How to lay a carpet with a seam?

Question

Refreshing my memory been a while so wondering how to lay carpet with a seam. Don't have enough carpet so have some extra carpet that looks the same that I need to use so wanting to lay the carpet with a seam so all the carpet will look as one.

Answer 1

Practice - practice - practice


First, the carpet pieces all need the fibers going in the same direction....if you can't do that, it won't matter how skilled you are at seaming a carpet, the piles running different dirctions will stand out.

Clean cuts - you need a clean cut along the seam, on BOTH pieces to get them to look good when they are joined.

Two kinds of tape - adhesive, and 'carpet' tape (which needs a seaming iron).

BEFORE the carpet is stretched for the room, the adjacent pieces of carpet need to be joined. This involves making a straight, clean cut on both edges - this cut should match identically. I achieve this by overlapping the two pieces, and using a straight edge, cut through both layers at once. (You need a VERY sharp blade).
Next, apply the seaming tape to the underside of the carpet. I prefer to use the professional grade carpet tape, and I own all the necessary carpet tools to do this. If you do not own them, they can be rented from a local business that rents tools and equipment. I wouldnt make the investment in tools for one room of carpet.
If you are using carpet tape, cut it to fit the length of the seam (actually allow it to extend beyond the ends of the seam, for a couple of inches) Plug in the seaming iron, allow it to heat up, and then place it UNDER the carpet, but ON the tape. As the seaming iron heats up the tape, slide it along the length of the seam, pulling the carpet edges together behind it, and press them firmly into the tape. (A roller is handy for this) Do NOT overlap the edges, do NOT allow them to pucker...this is why a good clean cut is so important.

Allow the tape to cool, and then you can stretch the carpet and trim it out.

Have Fun