Since Christmas, my husband
has spent every weekend staining, applying urethane, and then installing Oak
door trim and Oak baseboards on the main level of our house. One would
think this is a pretty easy task - but it has taken significantly longer than
ever imagined. Why? Because each piece of Oak has a different grain
pattern/size that takes the stain differently - we have to look at 2 or 3
pieces of trim or base at each location, determine which piece looks the
best for that area, etc. As we are going through this very tedious task,
I realize that I overlook this small detail - BASEBOARDS - on all of my Interior Design
class projects.
When it comes to residential
baseboards, we actually have a few basic choices to make.....wood (painted or
stained) or tile. The heights are fairly standard. The builder
basic is about 4 inches tall. As the base height increases the finish
product becomes more "high-end." My husband and I always look
at the baseboards when we go into someone's home - it tells a lot about the
overall quality of the home.
Why do we have baseboard?
To cover the last of the rough carpentry.
How do you determine what kind of baseboard to use?
For
my house, we decided painted baseboards on the basement level and second
floor.
- Oak
baseboards on the main floor.
- All
three levels use the same trim height and profile
1. Retained original
white painted base.Oak base against new
oak floor – too much wood and very dated.
2. 'Quarter-round’ in addition to the baseboard.
3. New oak base with new
tile floor. White painted trim would
look dingy and dirty next to the tile.
4. White painted base with light color carpet. Base disappears; you see the wall color contrast against the flooring.
5. 'Quarter-round’ in addition to the baseboard. White painted base with darker wood floor.
6.
White painted base with carpet color similar to wall. Gives a clean transition between wall and flooring.
Quarter-round is used typically with wood and tile floors when the flooring material is not tight against to the finished wall.
Bathrooms are difficult to determine the type of base to use,
especially near toilets and showers/tubs because of all the water.
Tile base seems logical – the initial cost of
the base is expensive; the maintenance of the gout is time consuming.
Painted wood base is inexpensive to install, but is
quickly damaged by the water.
Stained wood base material cost is expensive, install costs same as painted wood trim, but finish can be damaged by cleaning chemicals then allowing water to damage the wood.
