[Home](https://www.referralflooring.com/)/[Services](https://www.referralflooring.com/services)/Carpet Carpet # Carpet installation, power stretched, on the right cushion. Carpet is still the right floor for bedrooms, stairs and any room where a fall matters more than a spill. It is also the floor most often installed badly, because a carpet that was kicked in rather than power stretched looks fine on day one and ripples in year two. The carpet trade has a published residential installation standard, CRI 105, and the figures below are quoted from it. Supplied and installed, with the cushion, the tack strip and the transitions, and the old carpet, underpad, staples and tack strip out the same day. The samples come to the house with the free estimate. How it goes down ## Stretch-in over separate cushion, which is the residential method. The standard describes stretch-in as installing carpet under tension over a separate cushion, using tack strips fastened at all walls and other vertical abutments around the perimeter.[1] Every word in that sentence is a step people skip. ### Tack strip The anchor for the tension - Minimum 1" wide and ¼" thick[1] - Pins angled toward the wall, and never protruding through the carpet[1] - The gully between strip and wall slightly less than the carpet thickness, not exceeding 3/8"[1] - Wider architectural strip, or two strips, for runs over 30 feet[1] ### Cushion Chosen for the carpet, not the budget - Must match the carpet manufacturer's recommendation or the warranty can be void[1] - Residential cushion thickness should not exceed 7/16"[1] - Laid in the longest lengths possible, seams at right angles to the carpet seams or offset at least 6"[1] - Stapled or glued at seams and around the perimeter[1] ### Power stretching Not a knee kicker on its own - Stretched to the manufacturer's instructions; absent those, tufted carpet with synthetic backing is stretched a minimum of 1% in length and width[1] - Patterned carpet may need more stretch to hold the pattern match[1] - Cut with at least 3" of trimming allowance along each wall[1] ### Included, not extra Ask what other quotes leave out - [Old carpet, pad, staples and tack strip out](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-removal-and-disposal), same day - Cushion, tack strip and transitions - Furniture moved, there and back - Doors cut where the new height needs it The measurable part ## The conditions the standard sets, before and after. Carpet is more sensitive to the room than people expect. These are the published conditions, and they are why we ask you to have the heat running in January. ### Acclimation The standard recommends that carpet and installation materials be allowed to acclimate in the installation area for a minimum of 24 hours at 65 to 95°F, protected from soil, dust and moisture.[1] ### Temperature and humidity Installation is not to begin until the HVAC system is operational and the conditions are held for at least 48 hours before, during, and 72 hours after completion: indoor temperature of 65 to 95°F with a maximum relative humidity of 65%, and a substrate surface temperature not below 65°F.[1] A cold slab in an unheated basement is the usual way this one is missed. ### Meeting a hard floor Where carpet meets another floor covering, the edges are to be protected with a transition moulding. Where no moulding is used, the hard surface should not sit more than 1/16" higher than the total carpet thickness, and the carpet edge gets a minimum 1/8" bead of seam sealer along the whole transition.[1] ### On stairs Tread, riser and nose must be clean, dry and structurally sound, and the stair nose return should be rounded to ¾" to 1" so a sharp edge does not cut the carpet or cushion.[1] Tack strip goes on each tread with the pins pointing toward the riser, and the cushion extends over the nose.[1] More on [carpet, runners and hardwood on stairs](https://www.referralflooring.com/stair-nosing-treads-and-spindles). ### Moisture testing, and radiant heat The standard notes that most residential stretch-in installations do not require moisture testing.[1] Glue-down over a slab is different, and so is radiant heat: the standard calls for special consideration of carpet, cushion, method and adhesive over radiant floors, and caps the substrate surface temperature at 85°F, or 29°C.[1] Sources 1. The Carpet and Rug Institute, [CRI 105 Standard for Installation of Residential Carpet](https://carpet-rug.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/03/CRI-105-STANDARD-For-INSTALLATION-of-RESIDENTIAL-CARPET.pdf), 2019 edition. Stretch-in installation, tack strip dimensions and gully, separate cushion selection and thickness, amount of stretch, layout and trimming, transitions to other surfaces, product acclimation, ambient temperature and humidity, carpet on stairs, moisture testing, and radiant-heated floors. Standard last read 9 September 2026 Related ## Read next. - [Carpet or hardwood on stairs, and what about a runnerCarpet has the safety edge. A fitted runner gets most of it back.](https://www.referralflooring.com/stair-nosing-treads-and-spindles) - [What is under the carpet in an older houseTack strip, staples, sometimes original hardwood worth keeping.](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-order-of-work) - [Fixing squeaky floors before the new carpet goes downThe only time fixing the subfloor is cheap is when it is exposed.](https://www.referralflooring.com/why-new-floors-squeak-cup-and-gap) - [Thinking hardwood instead?What solid hardwood needs from the room and the subfloor.](https://www.referralflooring.com/hardwood-floor-installation) Next step ## Feel the carpet samples in the room they are going in. Pile, colour and cushion all read differently at home. The samples come with the free estimate, and you get a firm number before we leave. [Book a free estimate](https://www.referralflooring.com/#book) [Call 289-689-4242](tel:+12896894242) Phone [289-689-4242](tel:+12896894242) Email [referralflooring@gmail.com](mailto:referralflooring@gmail.com) Warranty 1 year on floor repair and installation. Area [Burlington](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-burlington), [Hamilton](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-hamilton), [Oakville](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-oakville), [Grimsby](https://www.referralflooring.com/flooring-grimsby) and the [wider Golden Horseshoe](https://www.referralflooring.com/service-area). --- Source: https://www.referralflooring.com/carpet-installation