A better way to remove carpet

[MichaelB]

Boating season is over for us in Central IL, so Extreme Makeover - Pontoon Edition has begun.

Momma always said work smarter not harder. So me and the youngest used the winch on the ATV to pull the carpet off the decking!



The black is the rubber backing that has disintegrated. I scraped the decking clean with a shovel, and then used and orbital sander to even everything out. The glue has arrived and the carpet should be here this week.

[Mrtoler]

So I guess the wood was still in good shape?

[MichaelB]

Yeah, the wood is in great shape. The carpet was cardboard thin in some places. The wood isn't soft anywhere. Happy days!

[jafo9]

awesome. great way to get the kids fired up about working on stuff is to make it fun.

[gramps]

That was smart, I like that idea.

[Mrtoler]

Sweet, when I redid mine I didn't have to replace the wood either. What else do you have in store other than carpet?

[Bamaman]

Don't forget to use one of those heavy, metal rollers that they use when installing vinyl flooring. All rental yards have them.

I didn't roll my carpet, and ended up with bubbles. It also doesn't hurt to let the carpet sit a couple of days so the humidity of the carpet and the wood is approximately the same.

[devdwt]

Good idea ...but.....always lay something heavy on that winch cable. If it gets too much tension and the hook pulls out, etc....your daughter could have been seriously injured as it flew back toward the ATV.
Now, in your case, the old carpet probaly didn't offer mich resistance...but please keep safety in mind when using a winch. I've witnessed several near-misses and know of a few fatalities related to winching.

[MichaelB]

I wondered how important using a roller would be. I'll definitely use something.

After the carpet comes new seats, console, and maybe new panels for the railing. It should be a nice winter project.