Old timer at the supply house changed my carpet seaming trick

I was grabbing some tack strip at the local supply house in Phoenix and this old guy in line behind me saw my seam tape. He asked what iron I was using and when I told him, he just said 'your seams are gonna open up in the summer heat with that thing.' He showed me a different way to heat the tape from the backing side instead of the top. Tried it on a job last week and the seam is holding way better. Anyone else ever get a random tip from a stranger like that?

2 comments

2 Comments

aaronrobinson1mo ago

You ever try heating the tape from the bottom with a regular iron? I ran into the same problem years ago, seams would pop right open in July. Flipping the carpet back and running the iron on the backing for a few extra seconds changed everything. The heat sinks into the glue way better that way. Just watch you don't melt the backing though, had to learn that one the hard way.

stella_foster1mo ago

Totally agree with this approach. I tried it on some cheap carpet in a rental and it held way better than the first time when I just ironed the top. Only difference was I used a scrap piece of cotton cloth between the iron and the backing to spread the heat more evenly. Saved me from having to redo a whole hallway worth of seams.