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How to Install Carpet in a Mobile Home

Giselle Diamond

Your mobile home carpet isn't as pretty as it was when you first bought it. It looks dull and dirty even after shampooing and sweeping. Now is the time to replace that old carpet. You can check with your home owner's guide to see how it was installed in the first place.

Installing a carpet in a mobile home will be helpful and useful information to making your home look comfortable and clean again.

Tip

Make sure the carpet is measured to fit properly before laying it down. Do this by measuring the floors where the carpet needs to be replaced. Use decorative moulding to replace the old.

Warning

Use safety glasses or goggles when using a nail gun or when using nails. Keep the mobile home well ventilated when using glue. Use caution when working where small children may be. Use a face mask when dealing with old carpet and sanding. This will cut down on the dust being inhaled.

  1. Move the furniture off the carpet that's being replaced.

  2. Remove any moulding that is around the floors and walls. Gently pull with a claw hammer and carefully remove it. This can be put back when you are done.

  3. Remove old carpeting and carpet padding. Most of the time you can just pull up the old carpet. However there are times when you are working with a large room and are not able to remove the carpet in one piece. If this is the case, cut the carpet up into strips in order to remove it.

  4. Remove vents any vents that are in the floor.

  5. Pull up the old carpet padding and the tack strip which is used to hold the carpet down.

  6. Make sure the sub flooring is in good shape, such as warped flooring or mildew that needs to be removed. This can removed by sanding it down, by using sand paper or an electrical sander.

  7. Go around the edge of the wall and floor and remove any old floor that may have gotten stuck in the cracks. Use a carpet cutting knife for this step.

  8. Clean the floor by sweeping with a broom then use a shop vacuum to suck up any small amounts of debris. At this time, if you have any nail holes fill them in with filler.

  9. Prepare the floor with glue. Apply a thin layer of glue, such as polyvinyl acetate to the floor. You will want to concentrate largely on the corners and the edges of the walls. This is because you will need to push or stretch the carpet in the middle of the room to the wall's edges and will want it to move freely.

  10. Stretch the carpeting to each corner and use a staple gun and staple the carpeting around the perimeter. Use a nail gun to nail down the carpet. If the carpet has a seam or what is termed as a marriage seam, make sure it fits together properly by aligning the carpet.

  11. Put moulding back around the floor and wall. Nail the molding in place, piece by piece. Your molding will typically sit right above the carpeting. You may need to cut the pieces of molding to accommodate your wall length. This can be done by scoring it with a utility knife and then sawing through the score marks with a hand saw.

  12. Sweep the carpet with the industrial shop vacuum cleaner. This sucks up any dust from sanding, debris and loose nails.

The Drip Cap

  • Your mobile home carpet isn't as pretty as it was when you first bought it.
  • You can check with your home owner's guide to see how it was installed in the first place.
  • However there are times when you are working with a large room and are not able to remove the carpet in one piece.
  • Remove vents any vents that are in the floor.
  • Make sure the sub flooring is in good shape, such as warped flooring or mildew that needs to be removed.
  • Clean the floor by sweeping with a broom then use a shop vacuum to suck up any small amounts of debris.
  • Prepare the floor with glue.
  • Put moulding back around the floor and wall.