For new carpet to last you have to buy quality carpet that's durable and will hold up to the daily wear and tear, buy quality padding, and install both correctly. If you skimp on any one of those steps, you may be disappointed in having your carpet look bad quickly, and not wear for many years. For this article, let's talk most about how to install carpet pad.

First, prepare your floors. Clean the subsurface of dust, dirt, debris, trash and spots so the pad doesn't get dirty, which will effect the carpet too. Carpet can be installed over almost any surface -- cement, wood, linoleum, vinyl or even stone (though I don't know why you'd want to do that!) with proper preparation.

Once the floor is clean it's time to install tack strips (also called tackless strips in some areas) need to be installed next. The tack strip goes around the perimeter of the room, except in front of doorways, being nailed at about 8-12 inch intervals. The pins should point toward the walls about 1/4-1/2 inch between the wall and the strips. Nail the tack strips to your floor so you have something to attach the carpeting to. If you have masonry floors, then the tackless strips may have to be glued down to install the carpeting; at the very least masonry nails will be needed.

Now it's time to install the carpet pad. The carpet padding is an important part of the carpeting installation process, because it can make the carpeting more comfortable and more durable. The waffle side of the carpeting needs to face up for maximum cushioning and it is cut to fit inside the tackless strips. Padding can be either stapled or glued. If you go the stapling route, staple it every six inches. If you are gluing it, as you would especially want to do on cement, select a low VOC (volatile organic compound) glue so you don't pollute your indoor air.

Cut the carpet pad to roughly the right size and then trim the pad to be just short of the tack strip. You want to have the padding away from the tack strip a little so that when you stretch the carpet the padding doesn't ride up onto the tack strip, interfering with proper carpet installation. Carpet padding pieces should be butted together, as you lay them down, rather than laid on top of each other for maximum durability and comfort. Tape any seams to keep the padding from creeping or shifting under the carpet.

To finish the job, and the article, it's time to lay the carpeting. This process takes skill and effort to ensure that the carpeting is tight and properly installed. Cut your carpet to fit the room area with some excess to hold on to so you can stretch the carpet fully. Use your seam tape and iron to connect the seams. A knee kicker grabs the carpeting and firmly places it on the tack strips. Now it is time to use the power stretcher to tightly stretch the carpeting to the wall. In doorways, you will use a gripper edge to keep the carpet in place when the doors rub against it. Once the carpet is in place, you can move in the furniture and enjoy your room.

Learning how to install carpet padding is important even if you are having it installed by a professional. You now know something about the proper process so you can determine if your carpet installer is doing it correctly. Knowledge is power, and you can ensure a great carpet installation now.