If you hate the sight of a wrinkly rug, you’re not alone. Unfortunately, whether your rug is brand new or has been around for a few years, wrinkles and bumps can happen at any time to anyone. While wrinkles usually have to do with a bad installation job, there can sometimes be more complicated reasons why your brand new carpet selection is prematurely bunching up in the middle. Luckily, there’s an easy fix: Carpet stretching. When your rug starts to lose elasticity, there are many different ways to restore it to its natural glory, whether you go to redondo beach carpet cleaners for a professional cleaning and stretching job or rent a machine that can help you do it yourself, rug stretching is a fairly simple process that doesn’t take too much time and leaves your rug looking gorgeous. If you’re unsure about carpet stretching, here’s everything you need to know.
Rental Stretching
When your carpet starts to look bumpy or show ridges, that’s an indication that it’s loosening. While this might not seem like a major problem, it can lead to bigger issues with your rug over time. When your rug starts to lose its elasticity, it can become vulnerable to wear and tear much more easily. That’s why it’s so important to stretch your carpet before it totally loses its foundation and the backing of your rug starts to wear down, allowing the fibers to loosen. If your rug is looking less than perfect, there are plenty of tools you can rent at your local home improvement store that will make the act of carpet stretching simple and inexpensive. At many home improvement stores, you should be able to get your hands on a power stretcher, which will sink its “teeth” into sections of your carpet, stretching it out until you’re able to lose those wrinkles entirely.
You’ll also need to purchase or rent tacking strips and rug staples for pinning the rug back, protective gear to wear, and a carpet cutter for getting rid of the excess. Once you have all your equipment, you’ll be able to start stretching your rug. By going in sections, you’ll be able to use your power stretcher to stretch the rug out and create a much wider carpet. If you’re working with an area rug, you might not need to cut off the excess. However, if you’re stretching a wall-to-wall rug, you’ll need to cut it after securely tacking down your rug before the stretching process. Using a “knee-kicker,” you can stretch out the corners and ends of the carpet after installing it. If you’re getting a new rug and want to prevent your carpet from being installed incorrectly and developing wrinkles, make sure you’re not installing your new carpet with a “knee kicker” alone. While this tool can be great for stretching and securing, it’s not a great tool for installing your rug to begin with. Make sure you have professionals help you set up your rug at home so you don’t have to worry about premature wrinkles.
Professional Stretching
If you’re wary about the idea of stretching your rug yourself, plenty of professional services will be happy to do it for you. You’ll most likely need to schedule a consultation first, where your rug will be measured and re-stapled before the stretching process. While professional stretching jobs will cost more money than a DIY job, always be sure to ask about the price first. Doing the job yourself will cost you anywhere from $20 to $100 including the price of equipment. However, if you’re at all worried about using a power stretcher, going with a professional company might be best.
When Do You Need to Stretch
If you have a brand new rug that you’ve just brought home from the factory, you might notice a few bumps or waves at first as assume that your rug is poor quality. However, be sure not to panic in this instance: This is not the case. No matter how high quality your rug is, it could be subject to factor bumps, which occur within the first few months or so of laying down a new rug. After six months, your bumps will wear away after your factory-stiff rug relaxes and begins to settle into its new environment. If you’re experiencing bumps or wrinkles after the six-month mark, however, that’s the time to stretch. Bumps and ridges indicate a general loosening of your rug, which can lead to a breakdown deep inside your rug’s structure, as the glue holding everything together starts to break apart. Rather than risk dealing with a prematurely worn-down rug, make an appointment to get your rug stretched, or stretch it at home, as soon as you notice wrinkles.
