Gravity got me on a stair job in Nashville, made me re-think my whole approach.

Was installing a 12-foot runner on a curved staircase last Thursday, and my knee kicker slipped on the third tread, sending the carpet sliding down like a runaway sled. I had to tear it all out and re-stretch from the top with double the tacks. Has anybody else had a stair install go sideways like that, or am I just bad at reading the angle?

2 comments

2 Comments

kevin_wells4612d ago

Hold up, you're using a knee kicker on a curved stair runner? That's more of a power stretcher job, you're fighting the wrong tool for that curve.

park.tara11d ago

Nah, knee kickers are perfect for tight stairwork like that, you just gotta set the pins deeper and hit it from the correct angle. A power stretcher on a 12-foot curved runner is asking for trouble, way too bulky to control the tension on those turns. I've done maybe 30 curved stairs with just a knee kicker and never had a slip like that, it's all about anchoring the top tread first with a solid row of tacks and working down slowly. Your real mistake was probably not using enough kicker pads on the top landing to lock that carpet in place before you started. Next time, try a lighter stretch with more bite on each step and see if that holds better.