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Debate: Do you stretch the carpet tight or let it relax first?

I used to always pull carpet super tight right out of the box on every job in Phoenix. Then I had a room in a Mesa house that buckled bad after a week because the heat made it shrink. Now I wonder if giving it a day to settle in the space is better. What do you all do in hot climates like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

stellablack23d ago

You gotta check the humidity level when you install, not just the temp. I did a house in Tucson last summer where the AC was running full blast, super dry air, carpet felt tight but then when monsoon hit that room swelled up like a sponge. Had to trim the edges again and it still had ripples. Now I pull it medium tight and leave the power stretcher off until the next day if the weather is changing that week. Way less callbacks that way.

the_brian22d ago

Funny you mention that, I was just watching a video from one of those flooring supply house guys out in Phoenix and he was saying the same thing. He said he's started leaving a cheap hygrometer in the room during install just to see where the numbers are sitting. Said he had a job where the humidity was 15% when he stretched it and then it hit 60% a week later and the whole floor buckled. Makes you wonder why nobody talks about this stuff in the training videos, right?