Clean It Up
UK Floor Cleaning Forum => Carpet Cleaning Forum => Topic started by: R-CLEAN on July 13, 2008, 06:04:11 pm
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hi there i was just wondering how to repair burn holes of cigarettes. i read a post on here about it, i believe its called returfing and was just wondering how you go about repairing them and what to use or where i cauld get the info from about it.
cheers Ralph
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We were by " Pit Bull " at Altech .
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the missing word is Taught .Oops sorry .
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i have never done this but someone who i used to know got a piece of sandpaper and rolled into a tight 'cigarette' shape and used this as a 'file' to gently get rid of the burn, the end result is apparently good,
colin
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Hi
Its called retufting ;)
if you have never done this before it can be very difficult to get it invisible.
First of all is the backing in a hole ? has the burn gone through??
If it has, you are stuffed!!! Unless you then repair the backing.
also have you got spare yarn to sew in? If not, you can take "tufts"from around edges of room or if its a wool/80-20,you can get a matching wool yarn to use.
What you have to do is cut away the damaged area of the pile, using small curved scissors(leaving the primary and secondary backing).Thread yarn through a curved needle, then sew yarn into carpet using the primary backing.
Leave the yarn in loops ,proud of the carpet,and when you think you have enough in, cut the loops so you are leaving tufts then trim off. you will probably need more in, but dont over do it, you have to stop when it looks right.
If you only have the tufts,from around edges, you then have to use a strong cotton thread, make it into a loop and tie this to your curved needle. insert the needle into the carpet pull it through leaving the loop of cotton visible, then put one half of the tuft into the loop, pull the cotton through,right through, but hold on to the other half of the tuft to, stop it being pulled through.
This then leaves the tuft in place, looking just like the carpet did when it left the factory......Well thats what its supposed to, it takes practice and more practice.
If you could fill in your profile, then someone in your area may be able to do it for you and learn you how to do it at the same time.
Its a lot easier to show you than to explain.
Good luck
Dary
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Got a phone call from a customer she blamed me for a burn her carpet, reply excuses me! I will come and have a look tomorrow she phoned back saying sorry it was her husband apparently he got a few tuffs and super glued it and it came out when cleaning. Two week later her dad phoned for a clean are you the one!
Don’t know if any courses are in the wind if there are a niche market so will be premiums if you are any good
Len
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would it be possible to glue the tufts in, with a certain type of bonding glue, just a thought, would make the job easier.
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Derek
In a word NO!!
unless you arrive on a horse with Chaps and a Stetson!!!! ;D
I`ve been repairing/retufting carpets for 21yrs and there is only one way to do it properly, the problem being that the small amount of glue you would have to put on each individual tuft, would not be strong enough to hold it permanently.
Daryl
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Daryl, whilst I respect your experience in retufting I have to disagree on one thing.
It's perfectly feasible to carry out a latex repair, in the right circumstances. This would be, for example, where a cigarette has burned away the primary backing in a tufted carpet so you can't thread yarn/tufts back in.
It's bloody fiddly, much more than simply retufting a woven carpet, but it can provide a sound and economical repair.
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Interesting, a woven carpet would need to be re-woven.
A tufted carpet would need to be re-tufted with glue to try and duplicate how it was made in the first place.
Will it work without glue, yes but it should be glued as well again so it is the same as it was before the repair.
Best, Dave.
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jim
i agree that you can glue it in by cutting away the primary backing, and glue a patch to the secondary backing, i`ve done more times than i can remember, i thought they were on about glueing individual tufts.
Dave
How would you glue the tufts in place once you had retufted?
As you cant place glue in first.
In all the years i have been doing retufts i have never had any come out.
Regards
Daryl
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Dave - terminology error, of course a woven carpet is re-woven, not retufted, I suppose the term is used a one size fits all sort of thing :)
Daryl - I believe you're referring to what's known as a "partial insert". I was referring to a technique for tufted carpets whereby a bed of latex adhesive is applied onto whatever backing you have left. Then tufts are simply bedded in to the latex as required. I do this where it's impossible to use the primary backing in cases where it has been melted into a nasty mess.
There's nothing wrong with this type of repair if conditions mean it's the only thing you can do. As long as enough adhesive is used and the tufts are bedded in properly it holds solid!
Also, I do strengthen repairs with latex after I've threaded tufts through the primary backing. I use a hypodermic syringe and water the adhesive down just a little bit. Bloody fiddly but it works.
Ralph I'll put a couple of pics up of the type of kit you may need, will post in a bit, gotta go out.
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Right, here we go :)
The great thing about carpet repairs is that you can just get any old bits of carpet and practice away at your heart's content, no need to put yourself under pressure in a live situation until you're confident.
This is the sort of kit you'll need. You'll probably recognise most of the stuff here, i.e.the syringe, adhesive and different scissors.
On the left, yes that is a dog comb! Useful for separating tufts apart. Next to that is a curved pair of forceps which are used to pull tufts out; you have to be careful if you're harvesting fresh tufts with these, not to shred them - grip them as low down as possible.
Next to the forceps are a pair of napping shears. These are used to trim down freshly installed tufts, by resting the half-moon part on top of the surrounding carpet to get the right height. Tip - make several trims, working down to height rather than one trim too low!
At the top right is a retufting needle, that one's quite dainty but is a comfy size for tufted carpets. You can get beefier ones for heavy woven backings. You'll see the thread attached to it in a loop, as Daryl described above. You do get a problem with the thread snapping sometimes, normal sewing cotton is pants, this is quite strong stuff, god knows where it comes from, I stole it out of someone else's kit :D
The angled tweezers are very useful for bedding tufts into an adhesive bed, they're no good for gripping anything firmly though.
And underneath it all is a bit of tufted carpet I glued to a board, to practice on ;)
Some other handy things not pictured are:
> Masking tape (used to hold back surrounding tufts like in the photo below. carefully wipe the tufts it was stuck to with a little bit of solvent on a cloth, to avoid leaving any sticky residue that may turn black.)
> A desk lamp (you need lots of light on the work area, don't rely on the ceiling lights in the room you're working on)
> A hairdryer (to help start the curing process on latex adhesive, or to dry off the work area if you've had to clean it first.)
> Extension lead (the cables on your lamp and hairdryer may not be long enough)
> Clean dust sheets to cover the carpet where you are working and put your tools down on
Get yourself kitted out and get practising! Just shout if you want any more info about repair techniques.
In case you wanted a bigger view, a slightly larger photo of the tools is here:
h ttp://i36.tinypic.com/2mrfvqc.jpg
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Jim
apart from the shringe and dog comb
it looks as if you nicked my kit ;D
Regards
Daryl
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Best nip out to the van and check I haven't :)
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The only thing missing and probably the most important is a tufting needle.
Ask Dave Lehona how to make one ;) and save your self a few quid.
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Dave, how do I make a tufting needle?
:)
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Heat the needle and bend it.
Make them different sizes & different bends.
A lot may look like a bent L
Or even a wider U shape.
Use yer grannies knitting needles to separate the rows ;)
Ooroo,
Shorty.
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And don't forget, when practising on off-cuts, do it on the floor, as that is where you will be when you do it for real!
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Add to the kit a couple of long bulldog clips, the type of thing you put on a clipboard, you can then seperate the rows of tufts as you work on the carpet.
Murky
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Did nobody notice the needle at the top right of the picture? Or do you mean a different sort? :s
Interesting tip Murk. Don't the bulldog clips fall over into the middle of where you're working? I think I have a couple somewhere, I'll try it out.
Doctor, although I get your point it's easier to learn the basics sitting comfortably at a table. If you're struggling with aching knees and back then you're not concentrating fully on what you're trying to do. Once you know what you're doing, then the creaky joints won't impinge on the job so much. Just a thought.
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Jim
I take your point as well. But there must come a point, when comfortable sitting and practising, that you then practise on the floor. Your first floor job should not be on your clients expensive carpet. :)
Even better, practise taking a few tufts out of your own carpet and putting them back in. A fitted carpet is harder to practise on than a loose off-cut.
Doc
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Jim,
I went to the same school that you did but you were a few years above me. That string you used is probably Barber string, its known as barber twine (as in the jackets) its what the fitters use to hand sew seams in the body carpets.
Dr Carpet
The long bulldog clips simply fall over and give you a straight line to work to, any one else just get some off cuts from the local carpet shop skip, burn a hole in a small area, take some tufts from the out side and sew them in.
Practise makes perfect.
Murky