Carpet padding is designed to protect the floor and ensure your carpet doesn’t bunch up or slide.
This is why it’s important to install the carpet padding correctly and ensure its structural integrity is not compromised.
However, older carpet pads can give trouble during the removal process. This is why it becomes crucial to learn how to remove carpet padding stuck to the subfloor.
If the carpet padding is stuck to the subfloor, pour a few cups of mineral water under the padding. Let it sit for a few minutes to loosen the glued areas. Once loose, start pulling the padding and it will come off.
Please note that you don’t want to put the carpet padding back to how it was until the mineral water has dried out. This is to ensure you don’t deal with mold and/or other bacterial growth later.
This is important when learning how to remove carpet padding that’s glued down.
Learn more about what to do if the carpet padding is stuck to the subfloor and what to consider during the process.
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Steps To Remove Carpet Padding Stuck to Subfloor
1. Flip Over The Carpet Pad
You will want to start by assessing the concerning areas.
This includes turning the carpet pad over and looking at where it’s stuck. You will notice these areas are hard to tug and will seem glued shut.
The goal is to gently pull on the padding to see if that helps loosen it. In most cases, this will not be enough.
As a result, it’s time to start looking at external solutions to help loosen the glued areas under the carpet padding.

2. Clean The Debris
For the areas that are lifted, you have to make sure to clean the debris. This will make it much easier for the mineral water to soak in as required in the next step.
Preparation is important during this process and that includes cleaning any mess or black stuff under the underlay.
This will help ensure the carpet padding comes off neatly and does not leave a serious mess behind.
Just sweeping aside the debris will go a long way in letting you see under the padding. You will get a proper look at the problem areas under the carpet pad and how to remove the glued underlay safely.
3. Soak Floor With Mineral Water
It’s important to soak the floor with mineral water.
This means creating a surface that’s wet and is going to help unstick the glue from the floor. Remember, the amount of weight that has been pressed down on the carpet can cause the glue to become hardened into place.
You will have to manipulate it using whatever you can including mineral water.
With mineral water, the goal is to take a few cups and pour them onto the floor. This will help unstick the glue.
Be patient while doing this and make sure you are letting the mineral water settle for a few minutes before working on taking off the glued areas.

4. Pull Off The Padding
When you are sure the water has settled in, it’s time to begin pulling off the carpet padding where it’s stuck.
This will require a bit of force on your part.
Just start with small areas and pull there. This will ensure the pad does come off and it is easy to access the subfloor underneath.
When you have pulled off the carpet padding make sure to clean the surface again. This time wipe it to ensure any glue residue is removed too.
You want to have a brand-new subfloor to work with before setting up the carpet padding again.
How Do You Remove Carpet Pad Residue from Hardwood Floors?
To remove carpet pad residue from hardwood floors, use mineral water or water + soap. Soak the subfloor using this formulation and let it settle for a few minutes. Once it’s settled, it will loosen the residue and make it easier to wipe away.
Be gentle while doing this as you don’t want to scratch the floor.
Final Thoughts
These are the steps to focus on when learning how to remove carpet padding stuck to the subfloor.
To remove carpet padding stuck to the subfloor, it’s important to loosen the glue residue. This is done by pouring a few cups of mineral water onto the floor. Let the mineral water settle for a few minutes and then start pulling on the padding. It will loosen and come off.
This is a simple fix and one that is going to require patience. If you have patience, it will come off the way you want it to.
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