Tried stretching a 12 foot seam in a hallway by myself. Big mistake.

Was doing a bedroom in a split level house off Highway 40 last Thursday. Had this long hallway run and figured I could save time by not calling my helper. Seam popped open about 4 feet from the wall and I spent an hour trying to fix it with a knee kicker. Had to cut out the whole piece and redo it. Anyone else ever wreck a job trying to work solo on a long seam?

2 comments

2 Comments

miller.paul16d ago

Funny you mention that seam popping open, because I've been in that exact spot and what got me was I wasn't thinking about the backing rod. Most folks just roll out the carpet and stretch it, but on a long hallway you need that rod down tight in the tackless strip gap to keep the carpet from slipping back. Without it, that stretch just walks itself loose, especially if the pad is thin or old. I started using a wider backing rod and it cut my callbacks on hallways by a lot. Might be worth checking next time you're fighting a long run solo.

ivancoleman15d ago

Buddy of mine tried it without the rod once on a 40-footer and had to redo the whole thing, exactly like @miller.paul said.