Guy on my crew told me to quit stretching carpet over concrete without a pad, and after 3 jobs I finally listened

Kim Flores · 2026-10-15T06:00:05.555039+00:00

I used to skip the pad on rentals to save the landlord a few bucks, just stretch the carpet right over the slab and call it done. My lead guy Marcus finally said flat out that he would not warranty any of my work if I kept doing it, because every one of those jobs came back with wrinkles at the seams inside 6 months. I blew him off at first, but then a duplex on Fremont Street that I did in March had a big ripple by the hallway by August, and the owner wanted it fixed for free. That repair ate a whole Saturday and about $200 in materials, so I started adding the pad back in no matter what the landlord says. Turns out the pad gives the stretcher something to bite against, and the carpet stays tight way longer. Now I just tell them the pad is part of the price, take it or leave it. Anybody else had a repair come back to bite them before they changed how they do it?

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Guy on my crew told me to quit stretching carpet over concrete without a pad, and after 3 jobs I finally listened | Carpet Installers - SMM Buzz