How to Install Berber Carpeting
Loop berber carpet is popular for its earth-tone colors, natural wool look and a rugged surface. The loop texture hides footprints and vacuum marks for a clean look. It is available is subtle patterns that can make installation tricky. Hiding seams is more difficult with berber carpet, so it usually is sold is wider width to help minimize the number of seams.
- Difficulty:
- Moderate
Instructions
Things You'll Need
- Berber carpet
- Safety goggles
- Measuring tape
- Carpet knife
- Tackless strips
- Strip cutter
- Masonry nails
- Carpet pads
- Stapler
- Seaming tape
- Power stretcher
- Knee kicker
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1
Plan the carpet installation to minimize seams and keep seams in low-traffic areas. Run seams perpendicular to windows so that they are less visible in the natural light.
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2
Install the tackless strips near the walls on every side, leaving about a ½ inch gap. Use a strip cutter to trim the strips to size. Keep the strips down with nails, use masonry nails if the subfloor is made of concrete.
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3
Lay thin, dense carpet pad under berber to reduce stress on seams and keep them from pulling apart. Leave about ¼ inch between the strips and the carpet pad. Use a stapler on the pad's seams and to keep the pad attached to the floor.
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4
Cut the carpet to size and lay it down. If the berber has a pattern, make sure that the pattern lines up properly between adjacent pieces so seams are not visible. Use wide seaming tape to create strong, tight seams. Refer to related eHow titled "How to Install Carpet."
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5
Use a power stretcher and knee kicker to stretch the berber carpet to fit tightly onto the tackless strips. Check that the pattern still lines up before stretching the adjacent piece of carpet onto the tackless strips.
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6
Verify that all seams look tight and flat. Trim off excess carpet along the wall and set edges under the baseboards.
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