Stair Carpet Removal in Boise

Carpet on a staircase doesn't come out the way carpet does in a bedroom or living room. Tack strips run along the nose of every step instead of just the edges of the room, the padding is cut into narrow pieces per step rather than one sheet, and the whole run is usually stapled down, not just tacked. In a lot of Boise's older homes, the bungalows in the North End and East End especially, that staircase is also the tightest, narrowest part of the house.

That's why stair carpet gets treated as its own job instead of getting folded into a whole-house carpet pull. It takes longer per square foot than open floor, and getting the material out without scuffing a wall or cracking a newel post takes some planning before anyone starts pulling.

Clearing the stairs before we start

A staircase usually doubles as display space, so the first step is clearing the landing and the steps themselves down to bare carpet, photos, plants, and anything hanging on the wall next to the stairs included. Loose padding and staples tend to work free as they're pulled, so anything breakable nearby is worth moving first.

If the stairs are the only way to a finished basement or a second floor, it helps to flag that ahead of time. A tight turn at the landing, a low ceiling under the stairs, or a narrow front door all change how carpet rolls and padding sections get carried out of the house.

• Clear photos, art, and anything hanging on the wall beside the stairs
• Move breakables off nearby shelves and tables before the crew arrives
• Keep pets in another room while the stairs are being worked on
• Point out any loose handrails or spindles ahead of time
• Clear a path from the stairs to the driveway or curb

Where stair jobs go wrong

The most common mistake is pulling carpet before the tack strips come up. On a staircase, the strip is nailed into the nose of each step, so carpet that's ripped loose first leaves a row of exposed nail points down a path people use every day.

The other one is assuming a stair runner comes apart as easily as a bedroom carpet. Padding on stairs is almost always stapled down in separate pieces instead of tacked at the edges, so it takes longer to clear and leaves more staples behind than most people expect. Carpet is also often wrapped around newel posts and balusters, and forcing it loose instead of cutting it free is how trim ends up cracked.

Getting rid of the old carpet

Boise does give residents a way to get rid of carpet without hiring anyone. The city's Curb It program, run through Republic Services, includes up to six free bulky item pickups a year, and carpet is one of the items it covers, you schedule it and set it out at the curb or alley. For bigger loads than a bulky pickup can take, the Ada County Landfill off Seamans Gulch Road also accepts construction debris, though fees apply past a certain weight.

A hauler makes more sense once the carpet, pad, and tack strip from a full staircase add up to more than a bulky pickup covers, or when you'd rather not have old carpet sitting at the curb for days waiting on a scheduled date.

Stair carpet removal in Boise comes down to the same few things every time: protect what's around the staircase, pull the tack strips and staples the right way instead of forcing carpet loose, and know where the material is headed before the job starts.

Boise Carpet Removal offers free estimates if you want a hand with any part of it.