Warning: I wasted $1,200 on a cheap carpet pad that ruined my install

Tbh I figured a cheaper pad would save me money on a big job last fall. I went with a 6lb rebond pad instead of the usual 8lb stuff to cut costs. The carpet started showing wrinkles after just 3 months, and the padding crumbled under the seams. I had to rip it all out and redo the whole room, which cost me double in materials and labor. Has anyone else gotten burned trying to save a few bucks on pad quality?

3 comments

3 Comments

seanlee29d ago

I read somewhere that one guy tested this exact thing and found the cheap pads actually make the carpet wear out way faster because they don't hold up the fibers right. The 6lb rebond pad compresses down to almost nothing within a few months, and then your carpet is basically sitting on bare concrete with a thin layer of dust. It's one of those things where the savings upfront just isn't worth the headache down the line. I've heard the same story from a few flooring guys who say they won't even install with that stuff anymore.

derekjenkins29d agoMost Upvoted

Man, I feel your pain because I went through almost the exact same thing a couple years ago on my basement. I ended up ripping out the cheap 6lb pad after about 8 months when I noticed the carpet looked wavy near the doorways. What finally worked for me was switching to a 7.5lb high density pad with a moisture barrier built in, cost me about 40 bucks more but the carpet laid flat and hasn't budged since. The key thing I learned is the density matters way more than the thickness, that fluffier cheap stuff just collapses.

eric72314d ago

Blamed my wavy carpet on ghosts for like three months before I figured out it was just my crappy 4lb pad giving up. Ended up spending a whole Saturday pulling up the carpet and finding dust bunnies that looked like they'd been there since the 90s underneath. Swear my back still hurts just thinking about it but at least now I know density matters more than thickness.