Installing laminate flooring without removing baseboards

But as you look around your room, you may notice a small detail on your walls near the floors and wonder if you have to remove the baseboards before installing floors. Baseboards are boards installed along the lowest part of interior walls, directly next to the floor. The purpose of baseboards is to hide the joints between the wall and floor as well as add visual appeal to the space. Most flooring applications do not require you to remove existing baseboards.

However, you may choose to remove the baseboards and replace them at the same time as flooring installation if you want to switch to a different baseboard height or change the style to match the overall look of your remodel. Baseboard installed on top of carpet should be installed at approximately the same height, with this exception: If you are not intending to install quarter round, or base shoe, the baseboard should be installed snugly on top of the carpet.

Nail the baseboard only into the wall, never the floor. Do I need Quarter round for laminate flooring? The problem is that most types of flooring need a little room around the edges to allow for expansion and contraction. If you leave the base molding in place and install new flooring, you must leave a gap in front of your existing base molding. That space now needs to be covered by quarter round molding.

Do baseboards go in before flooring? If you put baseboards first, you'd have to tuck the laminate under them. Flooring first, baseboards second. Do baseboards need to be removed to replace carpet? Depending on the design of the room, it may be wise or even strictly necessary to remove doors and baseboard molding so that your carpeting fits squarely against all edges. You can probably install the new carpet without having to take off the baseboards first.

How tall should baseboards be with 8ft ceilings? Here is a great rule of thumb: A standard 8-foot wall typically has a baseboard 3 to 5 inches tall, while a foot ceiling calls for 5 to 7 inches. Eliminate drop cloths, errant paint drips on the new flooring, and other consequences.

It is easier to install baseboards after flooring. However, it is easier to paint baseboards included with no consequences of ruining newly installed flooring. It is possible to install the baseboard with a gap to accommodate the height of laminate or hardwood flooring. August 22, May 22, September 30, Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email.

Email Address. Skip to content Recommended Tools. This is your lucky day. Installing the first row of click laminate flooring with baseboard installed. Click laminate flooring requires a gap along all sides of the room to allow for the house to expand and contract. Since you have already installed the baseboard, how do you maintain this quarter inch gap between the flooring and the wall?

Then, after you start working on the second row, you snap another line to show yourself where the second row of flooring should end while maintaining the gap. After that, the floor usually weighs enough to keep itself from moving around.

If in doubt you can still keep measuring until you feel comfortable. By the time you get to the last row, the floor is definitely not moving.

Tester k 74 74 gold badges silver badges bronze badges. Dee Dee 31 1 1 gold badge 1 1 silver badge 2 2 bronze badges. Add a comment. Active Oldest Votes. Improve this answer. Tester Tester k 74 74 gold badges silver badges bronze badges.

DMoore DMoore After all the flooring is installed, installed quarter round trim to cover the gaps. Jason Hutchinson Jason Hutchinson 3, 8 8 silver badges 18 18 bronze badges. Sign up or log in Sign up using Google.

Sign up using Facebook. Sign up using Email and Password. Post as a guest Name. Email Required, but never shown.