Installing Hardwood Floors Remove Baseboards

Let the material rise up over the baseboards on all sides of the room to make sure there are no gaps in the barrier.

Installing hardwood floors remove baseboards.

It is not absolutely necessary to remove baseboards to install new hardwoods but remember that wood floors require an expansion gap of 1 2 inch along the surrounding walls to accommodate expansion and contraction with changes in moisture and humidity. Install hardwood floors perpendicular to the floor joists parallel to the longest wall leaving a inch expansion gap around the perimeter. Remove the shoe molding and snap a chalk line 3 8 out from the baseboard this allows for expansion in the hot humid weather and contraction in the colder drier weather of the hardwood flooring. Install the base shoe quarter round molding over the expansion gap created by your new hardwood flooring.

2 if you dont remove it you will need to add 1 4 round to cover the gap between the flooring and the baseboard 3 your baseboards will look that much shorter if you dont remove it and add to the top of the flooring. When attaching the base shoe quarter round nail the molding into the bottom of the existing baseboard and not into the flooring itself. Keep joints that line up at least two rows apart. Fill any nail holes and apply any touch up as needed.

Before starting calculate the width the last row will be. I m kind of astounded that your hardwood installer would put the new hardwood right up against the existing baseboards that is a total no no for hardwood installation. When attaching the base shoe quarter round nail the molding into the bottom of the existing baseboard and not into the flooring itself. This isnt a big deal with 4 or 5 baseboards but if you only have 3 or less and your putting in 3 4 flooring the baseboards.

You can cut it flush to the surface of the flooring after nailing in the. Install the base shoe quarter round molding over the expansion gap created by your new hardwood flooring.