Found a weird trick for stretching carpet in tight closets

I had this closet in a house out in Denver last week that was maybe 3 feet wide and 5 feet deep. My knee kicker just couldn't get the right angle no matter how I positioned myself. After struggling for 20 minutes I tried laying a scrap piece of plywood flat inside the closet and kneeling on that while using a smaller hand stretcher. It gave me the leverage I needed to get a solid stretch without tearing the backing. Took maybe 5 minutes after that. Anyone else ever use a makeshift platform like that for tight spaces?

3 comments

3 Comments

pat_coleman1mo ago

Gotta disagree with you there... making a platform just adds more time and hassle when you could just pull the carpet tight by hand and staple it down for a closet that small.

john_cooper1mo ago

I mean, I hear what you're saying about just hand pulling it, but I think you're underestimating how much tension you actually need in a closet that tight. If you just pull it by hand and staple it down, you're probably going to get wrinkles or bubbles within a month because the carpet isn't stretched tight enough. The hand stretcher and plywood trick gives you a solid anchor point so you can really crank on it without the backing ripping or the carpet bunching up. Idk, maybe it's just me but I've seen too many closets where people took shortcuts and the carpet looks loose after a few weeks. A few extra minutes with a platform saves you from coming back to fix it later.

gavin_kelly911mo ago

Nah, hand pulling a closet that small works fine if you know what you're doing.