A homeowner in Tacoma insisted I skip the power stretcher on a big room

I was putting down a plush berber in a living room that had to be at least 400 square feet. The homeowner, an older guy who said he'd done some DIY flooring, watched me set up and told me, 'Just kick it in along the walls, that power stretcher is overkill and damages the carpet.' I was firm but polite, explaining that for a room that size, a knee kicker alone wouldn't get the tension right and it would ripple in a month. He kept saying his way was fine and that he'd seen it done. I did it the right way with the stretcher, and when I came back six months later for another job in the area, he admitted he had a few small ripples in a different room he'd done himself. Has anyone else had a client try to tell them how to do the core part of the install?

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3 Comments

abby_robinson585mo ago

Did he ever pay you for that second job?

2

adam95mo ago

Man, my buddy got stiffed on a deck job last summer. Guy kept saying the check was in the mail for weeks. Finally had to threaten to put a lien on the house. Got paid, but it was a whole thing. Never worth the headache.

4

margaretshah5mo ago

Sounds like a total nightmare. People who pull that crap are the worst.

4