by James Abbott

Created on: June 13, 2008   Last Updated: June 18, 2008

Removing carpet may seem like something of a no-brainer' "Well, I just give a firm tug, don't I?" This attitude is not misguided; of course the removal of a carpet, should be easier than the fitting of one.
When having work done by professionals, removing the carpet yourself can be a great help; it saves the professionals' time and potentially your money.
Most carpeting is secured to the floor by tack-track' or carpet tack strip'; wooden strips (usually) nailed to the under floor, the upper surface is covered with tiny pins that engage the carpet and keep the whole thing stretched. The track strips should run around the perimeter of the carpeted floor.

Amongst your carpet tools you will need a pair of pliers. A corner of the carpet should be pulled away from the track with the pliers. Then, working around the edge of the room, relieve the carpet from the grip of the tack strip underneath.
Once removed from the tack strip, the carpet can be sectioned into strips roughly 3 feet wide, allowing them to be rolled (and tied, if necessary). Be sure to take care when cutting, whilst using a Stanley knife (or other utility knife amongst your carpet tools) it is easy to scratch or score any hardwood flooring underneath not ideal if you're going back to the original flooring. I personally always use a hooked' Stanley blade; it allows you to engage the blade, cut and lift the carpet away from the flooring all at the same time.
If the carpet was held in place tack strip alone, great! If not, you've probably discovered a host of tiny staples that may have been used to keep any padding (underlay) in place. If this is the case having a pair of narrow (needle) nosed pliers amongst your bag of carpet tools will make the job of removing those staples much easier don't yank at them; grip, twist and roll.
In the unlikely event that the carpet has been glued to the floor underneath, some sort of mineral spirit can be used to weaken the adhesive. Adhesives are more frequently used on concrete floors; remnants of the adhesive may still be stuck to the floor, so be sure to have a floor or decent wall scraper in your carpet tool kit.
The final must-have' in your carpet tool kit is a pry bar. Removal of any carpet tack strip is near impossible without it (that is assuming that you want the underlying hardwood to be left in good condition).
Of course, if you're removing a carpet simply to replace with a newer one, then leave the tack strip in place and stretch and fit the new carpet on the existing

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