Oh the stupidity wrought on poor, naive, unsuspecting consumers and the industry. This extraordinarily unique situation will have you shaking your head in disbelief. It is a true abuse of the product and the consumer and would be for the manufacturer if a claim were to be filed.

A consumer contacted us this week that is having a new $500,000.00 house built. Her dilemma is that the builder was having the new carpeting installed while the drywall was still being put up and the mud not applied to it yet. By mud I mean the joint and nail sealer. On top of that there is no HVAC system in operation in this southern house, at the end of June while it’s in the 90’s. Basically, the house is still very much under construction and they’re installing the carpet. I have never heard this before, it’s just another day and another dummy messing something up.

This poor lady complained to the builder so to make her feel better he put plastic down on the carpet and fastened it with roofing nails! She wanted to know if this was an appropriate procedure, understanding that her common sense and reasoning already answered this question in her mind. The poor woman was flabbergasted to say the least and so were we. She needed help and fast.

No carpet dealer in their right mind would do this. The builder, as we understand it, puts up 10 or 12 homes like this a year. We believe he buys the carpet himself and then arranges for its installation. And it’s just unbelievable that he’s installing the carpet under these conditions.

First of all the carpet will be full of dry wall dust when the drywall is cut, which is near impossible to remove from the carpet especially in a new build. Second, when the joint filler is used on the drywall it has a tendency to get cast around and it will get on the carpet forming globs of rock like material. Thirdly, when the joint filler is sanded it creates fine clouds of dust that will get into the carpet. Fourth, the walls have to be painted which is yet another opportunity for a foreign substance to infiltrate the carpet. Last but certainly not least, you don’t nail down plastic onto the carpet with roofing nails to protect it. On top of all of this, if it’s not blatantly obvious already, none of this stuff should be done with the carpet in the house. The carpet should be the last thing to go in. Apparently this builder has a completely different completion schedule than the average human being. Personally, I think he’s nuts.

The consumer wanted to know what to do. We told her to march right up to this maniac and tell him that he either complies with how carpet is to be installed or that he’ll have to replace it all. We told her to show him page 16 of CRI – 105 provided to her, which is the Standard for Installation of Residential Carpet – you should all have a copy of this document. On page 16, in a boxed paragraph, in bold print it says, “Premature installation of carpet before other trades have completed their work often results in problems affecting appearance retention, visible damage, soiling, delamination, and dimensional stability. These conditions may not be immediately evident.” I’d say he fits all of this. We told her that if he didn’t comply she should contact here attorney or mortgage lender, show them this document and they’d help her in the task – this carpet must be replaced. No one in their right mind would do such a thing.

Certainly in the commercial arena, flooring contractors have to contend with other trades working in the areas they are trying to install carpet in or right after they’ve installed. This is a fact of fast track construction that is a major bone of contention for the industry. You should never hear this happening in a residential build. The carpet is always the last thing that goes in and there should be no reason to rush its installation, especially if the interior of the house isn’t completed yet. Just think about all the other stuff going on during this time if the interior isn’t finished. The outside is still rough, there’s dirt everywhere of all kinds, scraps of building materials lying around – you could go on and on.

Knowing that there could not be a reputable flooring dealer involved in this lunacy I had to share this with you. I don’t know of any dealer in his right mind that would have installed carpeting under these conditions. Sure there’s always a rush to get the carpet in before closing on a new house in the last days but it’s always at that time, never before. This just goes to show you that no matter how long you’re in this business you never hear it all. The next situation always seems to top the last one, there’s no end to these things. This one is just the dumbest one I’ve ever heard. Just amazing, isn’t it? I’m still shaking my head in disbelief even as I write this.