It’s true that a lot of bad trade work was done in Calgary during the boom. But the truth is a lot of good work was done too. In fact, during the boom builders had no problems paying flooring installers for extra services in order to have a better installation, things like cleaning fees or paying for extra labor to sand down or plani-patch (applying a light weight concrete) the joints in the sub-floor.

The step of making sure the joints in the sub-floor were flush, was an important step in carpet installation. If one side of a joint in the sub-floor is up even an 1/8th of an inch or if there is a gap in the joints, this could eventually lead to the carpet stretching when there is traffic on it.

I have unfortunately seen it a lot. Here is an example I found:

I was curious to know why there was a ripple in the carpet at this particular point. I disengaged the carpet and rolled it back. It was obvious what was wrong under the carpet. The gap in the sub-floor matched up perfectly to the ripple in the the carpet.

The good news is the carpet can be fixed!

It might be surprising that I can sometimes tell who installed the carpet in your home. Carpet installers generally prep and install the same way time after time. How an installer fastened the smoothedge down, what seam tape or iron they used, where they did or didn’t use staples all provide some clues into who installed the carpet.

Now with that being said, I have fixed some of the best installer’s work I know. Installers that I would be happy to have in my home and obviously it’s likely an issue with the carpet rather than the installation.

But then sometimes I see this:

What does this picture reveal? Well it’s a wood subfloor in the home and the installer used smoothedge designed for concrete to install the carpet. This means that the smoothedge wasn’t installed properly. It wasn’t able to hold any tension when the carpet was stretched. I was able to pull this stick up with just my bare hands. It was no surprise that this carpet started rippling.

But never fear, we were able to correct the deficient installation and re-stretch and repair the carpet better than when it was new!

Hooray! I’m sure all Albertans are cheering on the opening up of the province on Canada Day. We as well are happy to let you know we are two and half weeks past our second vaccination. According to health professionals we are in that fully vaccinated category. We will continue to wear masks on appointments and work with our clients individual needs. We are one step closer to getting back on track!

Great news! On April 27th I received the first round of the Astra Zeneca vaccine as it was the only one I was eligible to receive. My arm was definitely sore and I didn’t feel great on the evening of April 28th, but I am back to my chipper self and still following the Covid guidelines set out by AB Health.

Thanks for stopping by! My wife and I will be primary caregivers for my mother who is having a surgery early January, so we are quarantining and unavailable until the week of January 25th. The office and booking is open but we are unavailable to do any actual work in your home until then. Thank you for understanding and stay safe!

When I think of a master craftsmen, I think of renaissance sculptors like Michelangelo. Imagine the work to take a piece of marble and create these beautiful forms that even hundreds of years after their creation still touch the hearts and imaginations of people today.

Now I’m not so bold as to try to compare my humble carpet work with the work of master artists, but I will say the only way to be really good at something is to be singly focused. I have seen this first hand in my ability as a carpet installer during the boom. With endless reps and seemingly unlimited work, I noticed my ability even after 12-13 years of carpet installing improve consistently. The truth is that the extra 5-10% ability is the difference between doing good work most of the time and doing excellent work all the time.

Even when it comes to re-stretching, it is the endless reps that makes excellent results time after time.

So why don’t we clean carpets? “A jack of all trades and a master of none,” is a phrase that comes to mind. When it comes to cleaning and when it comes to repairing it is often attention to the smallest details that produce the best results. I would rather do the best work possible for my clients instead of trying to do too many things and that means that I specialize in carpet repairs.

Edit: *** We are now two weeks past our second vaccination****

During this time, our own safety as well as the safety of our clients is our utmost concern. We are following all guidelines provided by the City of Calgary, the Alberta provincial government, as well as the federal government. For more information on these guidelines please visit: https://www.alberta.ca/restrictions-on-businesses.aspx

We are following all public health measures that prevent the risk of transmitting COVID-19.

If you have any questions or concerns feel free to reach out to us by phone or email.

We live in the real world. Ask a carpenter who builds houses how straight a 2×4 is he’ll say pretty straight but rarely perfectly straight. Ask a carpet guy about the factory tolerances in carpet and underlay and you’ll like find out that a carpet and underlay changes dramatically from one end of the roll to the other.

I have documented a problem underlay before that was simply a bad underlay. But this problem is common to many different manufactures and different underlays.

This underlay is rated as an 8lb. (density) and 7/16″ (height). What this picture illustrates is the height difference and density difference when two pieces of underlay are beside each other. (This is likely even from the same roll of underlay.) Most underlays come in six foot widths so underlay joints throughout a home are generally not a problem, trusting the underlay is manufactured to spec.

So what happens depending on the type of carpet, is when a person walks over the carpet where there is a flaw like this in the underlay, the joint in the underlay will actually telegraph through the carpet and create a ripple in the carpet. Generally speaking in repairs where this is the cause of the carpet problem, it can be stretched out, but there may be a risk in the future of the carpet stretching again.

In any event, with all of our carpet repairs we fix the carpet to the highest degree possible. When we are stretching carpet we can feel if it’s loose. If it’s loose we keep stretching! It’s not exactly rocket science but unfortunately not all installer/carpet repairs guys care.

We offer the best warranty in the business and proudly stand behind our carpet repairs and fixes.

I’ve repaired a lot of carpets over the years (decades actually….yikes!), so I have seen many common mistakes that happen with installations. And here is one:

The original installer had stuck the seams to the underlay! Carpet generally comes in twelve foot widths so in doorways between the hallway or rooms wider than twelve feet, there will be a seam or connection in the carpet. This is normal and good. The problem occurs when the installer sticks the seam to the underlay. This prevents the carpet from being stretched properly as the carpet is stuck to the floor! So in this repair the hallway had never been stretched at all during the initial installation! No wonder it rippled!

Unfortunately this never has to occur as good installers use a very very low tech solution when seaming, called a flat board. Here is mine:

Unfortunately not all installers do this, but all that needs to be done is place a thin board underneath the carpet, over top of the underlay, do the seam and then remove the board before the area is stretched. This low tech solution prevents the above mentioned problem and makes the seams infinitely stronger than working over the underlay directly. As well when a carpet is not perfectly straight this little board helps the installer correct carpet flaws.

Tricks of the trade are the difference between craftsmen and labourers. We take pride in our work and our craftsmanship is evident on all of our projects. You can be confident that we have the experience and know-how to repair any project the right way!