Rugs, Carpets and Carpeting - Carpet to Laminate transition

Hi,

I've a 18'x3' walkway (or corridor, whatever it is called) either side of which are 4 bedrooms and a restroom. Currently, the walkway and the bedrooms are all carpeted. I am thinking of laminating the walkway.

I guess I need to cut off the carpet at the door to each bedroom, install a new track strip at the doors and hook the carpet back to it.

Questions:

1) Am I missing anything else in my thinking ?

2) How difficult is it to re-stretch the carpet and fix it back to new track strip ? Since it's still affixed to the track strips on all 3 sides completely and on major portion of 4th side, do I even need to stretch it ? Or can I just pull it tight and hook it to the new track strip ?

3) How do you guys cut the carpet nicely and straight without those loose fibers ?

4) What are the tools required to do this job ?

thanks

help me please!

Carpets Done Wright should be along shortly.........sorry your question got missed! :o

OK.. There is a molding that goes along with the laminate. I call it bull nose. It is flat on one end. nail this to the floor and then put the tack strip 1/4" from the nose and then cut the carpet just over the molding then just tack it down with a putty knife or whatever you can find. I use my stair tool.. as far as restretching the carpet. If you do not have a kicker then nail the carpet like 2" back from the molding and then just pull it back down to the molding. this may help you. Let us know if you need more..

it's called a carpet end cap, or carpet reducer:

read this (http://images.google.ca/imgres?imgurl=http://www.laminate-flooring.com/images/quarter.gif&imgrefurl=http://www.laminate-flooring.com/installation_video-flooring.htm&h=125&w=274&sz=5&tbnid=mu8uHi4C7SYJ:&tbnh=49&tbnw=109&hl=en&start=2&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dlaminate%2Btransition%2Bpieces%26svnum%3D10%26hl%3Den%26lr%3D)

but i would think that would have to be the last step in the process, not the first. how would he slip the laminate underneath it? it needs to be put on last, AFTER the planks have been laid.

i think he should cut a line through the carpet at each doorway leaving it a bit long, pull up the carpet in the hallway, lay the laminate & then deal with the doorway trim last. then finish off the carpet very last.

1.) No, thats how it is done. Make sure to cut the carpet longer then needed, or see where the seam in the carpet at the door way is now, so you can plan for that, because you don't want a little sliver on seam tape to try and tuck. Remove all the seam tape from the carpet backing to make it easier to tuck into the gully between the tackstrip and endcap transition molding.


2.) You really do need to stretch it, or it will cause premature delamination of the carpet backings(primary/secondary) Then you have wrinkles and damaged carpet. You may get by with a knee kicker, but if the room is big you may need the pole stretcher.


3.) A razor knife. Then trim the wild nylon primary backing. I use latex seam sealer in the gully to prevent future fraying and wild nylon strings.


4.) Just the carpet, you need a razor knife, seam sealer, knee kicker, tackstrip, hammer, reenforcement nails for the tackstrip, and some kind of dull knife to tuck the carpet into the gully.

OK. Thanks. I'll figure out how this knee kicker works. Stretching was the only unknown part for me. 3 bedrooms are small 10'x10'. Master bed is atleast 1 1/2 times that....don't remember the measurements.

1) Are there seams in the carpet at the doorways ususally ? Or do they just run it into the room as a single piece as much as possible ?

2) If there ARE seams, are there tack strips underneath on either side of the seam ?


thanks

The seams are under the carpet with no tacks.. The seam should be under the door. There are few occasions that you run through the door with no seam.

If I can mill a cut, out. To minimize seams, I'll do it in a heartbeat.