Looking back at the old knee kicker versus the power stretcher

I remember doing a whole house in '98 with just a knee kicker and a lot of elbow grease, took us three full days. Then around 2005, my boss finally got a power stretcher for a big commercial job at a hotel in Dayton. The difference was night and day, we cut the install time in half and the stretch was perfect, no callbacks for wrinkles. It used to be a real fight to get tension in a big room, now it's just a matter of setting the poles and cranking it. I still see some guys using the old way, but man, that tool changed the game for me. Anyone else make that switch and never look back?

2 comments

2 Comments

fiona_reed17d ago

Oh man, the power stretcher is a total game changer. I did a few side jobs with a buddy who only had a knee kicker, and my back was screaming after one room. Then we rented a power stretcher for a big living room with a huge open floor. We got it done before lunch, and the carpet was tight as a drum. I can't imagine going back to kicking all day. What do you do with your old knee kicker now, just keep it for tiny closets?

the_dylan16d ago

My crew in Philly still uses a knee kicker on about half our jobs. You get a better feel for the carpet's give on tricky, angled walls. That power stretcher just can't read the room the same way.