the carpet to melt the adhesive, while allowing the two pieces of carpet to remain next to each other as you pull the iron across the seaming tape.

• 4

  Pull the iron along the seaming tape slowly in 1-foot increments. With your free hand, firmly pressing the two sides of the carpet together on top of the seaming tape.

• 5

  Place some type of weight on the newly seamed area, such as books or cinder blocks. This holds the seam together as you continue with your repair. Let the carpet seaming tape cool for 5 to 10 minutes.

Cushioned Back Carpet

• 6

  Insert a marker into the carpet seam you need to repair and draw a line on the subfloor to represent the seam location. Do not remove the cushioned back carpet from the floor while you draw the line.

• 7

  Fold back both sides of the carpet away from the seam. Measure the length of the seam line, and cut a length of double-sided adhesive carpet tape with utility shears equal to the length of the seam.

• 8

  Vacuum the dirt and debris from the subfloor beneath the carpet along the seam line, so the adhesive has a clean surface on which to adhere.

• 9

  Remove the paper from one side of the double-sided carpet tape to expose the adhesive. Center the double-sided tape over the seam line you drew on the floor. Push down along the entire length of the tape to ensure it adheres to the floor.

• 10

  Peel the protective layer from the top of the double-sided carpet tape to expose the adhesive on the top of the tape. Lay down one side of the cushioned back carpet onto the carpet tape leaving the other side of the carpet folded back away from the seam. Place pressure along the entire length of the carpet to secure the carpet on one side of the seam to the tape.

• 11

  Run a bead of carpet seam sealer along the carpet edge you pressed onto the double-sided tape. Make sure you place the seam sealer on top of the permanently attached pad and avoid the carpet pile.

• 12

  Fold down the remaining side of the carpet, pressing it onto the adhesive and the seam sealer. Place pressure on the entire length of carpet to secure the two pieces of carpet together, repairing the seam.