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Flooring Carpet Q's & A's Repair | Removal | Recarpeting | Other Can't find a solution to your problem? Post a question in our Forums. Carpet Rippling What causes my wall to wall carpet to ripple and what can I do to prevent it? I have had the carpet stretched professionally twice in 5 years. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do to prevent this problem. Just plan on having it stretched professionally every few years. If you changed padding it might help, but the cost would not make it feasible. Start saving and replace the carpet. I would suggest a different brand when you do replace it, but until then, INSIST that whoever restretches it uses a stretcher instead of just a knee kicker. Don't let 'em snow you by saying the kicker will do the job...it'll take out the ripples, but the stretcher will make it tight like a banjo string =) Advertisement Contact me to place your ad here Mushrooms Growing in Carpet Edge... Between the carpet and the shower in my bathroom, there are MUSHROOMS growing! How do I get rid of them without damaging the carpet? This is a sign of a major moisture problem that is probably a lot worse then just ruining your carpet. You need to pull up that carpet and see where the moisture is coming from and it may be a broken shower pan. Which also means you may have rotting joists underneath. This seems to be a problem that has been going on for awhile since the moisture is prevalent enough to cause mushroom spores to germinate. This says to me that the moisture is NEVER drying out. You should call someone in right away before it escalates even more into a very expensive problem. Hate to say this but you maybe at that point already. Removing Candle Wax from Carpet How do I go about removing candle wax from my carpet? Should I try placing paper towels over the top of the wax then set my iron on low heat to melt the wax? I usually place newspaper over it and then iron the newspaper. It takes lots of sheets of newspaper but it gets it all up. Repairing Burns in Carpet I have several burn marks on carpet. What is the easy way to repair them? My dog chewed a spot in the carpet. Here's how I fixed it... 1. cut out all the damaged fibers. Do not cut the carpet backing. 2. spread the fibers around the area so that they are leaning away from the damaged area. This allows you to get an accurate pattern of the damaged area. 3. cut a paper pattern of the damaged area. the pattern should be cut so it can lay on the carpet backing, right up to the fibers surrounding the damaged area. 4. using the paper pattern, cut a scrap of matching carpeting. this step is where the habit of never throwing out scrap carpeting comes in handy. 5. check for fit, then install patch in hole with hot glue around edges. 6. brush fibers back and forth with fingers to make them all stand up straight again. 7. trim the fibers on the patch with sharp scissors to match height of surrounding area. Now that I fixed the carpet this way, I can't find the patch again...it's that good! more First cut off all the blackened fibers. Then using some fibers cut from a closet corner or other out of the way place (under a baseboard heater?) Glue the new fibers in. I think you have to have a little artist in you. The trick of course is to match the density.. length etc.

Damp Carpet w/Rust Spot & Moldy Odor

We've just noticed a rust strain on the carpet under a plastic carpet protector(used to allow a chair to roll freely). When we lifted the protector we smelled a moldy odor and the carpet felt slightly damp. Our house sits on a slab. Any ideas?

Yes.. don't put down anymore plastic. Typically for basements, but for your home as well since it is on a slab, you should not put down a carpet, pad or other covering which does not "breathe".. that is let the moisture through. If you trap it, as you found.. it will lead to mold and mildew.

Removing Old Carpet

I am in the process of trying to remove old carpet. I believe it is tacked on, and I would like to know the best way to remove it.

Actually, I have found just finding a loose or semi loose edge and ripping it up works best.

Carpet is typically only attached at the wall edges, often only with a sort of toothed board which grabs and holds it. Once you get it started, it will come up easy.

Measuring for Carpet

We are going to be recarpeting our stairs and hallway. How do we measure the floor so we know how many yards of carpet we need to buy?

Will you have it installed or do you plan to do it yourself. If you are having it done, they will usually measure for you and give you an estimate free.

If you want a rough idea.. break the areas down into squares and multiply the lengths times the widths adding each section. Divide the total area by 9 to give you square yards. This is not exactly what you will need, since there may be pieces that require waste based on the shapes of your rooms. But this will be close.

Carpet Runner on Stairs

How do I make a stair runner go around the corner?

I am not much of a carpet guy, but I believe short of having a piece of carpet big enough to encompass the all the turns... you will need to piece it together. You can hide the seams in the bottom inside corner of a step.

You can't bend the carpet around a corner.. Nor would you want to cut a 45 and piece it together across the landing.

Hide the seam in the step.

Masonic vs. Gypcrete as Leveling Agent

Can someone educate on the pro's and con's of each? We are trying to level a concrete floor, without going through the expense of poring concrete.

You can buy cement based leveling agents without having to pour the whole floor. They are stated as being called leveling agent. Just an extra thought for you even though I do not know what type of top flooring your are putting down.

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Click here for our Flooring Tips Article Click here for our "Green" Spring Cleaning Article Click here for our Moisture In The Home Article