The knee kicker angle I messed up for 2 years

Been installing for about 6 years now, mostly in Tampa. Last week I was doing a master bedroom and the seams kept buckling no matter what. My buddy Tom watched me work and asked why I was holding the knee kicker at a 45 degree angle instead of straight on. Turns out I had it backwards the whole time, probably stretched hundreds of rooms that way. Has anyone else had a basic setup click for them way later than it should have?

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avery_fox931mo ago

You mention that you had the knee kicker backwards for two years, and I get that it solved your buckling issue, but holding it at 45 degrees is actually pretty common down here in South Florida. The angle helps with certain carpet pads and the way rooms are cut. I don't think you had it backwards. I think you just found what works for you on a tricky install. Tom might be used to a different pad density or a straighter wall layout, so his way isn't the only way. What matters is that the seams lay flat, and if straight on does that for you now, great, but don't trash the 45 degree angle completely. Some of the old timers near me swear by it for glued down carpet. You might have fixed one problem and traded it for another on a different job.

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