How to Install Carpet Squares in a Home
- 1). Prepare the floor by sweeping, mopping and removing any nails or staples. Check the floor for wax. If the floor has been waxed, it must be stripped and mopped again. Allow the floor to completely dry before beginning your project.
- 2). Measure the floor to determine if any carpet tiles will need to be cut to fit from one wall to the opposite wall. Decide if you want your cut tiles to go along one wall or if you want to start in the center and cut on both sides. A determining factor may be that one wall has the entry door where you would want a full tile, so cuts should be on the back wall. Another may be setting up a pattern, in which case you would want to start in the center of the room.
- 3). Draw out the room and set up the tiles the way you have decided they should go using graph paper. This is more important if you are creating a pattern or using different colors, and to keep you on track and organize how many full tiles, cut tiles or tiles of various colors you will need.
- 4). Determine the center of the room by running a chalk line from one corner of the room to the opposite side corner, then again with the other two corners. Where the chalk lines intersect is the center. Measure one side wall and determine the center, then the opposite wall. Snap a chalk line from those two points. Do the same from the front and back walls and the lines will be set in the center to perfectly place your first tiles if you are starting at the center of the room.
- 5). Begin to lay the tiles in a corner if you are not starting in the center. Some carpet squares come with an adhesive back while others come with strips or dots that you have purchased separately. If you have a strip or dot, lay one in the corner; if it's a peel and stick, peel off the paper and lay the tile down. Press firmly on the adhesive to hold it into place.
- 6). Continue to lay the tiles next to each other in one row. Do not glue the last full tile until you measure for the cut tile. When you come to the end and have to cut a tile, lay it upside down, tucking it under the last full tile. Make a marking on the back of the tile you need to cut where the last full tile ends. Pull it back out and cut with a utility knife. Then press both the last full tile and the cut tile down into place.
- 7). Cut vent holes by bending the tile and marking the corners of the vent hole on the back of the tile. Use a measuring tape to give you straight lines between your markings and cut out the hole. Press the tile into place and put the vent cover over it.
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