How to Get Tile & Carpet to Meet

You can get the carpet to meet the tile with the right supplies.

Transitioning carpet to tile can be accomplished without transitioning strips so long as the carpet is properly cut and securely fixed into its position. Otherwise the carpet can come loose and frayed at the edges. Tile to carpet transitions are usually made in doorways where the middle of the door will cover the transition. These combinations are sometimes necessary for functional purposes such as tiles in the bathroom or carpet in the bedroom. The different floorings can come together quite flawlessly and suited to each environment.

Things You'll Need

• Utility knife
• Ruler
• Wooden beam
• Z-bar
• Tacking glue
• Tacking strip
• Hammer
• Wooden mallet

Instructions

1. Cut the carpet with a utility knife 1/2 inch longer than where the carpet and tile will meet. Guide the cut with a straight edge such as a wooden beam to ensure a neat cut.

2. Glue a Z-bar 3/8 inches away from the tile's edge with tacking glue. The Z-bar is a metal strip shaped like a "Z" used to tuck the overlapping carpet underneath the metal strip.

3. Apply tacking glue onto a tacking strip with tacking glue. Press the tacking strip on top of the Z-bar. A tacking strip is a thin wooden strip with angled nails embedded into the strip. Attach the tacking strip so that the nails are angled away from the carpet.

4. Hammer in the nails in the tacking strip through the Z-bar and into the ground. Do not hammer in all the way. Hammer to fix the strips in place.

5. Tuck the overlapping carpet underneath the Z-bar.

6. Use a wooden mallet to hammer in the carpet into the nails and firmly underneath the Z-bar. Hammer the nails in all the way this time.

References

• The Tile Doctor: Floors Interior