Learn how to refresh and restretch carpet
Wall-to-wall carpeting wears down over time, even with proper maintenance, care, and proactive steps like laying down a carpet pad. But you can learn how to stretch carpet to bring it back to life.
As carpet ages, it starts to buckle, wrinkle, loosen, ripple, and lift off the initial adhesive. Beyond time, there are other factors that lead to long-term carpeting issues, like improper installation or large levels of humidity. No matter the cause, carpet restretching is here to help.
This DIY-friendly project helps protect your initial investment by making the carpet taut and attractive once again.
If you are seeing signs that you need to replace your carpet, you might be able to restretch it instead. However, you probably noticed some unfamiliar tools up top, like a knee kicker and a power stretcher. These tools are mandatory for this project, so acquiring them is your most important preparatory step.
Power stretchers feature teeth that hook into the carpet pile on the backside and, when pressed down, handle the actual carpet stretching. The knee kicker is for minor adjustments to corners and spaces within 3 feet of the wall, as it features a similar row of teeth for stretching.
These tools are niche, and purchasing both together costs around $400. You will likely only need them this one time, so the best option for DIYers is to rent the tools from a local hardware or home improvement store. Most retail locations rent out these tools for the day or by the hour, putting this project within reach of most consumers.
If you decide it isn’t worth the cost, get a quote from a few carpet repair pros in your area to find a reputable and affordable company.
Your first step in learning how to stretch carpet is to remove all of the furniture from the room to provide easy access to the entire carpet. Only worry about items of furniture you can actually move, so don’t waste fretting over fixed obstacles like cabinets or large appliances.
Place these items in a part of the house that is not carpeted. While you are here, clean your carpeting by running a vacuum over the entire carpet to limit the amount of excess dust that shakes out during the stretching process.
Now the fun begins. Don your work gloves and free the corner of the carpet from the baseboard by gently tugging on the tack strip with a pair of pliers. Go slowly and work carefully to avoid fraying the pile fibers, removing tacks and staples as you go.
Once the edge is loosened enough to grab the carpet, tug it by hand away from the wall. Keep on tugging and work your way around the wall, removing carpet from the edges of three sides of the wall. Keep one side in place as an anchor.
Remove any tacks or staples securing the carpet to the padding. Use pliers here, or a flathead screwdriver or pry bar in the case of stubborn tacks. Pull gently to avoid tearing up any carpet fibers. Again, this is a patience game so work slowly.
Now comes the exciting part of learning how to stretch carpet. Break out the power stretcher and brace the base against a short length of the wall directly in front of the corner where the carpet remains attached. Lay the machine tooth-side down, making sure it is perpendicular to any ripples or wrinkles in the carpeting.
Increase the length of the power stretcher’s shaft using built-in extension poles until the head is around 6 inches from the opposite wall from where you started. Next, adjust the teeth length via the machine’s head or exterior knob, so the teeth sink through the pile and into the carpet backing.
Press down on the stretcher’s lever or handle to extend the head, with the teeth still gripping the carpet. You want a moderate amount of resistance here. If it is too difficult to push the lever, you could overstretch the carpet. If it is too easy to press on the lever, you will likely not eliminate any ridges or ripples. Readjust the teeth in either of the above scenarios and try the lever again.
Keep pressing the lever until you see wrinkles and other impurities disappear, with the carpet reaching the wall (or even a bit further.) Press the backing into the pre-existing tack strip until it holds, and then release the power stretcher’s handle. For large swaths of carpet with many ripples, repeat this process by repositioning the stretcher a couple of feet to the left or right of where you started.
In most cases, the power stretcher extends the carpet beyond its original confines. In other words, you are now staring down some excess carpet. Before moving on, trim this excess carpet using a sharp utility knife or a curved carpet knife.
Roll the surplus carpet toward you and cut a straight line on the backing exactly where the wall meets the floor. Leave enough material to tuck under the baseboard, as it is better to have too much length than too little. Grab the yardstick and place it on the carpet to help keep it aligned with the baseboard as you cut.
Now it’s time for adjustments to areas that are too cramped for the power stretcher, which is where the knee knicker comes in. If you have any pre-existing wrinkles or ripples in a tight spot, start by pressing the teeth of the knee kicker into the carpet around 6 inches from the wall near the focal point of the issues. Adjust the length of the teeth, so they hook through the pile and into the carpet backing.
Next, place your leg above the cap of the tool and into the carpet’s padding base, kicking forward to apply pressure. Harder kicks push the head forward to stretch the carpet, so experiment until you get a feel for it. When you work out the lumps and wrinkles, immediately fasten this section of the carpet to the tack strip.
Go around the entire length of the carpet and carefully reattach the carpet to the subflooring by pressing the carpet firmly into the tack strip. This is not a difficult step, but you should still work slowly to ensure there are no snags and that the carpet is firmly reattached, though you will be further securing the carpet in the next step.
The final step in learning how to stretch carpet involves securing the carpet in place by reaffixing staples and tacks. Use the staples and tacks you removed earlier, forcing them back in place with a slight bash of a hammer.
Have some extra staples on hand in case any were ruined during the removal process. Once you finish each wall, move the furniture back in and enjoy your freshly-maintained carpet.
This is a task best suited for moderate or advanced-level DIYers, as you have to move furniture and learn how to use new tools. Additionally, missteps lead to further issues down the road, as carpet is easily damaged or overstretched during this process.
Hiring a local carpet stretching pro ensures the job is done correctly, and they already have the appropriate tools and expertise. Professional carpet stretching costs $100 to $300, which is not significantly more expensive than purchasing the necessary materials and renting or buying the power stretcher and knee kicker.
If you decide your carpet is beyond repair, talk to a local carpet installation company about your options. On average, carpet installation costs $1,760.
Not really. Skipping the power stretcher and knee kicker is a recipe for an improper installation. Additionally, you will struggle to successfully eliminate wrinkles and ridges without these tools, so expect plenty of creases and wrinkles to remain after finishing the process. Finally, stretching a carpet by hand or with homemade tools gives the carpet an unappealing look as it lays flat on the floor.
Carpet stretching increases the lifespan of the carpet and eliminates unsightly wrinkles, ridges, and ripples. It is certainly worth it if you seek to extend the life of wall-to-wall carpeting, though it depends on the individual and the carpet itself. If the carpet looks fine, it likely is fine. Restretch the carpet when you notice looseness and a high number of related issues.
Hiring a pro to stretch a carpet costs anywhere from $100 to $300, though this price increases if you also task the contractor to remove and replace the furniture from the room. Doing it on your own maxes out at $100, though renting the power stretcher and knee kicker extend the cost in some instances.
You can get away with stretching the carpet with some remaining items of furniture, so long as you have ready access to the parts of the carpet that require maintenance and you are not stretching through the furniture, as this leads to tears and fraying. Try to remove at least 50% of the furniture if you can’t remove it all.
Generally speaking, restretch your carpets once every five years, though this timeframe depends on a number of factors, such as the level of foot traffic in the area. If the carpet looks wrinkled and there are loosened areas on the floor, go for the restretch. If everything looks and feels fine, you are good.
