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Installing carpet is not easy on the knees; however, it is not difficult to install. With a little patience and some specialized tools, this is a project you can take on. The specialized tools can be found at most tool rental outlets.
Tools and materials for installing carpet
- Tackless strips
- Stapler
- Hammer
- Utility knife
- Chalk line
- Knee pads
- Work gloves
- Rolling pin or a rented seam roller
- Measuring tape
- Safety glasses
- Knee kicker
- Power stretcher
- Seam cutter
- Seaming iron
- Seam tap
- Wall trimmer
- Strip cutter
- Seam roller
Preparation steps for carpet installation
1Take the door off the entrance for easier access.
2Remove old carpet by removing moldings around the floor. Use a utility knife and cut the carpet into strips about 18 to 24 inches wide.
3Pull the carpet off the tackless strips and roll up in sections. Remove the underlay, as well.
4Remove existing tackless strips.
5Clean floor and allow it to dry.
6Check subfloor. Secure any loose floorboards with 1 ½” screws.
7Put in new tackless strips around the perimeter of the room, except in front of doorways. Leave a ½” gap between the strips and the wall. The pins or tacks should face the wall. Make sure the tackless strips are butted tightly against each other at the corners.
Carpet installation steps
1Lie the underlay down in strips that overlay the tackless strips. Push the strips against each other, but do not overlap them. Staple the underlay down along the inside edge of the tackless strips. Trim the extra underlay along the inside of the tackless strip. Use duct tape to seal the seams.
2Start with a piece of carpet that overlaps the edge of the floor by 4 to 6 inches. The overlay can be trimmed to fit properly.
3For the first section, measure the room at its longest point. Add 6 inches.
4Mark the back of your carpet on both edges with this measurement.
5Use a chalk line to join these two marks.
6Fold the carpet over on itself.
7Place a scrap board underneath where you will be cutting to protect the underlying carpet.
8Using a straight edge and sharp utility knife, cut through the backside of the carpet.
9If you require two pieces of carpet, measure, mark and trim as you did with the first piece. Be sure carpet pile is running the same way in both pieces. Allow 4 to 6 inches to overlap the wall, as well as 4 to 6 inches to overlap the first piece of carpeting.
10Overlap the two pieces of carpet. Using a utility knife or rented seam cutter, cut through both pieces of carpet to ensure an exact match. After the carpet has been cut, center a piece of seaming tape on the floor underneath where they will connect together. The adhesive should be up.
11Use the seaming iron directly on the adhesive. The seaming iron will activate the adhesive.
12Push the edges together and seal the seam with a rolling pin or carpet roller.
13Attach the carpet along one edge with a knee kicker. The toothed end of the kicker should be placed 3” from the wall. Drive your knee forcefully into the padded end of the tool. The carpet will stretch over the tackless strip and the tacks will grab it. Hold it firmly in place.
14Put one end of the carpet stretcher against the wall where the carpet is attached. Place the other end about 6 inches from the far wall. The teeth of the carpet stretcher will stretch the carpet over the tackless strips near the far wall.
15Follow this procedure all the way around the room. Trim the carpet near the wall with a utility knife or wall trimmer.
16With a stair tool, tuck the carpet down into the gap between the tackless strips and the wall.
17Trim the carpet at the doorway so the edge is centered under the closed door.
18Install a door edge strip.
19Cut any vent openings.
20Install the molding on the baseboards.
Now you are ready for installing carpet in all the other rooms of your home!
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hi could some one please tell me how to cut round the bottom step as its rounded one side, many thanks dave gill
Decorating/Remodeling 
I hope nobody is reading her post but just in case, DO NOT DRIVE YOUR KNEE FORCEFULLY INTO THE KICKER! You should be using the muscles above your knee. If you use your knee, you will be permanently damaged!!
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