Had to choose between a knee kicker and a power stretcher for a tricky hallway job

I was working on a long, narrow hallway in an old house in Tacoma last week, and the space was a real pain. The homeowner wanted a tight wall-to-wall fit with a dense berber. I had my standard knee kicker, but I also had a power stretcher in the truck that I don't break out too often. The choice was either to try and finesse it with the kicker, which is quicker in tight spots, or take the time to set up the power stretcher for what I knew would be a better stretch. I went with the power stretcher, even though it meant moving a bunch of furniture and took an extra forty minutes to set up the poles and get the angles right. The stretch was perfect, zero wrinkles, and the carpet locked in solid. It just felt right underfoot. Anyone have a good rule of thumb for when you decide it's power stretcher time versus a kicker?

3 comments

3 Comments

joelh641mo ago

Man I feel like you're way overthinking this, forty extra minutes to set up a power stretcher? I'd have just used the knee kicker and hoped for the best, maybe shoved a shoe molding on top if things got dicey. But honestly, for berber in a hallway that narrow, you probably made the right call even if it took forever. I've learned the hard way that knee kickers and tight weaves don't mix well, you end up with these little ripples that haunt you forever. Last time I tried to rush a similar job I ended up with a wave that looked like the carpet was trying to escape the room.

kim6931mo ago

Wait, @joelh64 you actually had a carpet try to escape the room? Ngl that's both hilarious and terrifying, I've never seen it that bad but I bet it looked like a magic trick gone wrong.

bettyfox21d ago

Totally get what you mean, those ripples are the worst (I still have nightmares about a shag carpet I tried to rush like 10 years ago). The knee kicker just doesn't have the grab for berber, you end up with these tiny bumps that catch the light wrong and drive you crazy every time you walk by. It's good that joelh64 took the extra time, honestly, because once that wave sets in you're either living with it or pulling the whole thing up again. Nothing worse than a carpet that looks like it's trying to make a break for the door, am I right?