I used to hate power stretchers until I saw the difference on a big hall

For years I only used knee kickers for residential rooms. Then I got a call for a 40 foot long hallway in a house near Cleveland and my coworker loaned me his power stretcher. The seams were WAY tighter and I finished in half the time. Has anyone else been slow to switch tools like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

allen.charlie1mo ago

Yeah the knee kicker is fine for small bedrooms but on a long run like that you're just asking for wavy seams. I did a 30 foot restaurant hallway with a knee kicker once and had to redo three sections because they kept puckering. Power stretcher is one of those tools you hate buying but then you use it once and realize why everybody tells you to just get it.

the_adam1mo ago

30 feet isn't even that crazy long, I've done plenty of hallway jobs with just a knee kicker and never had waves. A power stretcher is nice for sure but I dunno if it's mandatory unless you're working with super cheap carpet or something. Plenty of guys get by fine without one, you just gotta be more careful with your technique.

christopher_wells41mo ago

Start by saying I still don't own one. I've been kicking carpet for 15 years and I'm with @the_adam on this for the most part. I did a 50 foot church hallway last fall with just my knee kicker and it laid flat as a pancake, no waves or puckers anywhere. The trick is to really work the carpet into the tack strip at both ends before you stretch the middle, and make sure you're using the right head for the carpet pile. I borrowed a power stretcher once for a tricky job and it was nice for sure, but I didn't feel like it changed my life or anything. Maybe I'm just stubborn but I'd rather spend that money on a good seam roller.