That painter's trick for stretching carpet over stairs actually worked for me

I was getting frustrated with wrinkles on a 15-step job last Tuesday, so I tried heating the backing with a hair dryer before I stretched it and it laid down flat as glass. Has anyone else found a weird DIY trick that saved them on a tight spot?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_tessa4d ago

My buddy Dave tried that same hair dryer trick on a 16-foot section of linoleum in his kitchen last month and it worked way better than he expected too. He was about to rip it all up and start over but figured why not give it a shot first. The heat made the backing so flexible it practically molded into the corners without any of the usual bubbles or ripples lol. He did burn his thumb a little on the metal nozzle though so I'd say keep a rag handy if you try that again. Honestly I think half the battle with flooring is just finding that one random trick nobody tells you about.

susansingh4d ago

Wait, he burned his thumb on the nozzle but kept going anyway with the same hairdryer? That's some serious commitment to a kitchen floor, I don't think I'd have that kind of patience.