Removing wall-to-wall carpeting — including all the layers underneath — is a surprisingly big job. We found that out this weekend when we finally tackled the bedrooms and hallway. The payoff: the house immediately smelled fresher and looked cleaner, even if we worked up a good sweat to get there.
When we bought this house we knew the four upstairs bedrooms and the hallway needed new floors. The once-cream carpets had turned tan, were stained, threadbare in spots, and even had holes.
On our first walk-through a few carpet edges were loose enough to peek under, and we confirmed there wasn’t hardwood hiding beneath — just subfloor. That was disappointing, but at least we discovered it before buying and budgeted accordingly. Once we got past the disappointment of not finding salvageable hardwood, we got excited about choosing new flooring.
We considered several options — hardwood, new carpet, bamboo, tile — and settled on oak hardwoods. We’ve used oak in previous homes and like the durability and ease of cleaning with a child and a dog. Area rugs provide the cozy look and can be swapped over time, which feels more flexible than committing to wall-to-wall carpet for years.
We already have oak on the stairs and in several main rooms, so matching the finish and grain will help create a seamless look. But first we had to remove the nasty carpeting from all four bedrooms and the hallway — which turned out to be a bigger job than we expected. Here’s how we did it.
We started by prying up a corner with a small crowbar.
With a bit of force the corner popped up and we could pull the carpet out from there.
Pulling wasn’t delicate — it was more of a forceful yank. With both of us working opposite corners we freed enough carpet to roll it across the room. This is definitely a two-person job when possible.
Gloves and long sleeves are a must. Our forearms got raw from carrying rolled carpet down to the garage before we learned to be better protected. We stacked the rolls in the garage while we decided how to dispose of them — they were too gross to donate. Update: we got great tips from readers about recycling and other disposal options.
We repeated the process room by room and down the hallway: pry up the corner, yank, roll, and carry out. In some spots we cut the carpet in half with a box cutter to make it easier to move. Under the carpet we found blue padding that was stapled and nailed down in dozens of places per room.
Removing the padding left tack strips, staples, and nails around the room. Tack strips are thin pieces of wood with nails sticking up to grip the carpet and padding.
Sometimes a crowbar will pry up the tack strips in one piece, but older, brittle strips often splinter. When that happens you end up spending extra time digging out nails and splintered wood that remain stuck to the floor. It took us about an hour and a half to remove tack strips from the master bedroom, hallway, nursery, and guest room combined. A single person could easily double that time.
After the tack strips came out, the real challenge was removing countless staples embedded into the subfloor.
At first we pulled staples with needle-nosed pliers one by one, which was painfully slow (one closet took over an hour). Then we found a heavy-duty long-handled floor scraper for about $25, and that sped things up considerably. The scraper still required strength and left our backs sore, but it removed staples across all four bedrooms and the hallway in roughly two hours. Note: if you have hardwood floors, be cautious — a scraper can damage finished wood, but it works well on subfloor.
The next day we swept debris into piles and used the shop-vac to remove the remaining staples and nails.
We also documented our steps in a video that shows the process of prying up tack strips and removing staples more clearly than photos can.
Once the staples and nails were removed we were left with smooth subfloor ready for hardwood installation.
It’s amazing how satisfying plain pressed wood can look after years of stained carpet.
Meanwhile, our garage filled up with rolled carpet waiting for disposal.
Progress may look like stinky, rolled-up carpet, but it’s progress nonetheless. We’re moving in the right direction and already enjoy the clean, empty rooms.
If you’re removing carpet, staples are often the most aggravating part — until you discover a good floor scraper. Our new superhero gear would be a paint roller on one arm and a floor scraper on the other.
More Flooring Projects
If you’d like to read about other flooring projects we’ve completed, see the posts listed below.
- Refinishing Hardwood Floors 101
- How To Install Hardwood Flooring Yourself
- How To Select Hardwood Flooring
- How To Install Hardwood Floors Without Nails
- How To Install Click-And-Lock Cork Flooring
- How To Paint A Floor
- How To Stain A Concrete Floor