The great thing about carpet tiles is that once installed they can be easily removed and replaced. This saves the consumer considerable capital while maintaining a clean and beautiful home.
But, what is actually involved in installing carpet tiles in the first place?
The process can be done rather easily by do-it-yourselfers around the globe. The idea is that time has to be put in to get quality results, however, the amount of specialized skill or knowledge is really rather limited. If one just follows the steps laid out ahead and takes their time, there is no reason for their carpeting to look as good as a professional install.
Acquire Materials
The first step is measuring the room in which the carpet tiles are to be placed. This way the correct amount of carpeting and necessary materials can be acquired. It should be noted that it is always better to have a little extra than not enough when it comes to flooring materials. For excess material can be trimmed to fit, but if there is a gap between tiles, and there is no more carpet, then you just have an unsightly hole in the floor.
Remove Old Carpet
Once the proper goods are obtained, then any old carpeting in place must be thoroughly removed. It is best to use a screw driver, though other tools would work too, to edge up the corners of the carpet. This makes for easier pulling. Next begin to rip up the carpet from the corners inward towards the center. If the carpeting is rather large in size, it is usually best to do this in manageable stages because the old stuff is going to be hauled to a dump eventually. Repeat these measures until all of the carpeting is gone. There is typically carpet padding underneath that may remain in part – get rid of it as well. When this step is complete the floor should be swept, vacuumed, and as clean as it can be. If this step is performed improperly the new carpet won’t lie evenly or flatly and it will be likely to shift and come apart from the floor.
Finding the Center
The next step is to locate the center of each wall in the room where the carpet is being installed. The idea is to break the room into fourths. By identifying the center points on each wall and drawing a chalk or pencil line from each into the middle – the central point of the room will be established. It is necessary to do this for aesthetics sake. You will place your carpet tiles in a pattern emanating from this center point outward this way the most whole tiles of carpeting will be present in the most viewed areas of that room. It also means that if you need a half or quarter tile at the end to make things flush it will be the pieces up against the wall, which generally command the least visual attention, Always double check measured.
Laying Down the First Tile
Now that the room has been measured and the center point is clear, remove the adhesive disc covering for the first tile (all tiles come with adhesive discs which are laid down first before the carpeting itself). Then line it up so that one of its corners touches the center point and so that it fits into the chalk grid evenly. Now place the carpet tile itself directly on top of the adhesive disc. They should match up evenly.
Laying Down Rows
After the first tile is down repeat step 4 but follow the initial tile out to the wall. This means once a corner in the center grid has been picked, fill out its rows until they reach the far walls. Once a set of rows is finished and there are no overlapping tiles or visible gaps, proceed to lay down the next row. Perform this action until all possible rows are exhausted. Supposedly only the first row needs to be adhered to the base floor and the rest can just fit in around it. However, being that many adhesive discs are provided with any flooring tile purchase, it seems more sensible to use as many as there are tiles. There is no other way to ensure that your tiles, especially if under constant wear and tear, will remain stationary for years to come.
Filling in Gaps, Corners, Edging
The most difficult aspect of a carpet tile install is the finishing details. That is, once as many full carpet tiles are placed in the room, the installer needs to tailor the rest of their tiles to fit uneven spaces as well as edges and corners. The best way to go about their step is to first measure the areas which need to be filled in. Then get a framing square and place it on top of an unadhered carpet tile. Employ a fine sharp knife, like a new box cutter, and slice the dimensions into the tile. It may take several cuts before coming through the other side of thee carpet. The idea, as already emphasized, is to take your time – everything comes out better when this approach is utilized.
Enjoy your Floor
The length of the installation process varies by the size of the job as well as the experience and preparedness of the installer. Single bedroom jobs should only take a few hours. Large living room jobs can day a full day or more. Nevertheless, carpet is by far one of the easiest types of flooring to install. Enjoy your new floor!