Found out the average carpet job used to take twice as long, and I finally get why my back hurts

Derek Lopez · 2026-09-10T05:40:12.121085+00:00

I was cleaning out the van last week and found an old installer manual from 1988 that someone left in a house we ripped out. It said a standard 3 bedroom stretch-in job used to take a full day and a half with two guys, mostly because they were nailing tack strip by hand and seaming with a hot iron that weighed like 30 pounds. Now me and my partner knock out the same job in about 5 hours with a power stretcher and a knee kicker that actually works. My knees still hurt though, so maybe the old timers were onto something with all that kneeling. Anyone else here ever work with the old gear, or am I the only one who keeps finding junk in customers' garages?

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Found out the average carpet job used to take twice as long, and I finally get why my back hurts | Carpet Installers - Guest Forum