DAE skip sealing the seams on synthetic carpets?

I was on a job last week installing nylon carpet in a basement. The boss always says to seal every seam with heat tape. But I noticed that on dry concrete, the adhesive holds fine without it. Saved time and material. Other guys think I'm cutting corners, but I've never had a call back. In my experience, sealing is extra work for no gain on modern adhesives. Curious if anyone else tries this. Or am I just lucky so far?

4 comments

4 Comments

annajenkins1mo agoTop Commenter

Oh man, Spencer's story gives me flashbacks! Remember that big heat wave a few summers ago? My neighbor's basement carpet looked perfect until that humidity hit, then every single unsealed seam puckered up like a bad zipper. The installer swore the glue was fine on the dry slab. It was a total mess to fix. That extra step with the tape is just cheap insurance, right?

sean_green444d ago

So you're saying I should seal my seams too?

sean511mo ago

Spencer's right about moisture, but my basement stayed bone dry for years.

spencera771mo ago

Whoa, hold on. That's playing with fire. Basements are sneaky, even dry concrete can wick moisture over time. I've ripped up enough jobs where unsealed seams let dampness in, then the adhesive fails and the edges curl. Maybe your glue holds now, but give it a few seasons of humidity changes. Saving an hour isn't worth the risk of a whole reinstall.