Vent: Second time I used a power stretcher on a tight wool carpet and it ripped at the tack strip

I was doing a living room in wool yesterday and the stretch felt too aggressive, but I kept going. By the end of the row, the carpet had torn right at the edge near the doorway, about six inches long. Is there a trick to getting wool to hold under tension without it giving out like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

betty_scott1810d ago

Wait, you were just yanking on wet wool like that? @nathan_foster60 isn't wrong about sweater shrinkage but wet stretching is a whole other nightmare. The fibers get super weak when saturated, you gotta let it dry first. I ruin a wool rug once cause I tried to power stretch it after shampooing and it basically came apart at the seams near the wall. Now I only dry stretch wool and even then I go real slow like 2-3 inches at a time. That doorway edge is always the weak spot too.

grant_palmer10d ago

Wait, are you sure you were using the right stretch on wool? I've always found wool holds up way better if you barely stretch it at all, maybe you're pulling too hard and the fibers are giving out.

nathan_foster6010d ago

Oh man, you know what this reminds me of? My buddy tried to wash a wool sweater once and it shrunk down to doll size. He was so mad he threw it across the room and it hit his cat. The cat wasn't hurt or anything but it was pretty funny. Anyway, I think you're onto something with the light stretching. I've ruined a few good pieces by just yanking on them too hard when they were wet. That's how you end up with a misshapen mess that looks like a potato sack.