Things You'll Need
Carpet padding
Epoxy adhesive
Carpet
Knee kicker
Wall cutter
Carpet gripper
Staple gun
Masonry tacks (optional)
Binder bar
Hammer
Installing carpet over a concrete floor is a great way to add warmth to a space, while muffling sound and creating a more attractive look. Although laying down carpet padding and carpet on a concrete floor can seem daunting, it is actually quite simple as long as you follow instructions carefully and pay attention to detail. There are several precautions to take before you begin, but once you get started you will find that the process is relatively straightforward.
Step 1
Clean the floor completely. Vacuum, dust and wipe off any dirt that lingers on the floor. Allow the floor to dry completely before moving on to Step 2. Any lingering moisture left on the concrete can do severe damage to your carpeting job.
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Step 2
Lay carpet grippers down 1/2 inch from the base of the wall. Use apoxy adhesive to secure them to the concrete floor. DO NOT place the grippers at doorways or thresholds because the nails could poke through the carpet and hurt your feet.
Step 3
Unroll the carpet padding and lay it perpendicular to the direction that the carpet will run.
Step 4
Pull the padding tightly and staple it to to the sides of the carpet grippers, allowing any excess to climb up over the grippers. You will trim it later.
Step 5
Staple the seams with a staple gun as you lay padding down so that the carpet pad is attached across the floor. Make sure that you pull the pad tightly before stapling.
Step 6
Trim the padding so that none of it covers the nails on the carpet grippers. The padding should be pulled tightly across the floor and firmly adhered to the carpet grippers, leaving the nails exposed.
Step 7
Attach the first edge of the carpet to the grippers using a knee kicker, leaving about 3 inches of excess carpet climbing up the wall.
Step 8
Trim the excess carpet with a wall trimmer, which should leave a precise edge.
Step 9
Stretch the length of carpet across the room and over the gripper on the other side with a power stretcher. Trim the excess as you did in Step 8.
Step 10
Repeat the carpet-laying process over the rest of the padding until the entire room is carpeted.
Step 11
Nail the binder bar to the threshold, or any area of the room where carpet ends without abutting a wall. Use the knee kicker to stretch the carpet, linking it to the hooks in the binder bar.
Step 12
Trim the carpet so that it fits under the clamp of the binder bar. Tuck the carpet under the metal lip.
Step 13
Place scrap piece of lumber over the top of the binder bar and tap it gently with a hammer to seal the binder bar over the edge of the carpet.
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