Apply for the 2025 Competition

Fitter of the Year

The final of the Fitter of the Year Competition - LVT will take place on Sunday 14th and Monday 15th September 2025 at the Flooring Show in Harrogate. Apply here, fill in your contact details and complete the questions below. Entry closes midnight 30th April 2025.

All entrants will initially be required to complete the questionnaire below. Ten successful applicants from this stage will advance to take part in the semi-final practical trials, and from these trials, five contestants will be progress to the Final. Please refer to the Competition Format page for an initial overview of the process, along with important dates and deadlines.

Log In
Complete your existing form
Your Details
Contact Information

Please Note: Applicants must be 18 years or over. You do NOT need to be an NICF member to enter. NICF council members are excluded from entering.

20 Questions

Please complete ALL questions, answering as FULLY as possible in the boxes. Highest marks will be awarded to applicants who give the most accurate and complete answers.

1What is the full title of the British Standard that covers carpet installation?
2What would you do if you obtained unusually high moisture readings in a suspended timber sub-floor?
3If the concrete subfloor was dry, cracked and sandy at the edges of a room, what steps would you take to enable you to fit and fix gripper?
4A concrete subfloor has a 25mm thick layer of asphalt over it. How would you fix gripper to this?
5When would you use LongPin gripper on an installation?
6Please explain what 'Blind Gripper' is and its possible uses.
7What size gap/gully would you form with gripper around a room when installing a tufted loop pile carpet with a total thickness of 7mm?, (please give reasons for your answer)
8If fixing gripper, bars or nosings using the drill and plug method what is the maximum interval between the fixings and the maximum depth?
9When installing gripper to a timber staircase, if instructed "Do Not Nail" explain how you would achieve a safe fixing of the gripper.
10Your customer has requested a felt backed carpet to be fitted to a Hall/Stairs/Landing area, what type of gripper and underlay would you recommend and why?
11When should you use a powerstretcher?
12Underlay should "always" be laid at a 90° angle to the length of the carpet, is this statement true or false?, give reasons for your answer.
13Why should you alternate each run of underlay when laying them side by side?
14Your customer requires a stretch fit carpet with underlay over an anhydrite subfloor incorporating an underfloor heating system. What advice should you offer the client and what points should be discussed?
15When installing carpet to an area what do you stretch first the length or width of the carpet?, give reasons for your answer.
16Explain what gap you would set the grippers to on a staircase to receive an 11mm thick tufted carpet in a continuous length.
17When fully adhering an impervious gel backed carpet direct to the subfloor incorporating a join, explain the method for preparing the edges to be joined together.
18When heat seaming carpet together why should you work in a specific direction?
19What can occur when a carpet is seamed with the iron setting too high?
20What is the correct procedure for fitting a blown rubber/waffle underlay to stairs?

IMPORTANT
We will only the details you supply here to contact you in order fully procss your entry in the Fitter of the Year - LVT Competition 2025. Your details will not be passed to third-parties. You can view our terms and privacy policy here.

By ticking the box below you confirm that you give consent for your personal details and any photographs or videos taken during the course of the competition to be used in publicising the Carpet Fitter of the Year competition.
Your personal details may include your name, business name and town/county location, as well as details you have included in your biography. Publicity may include (but is not limited to) social media, website, journals and general publicity. Please be aware that there may also be a 'live video feed' from the semi-finals at FITA training Centre in Loughborough and the finals at the Flooring Show in Harrogate.
The NICF will store your personal details for the course of the competition. If you are a semi-finalist or finalist your details will be stored for up to 3 years. The name and photograph of the Winner will be stored in a Winners' Gallery on the website indefinitely.

We'll send you a confirmation email to let you know we've received your details. If you fail to receive this mail, please check your junk or spam folder.

Although we'll send you a confirmation email, we recommend you keep a copy of your answers for your own reference. If you haven't already, perhaps copy or print this page before submitting this form.