While you may be calling on the professionals to install your new flooring, removing carpet on your own can be an easy DIY that saves you money on your remodel. All you'll need are a few carpet tools, protective gloves, and two to four hours for removal. Our step-by-step instructions will guide you through the carpet removal process so that you can tackle this project quickly and safely. Keep reading to learn how to remove carpet.

Tip!

Check out our guide Flooring Options and Materials Guide to learn more about each flooring type and which could be the best for your home.

How to Remove Carpet

Whether you're replacing old carpet or installing a new type of flooring, knowing how to remove carpet can streamline your renovation process. Follow these steps below to make removing carpet easy.

What You'll Need:

• Protective gloves
• Dust mask
• Eye protection
• Pry bar
• Utility knife
• Duct tape
• Putty knife
• Shop vacuum

Step 1: Prep the Space

To prepare for carpet removal, you'll want to move all of the furniture out of the room and put on your safety gear. Gloves will keep your hands protected from the utility knife or stray tacks, while a dust mask prevents you from inhaling excess dust or fibers that can get released from the carpet. Eye protection keeps stray particles, fibers, or nails from getting in your eyes.

Use a pry bar to gently remove the baseboards from the walls and set them aside. If you plan on reusing the baseboards after you install a new floor, you can use a pencil to mark which piece of baseboard corresponds with each wall so that you can easily reinstall them later.

Step 2: Cut the Carpet Into Strips

Using the utility knife, cut the carpet into strips that are two or three feet wide and the length of the room. Though you don't need to closely measure the strips, try to keep these lines as straight as possible.

Step 3: Peel Back the Carpet & Roll the Strips

Take the curved edge of the pry bar and use it to pull the corner of the carpet up until you can firmly grasp the carpet. Set the pry bar aside and use your gloved hands to continue to pull up the carpet.

You may need to detach the carpet from the tack strip that holds the flooring in place. The tacks on the tack strip are sharp, so it's important that you are wearing protective gloves and eyewear.

Roll the strip up and secure the roll with a piece of duct tape so that you can transport each roll easily. Repeat this until you've removed all of the carpet in the room. You may need to replace the blade on the utility knife since cutting through the carpet can dull the blades quickly.

Step 4: Remove the Tack Strips

If you're replacing the existing carpet for new carpet, you'll most likely keep the tack strips intact. You may need to replace them if the tack strips are damaged.

If you're replacing your carpet with a different type of flooring like hardwood or tile, you'll need to remove the tack strips entirely. Use the pry bar to detach the tack strips from the floor and safely dispose of the tack strips in a heavy-duty trash bag. Because the tack strips have sharp nails, it's crucial that you dispose of the tack strips carefully.

Step 5: Pull Out the Carpet Padding

Similar to the carpet, cut the carpet padding into long, thin sections and roll up each section. If you have wood subfloors, the carpet padding is attached to the subfloor using staples. To remove the staples, you can use pliers, a floor scraper, or a specific carpet staple remover.

Step 6: Dispose of the Carpet & Padding

Once you've removed the padding, you'll want to dispose of the carpet and padding. Though carpet can often be disposed of in regular household waste, large quantities of carpet may be too bulky for curbside waste collection. Most carpet can actually be recycled, so we recommend checking with local carpet dealers or waste management companies that can connect you with recycling programs (some of which offer curbside pickup for recycling).

Step 7: Clean Up the Floors

If there is any adhesive left on the subfloor, you can use a putty knife to scrape away the excess. Use a shop vacuum (a vacuum that's designed specifically for cleaning up construction or woodworking projects) to clean any dust, fibers, or broken nails.

Once you've removed your old carpet, browse our site to find the perfect new area rug for your home. Or, if you'd like to lay down new flooring on your own instead, check out our guide How to Measure a Room for Flooring to learn how.

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