Carpet tiles have come a long way in recent years. Carpet tiles are available in a range of designs, colors, and pile depths in order to fit any with any decor. Deep piles, from classy and comfortable plush to touchable modern shag are perfect for bedrooms and living spaces. In high traffic areas, such as offices and kitchens, loop pile is fairly flat and handles high use very well. Installing carpet tiles is easier than traditional carpet or even ceramic and linoleum tiles.
- To install carpet tiles, you will have to remove any current carpeting. While tiles can be installed over concrete or hard flooring such as linoleum, they can not be adhered to carpet. Remove any nails or other debris left after removing old carpeting before you begin. Tiles must be applied to a clean and dry surface.
- Now, find the center point of the room. You will need to have a chalk line, available to purchase at any hardware store. Diagonally, from corner to corner, snap the chalk line. Repeat on the remaining two corners. You should now have a giant X. Where the two lines meet is your center point.
- Center the first tile over the center point. Weigh it down but do not affix it to the subfloor yet. Using your chalkline, snap a line from wall to wall encompassing each side of your tile. This is your grid for laying the carpet.
- Lay a tile directly next to the first, and snap a line on the unlined side, thus expanding your grid. Work in the same direction until you reach the wall, then repeat on the other side of your carpet tile. Continue laying down tiles until the floor is complete. If there are arrows on the back, lay the tiles with the arrows all pointing the same direction. If not, make sure the nap of each tile is running in the same direction.
- Starting again with center, begin adhering the carpet tiles to the subfloor. If they are of the peel and stick variety, you can peel the backing off and carefully stick them down. Otherwise, apply adhesive to the backs. Work from the center outward in all directions.
- When you reach a wall, carefully cut the last tile to fit. Odd shaped cut carpet tiles should only be applied where the carpet meets the wall and not in the center.
You can now enjoy your new room! If a tile becomes stained or damaged, you can easily replace one carpet tile instead of recarpeting an entire room.
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