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Saving money on home improvements during a recession is difficult, but not impossible. Even if you are unable to complete an entire job by yourself, doing part of the job may save you some valuable cash in the end. One way to save money is by tearing out your own carpet before having new carpet installed. It is an easy process and it does not require very many tools. The following will provide simple steps to follow to help you remove your old carpet.
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What You Will Need
- Face mask (to prevent inhalation of airborne particles)
- Wonder Tool
- Hammer
- Flat Head Shovel
- Stiff Bristled Broom
- Wood Block (to help remove trim)
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Steps for Removing Carpet
Step 1: Before you begin, completely clear the room where you are tearing up the carpet–remove all furniture. You may also want to vacuum the carpet really well to help reduce the amount of dust and other grime released in to the air as you remove the carpet.
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Step 2: Remove the baseboard and any extra nails in the room.
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NOTE: Removing the baseboard is not always required. If you are not replacing the baseboard you can leave it in place, just take great care when pulling out the carpet so you do not tear up the baseboard.
Step 3: Put on your face mask and find an exposed edge usually near a register, around a door, or in a closet and begin pulling up the carpet using a Wonder Tool. You can expect the carpet to me nailed or tacked down and depending on how old the carpet is you may encounter glued surfaces.
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Step 4: Pull back the carpet exposing the carpet pad. Use care when handling the old carpet pad because it may break apart creating a mess. Plan on pulling up the carpet and then going back to pull up the carpet pad.
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NOTE: The best way to pull up the carpet is to roll it up. You can compact it and place in your trash for disposal.
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Step 5: Once the carpet is removed, begin removing the carpet pad using the flat head shovel. This will help to release the glue used to hold the carpet pad in place during instillation.
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NOTE: The best way to dispose of the carpet pad is to place it in and industrial sized garbage bag. The carpet pad contains dust, dirt, dander and other items such as mold. To reduce the spread of these particulates in the home place the old carpet padding in the plastic bad and tie shut before removing it from the room.
Step 6: Using the Wonder Tool and a hammer, carefully remove the carpet tack strips (small boards with tons of tiny nails along the walls) and discard.
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Step 7: After the carpet and carpet pad have been removed from the room, remove any extra nails from the floor and use a sturdy brush to remove as much of the old glue and dirt from the floor.
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Step 8: Vacuum and clean the floor before installing new carpet.
Removing the carpet yourself can reduce the overall labor cost when having new carpet installed. Check with your service provider to find out how the cost of installation is calculated and if you will save money by removing and disposing of the old carpet yourself.
Do you have any home improvement tips to save money?