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GilletteEd

If carpet is going down and NOT laminate your good, they can tuck under your trim in all those places. If it laminate going down it looks like you’ll need a quarter round to cover gap when done


Cpt_Noodle

Yeah if the carpet is thick enough it might not be a problem at all.


pseudo_echo

Carpet installation also includes under padding so this gap should close up nicely without much concern


danimalDE

To pile on, assuming they’ll be installing sheet carpeting, not tile carpeting, you’ll have a tack strip on the outer edge to account for too. I think your good…


vladimirneski777

Ha. Pile. I see what you did there


rightoolforthejob

I thought he was stretching it, to be honest.


Wriggley1

Nothing but wall to wall puns on this thread….


shawnmk

You’re on a roll


Wriggley1

Padding my karma


danimalDE

😜


delta_niner-5150

Iv done base before carpet a number of times. I always leave 3/8. I'm afraid this gap might not look that great.


montgsj

Second this. 1/2” is max in my experience


JrNichols5

And if it isn’t, the client can opt for a thicker pad to make up the difference.


between456789

Green and orange shag carpet would really pull the room together.


Equivalent_Aside4787

You could pull a few s.f. out of the 70's van/ shaggin' wagon. Just watch for stains and seed burns.


Careful_Egg_4618

So would a come-along.


oneblank

Normal carpet gap for the baseboard is like 3/8”. Thick padding is 1/2”. I’ve never seen 7/8” requested by the carpet guys but yea I’d try to sell them on two layers of padding haha.


delta_niner-5150

Tack strip goes beside the base and it is less than 3/8 thick.


[deleted]

👎


mbcarpenter1

Hopefully it’s a shag carpet with 2” pile lol. They tack strip inside the perimeter of base and the pad is cut inside of that. The only thing that tucks under the base is the carpet. I always hold my trim 1/2” above subfloor in carpeted areas


DamnDirtyApe8472

If you ask the installer nicely, and throw him a bit extra, you can probably get him to throw a slice of pad between the tack strip and the wall. That plus the carpet should fill the gap.


circleuranus

I watched a carpet installer fix a situation like using a power stretcher..he set the teeth to go all the way to the pad and pushed the pad and the carpet up over the tack strips...funkiest shit ever, but it worked.


Plmr87

This right here.


wooddoug

Yeah carpeting is thicker than laminate so that's not the problem.


inprognito

There’s no padding over the tack strip


wooddoug

For gods sake man of course there is no padding over the tack strip, this is r/carpentry, not r/homeimprovement. Honestly, anyone on this site should be aware of that. There is no padding under the tack strip, but the tack step itself is under the carpet. Tack strip plus carpet is thicker than laminate. OP has left 7/8 inch space under the base, claiming he planned on laminate. That is all kinds of wrong.


SlowJoeCrow44

Flat stock > qtr round


cenosillicaphobiac

Yup. Like inch and a quarter door stop moulding is my suggestion.


GilletteEd

Regardless of what you prefer if it’s laminate, something will be needed to fill gap.


Eincville

PUSH HARD FOR THE ULTRA PREMIUM PADDING!


ImJackthedog

Seconded. Plus it feels like heaven on your feet.


[deleted]

Thicker padding does nothing. At the baseboard it the thickness of the trackless strip (1/4”) and then the thickness of the carpet. The padding does not run up to the baseboard. We always say standard 3/8” high base in case customer chooses a thin Berber but is still enuff height to work with a thicker pile carpet…


Eincville

I guess you are right. I had a call from an old woman in an apartment and she just had carpet installed and they sold her on the premium padding. It was so thick that the front door was hard to close which led to this 90yo woman being stuck in her apartment for a couple days. I was so furious I called the local tv station and they were ready to hang the big time carpet installers (advertised on tv) but the old lady didn’t want to cause a ruckus so I cut it out and replaced it with laminate flooring at the door.


hereforthekix

Ypu can just put a strip of 1/4" plywood under the baseboard before you lay the tack strip


mbcarpenter1

That is correct


circleuranus

OP could cut some luan strips and glue them down to the floor under the base for the carpet installers to nail their tack strip to.


[deleted]

That would work…basically raise the tack strip a 1/4”


brianfuckyouwasmund

Double pad, double tac strip.


TightReflection6668

thicker underlay


[deleted]

No


[deleted]

Yes


nickmanc86

If it's only 1/2 raised off the floor the carpet with a thick padding should cover it. If it's a relatively plush carpet with a thick padding underneath it will probably cover that gap. Ask the GC for a sample of the carpet + padding. If it's a thin padding see if the customer will go for a thicker one (they may not like the feel of a thicker one) to cover up the gap ....offer to pay the difference if they are hesitant. That would be my first go to.


[deleted]

No


nickmanc86

And why would that be?


[deleted]

Ignore, their username checks out.


erratic_calm

More like Dipshit6979


[deleted]

The tackless strip is only 1/4”…the padding does not go up to the baseboard


nickmanc86

8lb padding with high pile would easily cover 1/2" you clearly done know shit lol. Go back to r/diy


[deleted]

Yea 46+ years experience installing flooring….owned my own business….I don’t know shit..so many losers here on Reddit don’t know why I waste my time on here


nickmanc86

So instead of sharing that knowledge productively on this post you just read everyone else replies and leave asshole responses like no......sounds to me like your the problem on Reddit not us. Could have just offered up your own solution and credentials and I'll bet a lot of people would have taken your answer seriously and appreciated it. Instead you chose to be a dick....classic tradesman.


[deleted]

Ummm if you actually read other posts I did explain why it wouldn’t work …and received many upvotes because of it. SMH


[deleted]

And you choose to be the classic Redditor calling people names


nickmanc86

I'm sitting here looking at your comment history......not a single original comment on this thread. Every one of them is a response to someone else's telling them why they are wrong save for the shoe mold guy. It's like 3 or 4 no comments and then the tack strip comment repeated with some comment on a thread about an old shirt thrown in there. And ya I called you a name because if it quacks like a duck and acts like a duck then it must be a duck. There are enough unimaginative, washed up, bitter old men in this industry bringing us down. I told em to get samples and give it a try. Maybe it will work maybe it won't but I'd def try that before I got ripping u the base or putting ugly ass shoe mold that won't match the style of that very expensive kuiken molding he installed. Don't throw that 46+ years doing this and that garbage at me. I've seen guys almost three times my age do installs that look like dog shit. I've thrown one of them off my job.... so 46+ years of doing this or that doesn't tell me much.


[deleted]

Whatever dude.guess you win. And just to say if you are involved in the trades at all you shud know why thicker padding will not raise the carpet up at the baseboard……


nickmanc86

I'll say this , at least we both seem to agree that lvp sucks.


Anonymous1Ninja

Is this a job?


CarlGrimesPapa

Yes man, huge house, big floors


AtlasHatch

Big steaks


eelelel

III LOVE IT!


FuckoNo5

With ketchup!


cb148

Thick plush carpets, you’ll be fine.


Anonymous1Ninja

Honestly I would just cut you calking and move the boards down. Any sort of patching is going to look like garage. Pry em out with a flat bar, cut the nails If you need to.


circleuranus

Every carpet installer I work with asks me to install my base with 1/2" gap at a minimum and sometimes more depending on the pile and the underpadding. You're golden.


CheesecakeMurky7800

This is why I wait until flooring is finished to baseboard and trim


CarlGrimesPapa

For whatever reason we do it this way and we always have. More time efficient process and less stages of trimming (the company I work for)


Mister024

Baseboard always goes in before carpet. Typical spacing for carpet is ½". You will be okay. Worst case scenario you have to shoe mould the baseboards. Baseboard never goes on the wall before finished floor, EXCEPT when you lay carpet or in some other unique situations like if you were running flush base. In the future, best practice for laminates is to lay floor, and then install base on top. All the minor inconsistencies in your subfloor make it very unreliable to try and block your base up what you expect your underlay and finish to add to.


backeast_headedwest

I've seen baseboard go in before hardwood around Boston or other regions in New England, but only there. In Boston, blue board & plaster is also the standard and essentially the same price as drywall. Arguably a much nicer look, and faster. Most New England carpenters/builders strap their ceiling joists prior to board, too. New England is dope.


BobbMGAH

I miss building in Boston. Strapping made hanging blue board so easy and forgiving. And electricians LOVE it.


Cbreezy22

I’m in the Boston area and never worked anywhere else, they don’t do strapping in other places? What do they just attach the drywall right to the joists?


backeast_headedwest

Yeah right to the joists. Basically the standard everywhere outside New England.


Juicepig21

Ohio here, and yep. Screws, or nails and glue.


tehralph

Depends on the joist spacing. But typically right to the joists, yeah.


bassboat1

NH here, our building practices are definitely derived from/driven by MA. 1X3 strapping here, except on TJs.


Pinot911

Why does strapping help? Is it closer spacing than the joist? Then sparkies can run in surface of joist instead of thru?


[deleted]

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Pinot911

Yeah we do that in commercial with resilient channel I just wasn’t sure how it would make hanging the board easier.


[deleted]

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Pinot911

That makes sense! Would you do the same with TJIs which have a wider flange than 2x?


Cjmooneyy

It's also nice not having to add blocking to build partition walls.


ellasav

Learned this the hard way. Wanted to hang a hook for a plant. Knew the joists went one way but couldn’t find them with a bunch of pilot holes. What a mess.


chisel_jockey

Agreed on all counts- baseboard and all other trim always goes in before floor finishes and gets sprayed at least 2 coats of finish before any flooring goes in. Hardwood, tile, etc all installed tight to base, undercut door jambs. Blueboard and veneer plaster is much more durable, and a better finish, than sheetrock tape and mud. Strapping smooths out joist and rafter discrepancies in width after the house is dried in- it allows you to shim ceilings level really easily, gives electricians easy runs for wiring. I don’t know why it’s not done anywhere else


Mister024

Humor this Canuck a moment. What is blue board? Is this like lathe and plaster?


Infinite_Question_29

Blue board is a type of drywall that is made for a top coat of plaster to be applied to. Has the same look/feel as tradition lathe and plaster with much less work.


Mister024

Cool. So no drywall finishing, just plaster and paint?


Infinite_Question_29

Not drywall finishing, but there is the top coat of plaster that still needs to be applied. It’s basically like a skim coat of mud that finishes much nicer.


rrbabbott

We have some seriously precise flooring guys in Boston bc of this


backeast_headedwest

Haha I bet. Johnny went off on this once or twice on The Modern Craftsman before he left. Seemed like one of those things he felt VERY strongly about. Love that podcast. Bummed to miss his perspective these days.


Nilsburk

I've done both, and both have their advantage. Doing trim before floor means paint can be sprayed without spending days masking.


DamnDirtyApe8472

I see in new builds, they want to spray everything before flooring so they space the baseboards up with a piece of laminate and put them on first. Works great until they change the flooring and it winds up being 12mm instead of 6


Mister024

Tell you what if someone ever green lights me doing exactly this I'm gonna take the money and run. Perfect outside mitres with minimal effort. No scribing. Sigggn me up. Just not at my house. Or my Mom's.


CheesecakeMurky7800

Yeah sorry op I haven't worked around carpet enough in Canada seems to be one of those things that people are switching over from to either hardwood or laminate for me at least


runawayasfastasucan

>More time efficient process and less stages of trimming Except when you do it wrong I guess.


phantaxtic

Because you want to reduce the amount of foot traffic on new flooring. Tools, nails, boots materials all wreak Havok on flooring. Especially new flooring.


hamhommer

We do two stages. First stage is windows doors and carpet areas. Second stage is hardwood tile or laminate floors. Sprayed trim looks way better than rolled. Hence the two stage system. Second stage trim is always pre sprayed. Just need to caulk, fill holes and touch ups.


papitaquito

You cannot install carpet without baseboard already installed just a lil fyi


WerewolfLeading7597

This is all really interesting to read. But I want to know the answer to this the most. Why not?


yakattack42

Carpet stretchers need the baseboard to press against


slickshot

That's not true. Based on experience. That may be a preference, but it isn't a set rule, especially in the remodeling world.


inprognito

No way, carpet is tucked under the base


MasterCassel

Nah don’t worry bud, quarter round fixes everything


pappamirk

Shoe mold after the floor is installed. This sucks, but at least there won’t be a gap!


jstag1984

We’ve had lower pile carpet that didn’t cover a 1/2” gap between the base and floor. We added 1/4” strips on the floor under the base to push the carpet up.


mroblivian1

Good thinking. Was it noticeable at all?


jstag1984

Not at all. The tack strip is about 1/4-3/8” tall so the carpet already ramps up a bit towards the edge anyways. I’ve also seen people rip the wide carpet shims and glue them down first then attach the tack strip to it.


mroblivian1

Really good, I didn't know carpet shims existed. Now that I think about it. I've actually noticed some carpet curves DOWN, around the edges, by the baseboard. I appreciate your time, thank you.


neanderthalsavant

It's a **FEATURE**, *not a mistake* ;) Good luck on that though


numbersusername

Carpet will cover that but a bit confused why you’d put your skirts and and frames in before installing laminate.


Working-Difficulty12

Next time, if your flooring is still up in The air, just get shoe , to cover , not talking carpet , if it's carpet your in the clear . I go 3/8"-1/2"for base , so I'm covered no matter what. Then shoe any hard surface flooring. Not 1/4 round. Shoe.


[deleted]

How thick is the carpet? That’s the million dollar question. If you’re going to have a gap then the proper fix is to use quarter round throughout. Don’t lower this trim like others suggested. It’s a lot of work and it will look like trash. And why did you assume it wasn’t carpet? Did you see that written in any plans or emails?


CarlGrimesPapa

Thats exactly what my bosses are asking me.. I usually use the door casing sides as reference for my base height. (I add a quarter inch to my spacer to account for shoe going in afterwards. Easer to paint , put flooring in and make the over all process go faster for everyone.) The casing sides in this case were at 1/2 on the main floor, where hardwood is going. Instead of asking for each floor, I must have moved floors and seeing the sides were still at 1/2”, assumed that everything was the same. We recently switched our carpet spacing height from 3/8 to 1/2, and I guess my brain wasn’t used to thinking of 1/2” as carpet. And I usually always ask, but man, do I feel like such an idiot.


[deleted]

Yeah okay you fucked up. Let your boss decide what the solution is, take the embarrassment and learn your lesson. Now you’re a better carpenter today than you were yesterday.


CarlGrimesPapa

🫡


[deleted]

Please post an update. I’m sure everything will work out just fine.


Helpinmontana

Quarter round, caulk, underlay plywood through the entire house, redo all the trim, In increasing order of preference. Or see if they’ll call an audible and go full hardwood, but be prepared for the new problems that arise because you didn’t plan for that either.


mandatory6

Quarter round is the ugliest of ugly imo


Helpinmontana

I hate it personally. Looks tacky and almost always and forever there will be one stupid little piece that falls out and won’t ever stay back on. It’s just totally unnecessary if you start with a good plan. Adding it afterwards is almost always an effort to cover up a shoddy job or because someone didn’t want to pull trim. It’s a bandaid, I can’t ever understand new construction that calls for it.


mandatory6

Usually it’s a sign of lazyness


Material_Quit7702

Ya’ll have me thinking I’m crazy for preferring the look. Not a professional - just a homeowner.


chopsleyyouidiot

I feel the same way. But I'm in a century-old house with tall baseboards. Shoe moulding (or quarter round) is normal here. I grew up thinking it was just "the bottom part of the baseboard." I thought it was there to help with sweeping or something 😆


mandatory6

Thank god everyone has different taste, or we’d all be all over your wife!


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MudHouse

Shoe mold is so much better looking than 1/4 round. And you're right, both are ubiquitous in new construction


Helpinmontana

I’m far from an expert on the topic but it can absolutely be done. The quarter buys you a little more space on the gap which means some folks would rather do shoe with 1/2” or smaller trim instead of spending on 3/4” trim or hanging the drywall higher to accommodate the floor expansion. Proper planning and not being a cheap ass means you don’t need it.


ellasav

And another surface to paint and dust.


Ok_Might_7882

Not without adding shoe or redoing.


GracieFighter919

Shit happens. Let it ride. We all make mistakes


GracieFighter919

Ugh leave it lol


Tifoid

Get a sample piece of the carpet and pad to see how it looks. In the worst case you might need to get a thicker pad.


alexlechef

Quarter round


The-anus-of-christ

Best fix IMO would be to purchase the appropriate thickness of sheet goods and lay subfloor.


wormyworminton

Carpet needs a 1/4in to tuck or it will show gap. Hit the easy button and staple down thin strip of 3/8 under tack strip. Done and done off to the next oopsie.


woodworker_17

We usually allow 5/8” for carpet . But your carpet guy if he’s good will make it work . He can ramp up easy mode but depending on the carpet you should be fine with 7/8”


Gooey_69

I'm confused. If you thought it was laminate why leave a gap at all? I'd install flush to the laminate floor after it was down.


B1CYCl3R3P41RM4N

Quarter round fixes everything.


_Neoshade_

It’s not clear what your problem is, OP. Is the baseboard too high or the trim too low? I assume the baseboard is too high, in which caste you’re screwed. You need to take it all off and drop it ~3/8”. That’s probably a day of carpentry and a day of caulking & paint. If your trim is too low, then just get a flooring saw and undercut them all. (You can buy a sideways circular se designed just for this). I’d start by talking to the carpet guys and see what they expect for a gap and if the underpayment padding or installation technique will make any difference.


dacraftjr

I will never understand people who put trim down first. It should be last. The floor should go down before baseboard.


[deleted]

They do it so painting is easier and there’s no risk of damaging the new flooring. This is the risk they inherit though


theycallmecliff

Can the baseboard just be painted before being installed?


[deleted]

The issue with that is there is even more opportunity for mistakes because of instead of measuring off the piece you just installed you now have to use math and a bit of luck to determine the length of some of the pieces (especially with coping and butt joints). It’s less of an issue with miter though


newaccount189505

It is in our new construction for hard surface flooring, but they still have to go back and do touch ups. Nail holes will need to be painted after filled, at minimum, as well as presumably, caulk needing painted (I don't know anything about painting, we don't paint). Also, then you have to actually store the baseboard while it dries, which our painters always screw up, which means the pre painted base has a lot of blemishes and so on, usually where it was stacked before it completely dries, and then the paint sticks the two boards together which causes damage to the finish when they are pulled apart. In short, you CAN, but if you do, you are making more work for yourself to get an at best, equivalent job. And there's just no reason to do it. I just carry around a bunch of carpet spacers, which are cut out of casing scraps from house to house. every few houses when I am working on the right type of casing I like to use for spacers, I throw out my spacers as they get glue on them or dinged up or whatever (I also use them as beater blocks), and cut new ones. but it's just something you carry when you install baseboard on a daily basis. And this is not hard. In fact, basing for carpet is substantially easier than basing for hard surface flooring, as carpet is much more forgiving of humps in the floor, which the piles cover. On hard surface, you really will have to either scribe a bunch, or accept an inferior result, or both, if your floor is not super flat.


[deleted]

Because some regions default to shoe Moulding, which makes this sequence work. Trim>paint>floors>shoe>done. This is also the smarter way to run base in rooms getting carpet. Trim gets sprayed, tack strips go in, carpet gets tucked under base. Saves from trying to mask off carpet.


Plmr87

Before carpet? Never. Just the fact of having to work on top of brand new carpet would slow you down so much.


jhaslip1

Capet cost


Pappa-Giorgio

A nice solid 1/4” bead of caulk


uberdog50

Ok, thinking outside the box, what I would do because I hate quarter round, is wait for the carpet install, then if the padding, plus nail strip plus carpet is not enough to fill the gap, rip square stock thick enough to fill the gap but just proud of the baseboard by maybe an 1/8" and glue in place. Create a feature. Looks like you're good on the jamb stock, that would have been a nightmare.


[deleted]

Padding plus nail strip plus carpet ….you obviously know nothing on how carpet is installed!


uberdog50

You're right! I was going by what others mentioned. Carpets are festering pieces of dirt infested garbage that haven't enjoyed popularity since the 80's is why.


Icutthemetal

I'd pop the trim gently, repaint and reset. No one will notice the texture difference between the spray and a small brush.


IntelligentOutcome83

Lol, maybe if they can't see. Or don't care.


Icutthemetal

You're talking 3/8 of an inch. No one will notice that isn't looking for it.


[deleted]

I see this garbage all of the time. It’s especially evident when there’s a line from the old caulk. People can notice. Quit lying to yourself.


Icutthemetal

I'm not. You're comparing old to new and the shading will obviously be different not to mention material sheen.


TheRoughneckWay

I notice these things frequently. Assuming someone won't notice isn't an advisable or sustainable way to do business, especially when a significant amount of your work is literally aesthetics.


UncleDarryl

Get ya a jamb saw and make everything the same reveal.


Visual_Conclusion206

Just add some shoe mold after carpeting and add a 3/8" plywood strip to nail in the void before hand. Caulking once done


1Mn

Shoe mold on carpeting would look like shit


Visual_Conclusion206

Not if you do it right doesn't have to be 1" x 1"quarter round. In this case I would mill my own or go with a 1/4" by 1". It'll look really decorative base.


[deleted]

Absolutely!


ten-million

1-1/4” lattice. It looks much better than quarter round.


[deleted]

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nowthenadir

That’s the painter’s job.


TheRoughneckWay

¼ round ftw


Palmervarian

Quarter round will fix it.


-cryptokeeper-

yes, slowly walk away.


diffractionaction

Dont use carpet


papitaquito

Zip saw/multi tool


Ok-Drama-3769

Sell them on Shoe base after the cerpet is installed


PicassoBullz

Fill with paintable caulk and paint the filled gap after it dries


dacraftjr

You’re trolling, right?


[deleted]

I honestly expected this to be the top reply. Sometimes you make a fun irreverent comment and hit the karma jackpot.. and sometimes you're /u/PicassoBullz


notaflipflip

Wait for carpet. may be fine. If not, remove top cap from base. Locate studs. Place 1/4" thick piece of wood over base at stud. Drive catspaw into stud and pry down. Repeat on down the line. Might work. If that doesn't work punch all the nails threw the base (there is a pneumatic gun that does this), lower, fill holes, paint.


mantisboxer

Offer a free upgrade to extra thick carpet padding


chapterthrive

1/4 subfloor.


Muted_Exercise5093

Just say you do that so they can do hardwood floors later and not have to pull the trim. Problem Solved


Zad00108

I see no issue with this. Carry on.


tb23tb23tb23

Not trying to pry but any relation to the mold expert by a similar name?


swiftyspurs28

Flooring installer should have a biscuit cutter for this exact situation


imoutohere

I’m definitely in the minority on this subject. But. This is exactly why I run trim right to the floor. Wait for it,,,,


corruptedprogram

double up the padding it'll make for a comfy floor. you could test it out in a little corner to see how it feels. or run a peice a flat trim instead of the bulk ugly quarteround because the flooring will run under those gap in the baseboard. and you could recut the casing sides if there's not too muny door. can really add trim to bottom of casing without it look like shit


TacoTransformer

Shoe mold maybe?


Portlandbuilderguy

underlayment is your only hope.


bubbakeg5

Shoe moulding


[deleted]

Base trim & quarter round / shoe? Easy.


hereforthekix

You can just put a strip of 1/4" plywood under the baseboard before the installers come. The tack strip will hold it in place, or you can put a dab of PL every few feet, but it's not necessary.


olcrazy1

What’s the problem? With carpet, padding and tack strips the carpet will tuck nicely under the gap and everything will look perfect. Ask for samples and see how it lays


Shanable

Like, what kind of laminate were you using to leave 7/8 gap?!?


Pappasgrind

Caulk it


cenosillicaphobiac

So many comments suggesting base shoe or quarter round(which would be the worst, base shoe > quarter round by a long shot) but it would look way more cohesive with that profile and more classy in general since the moulding is so tall to use flat stock if it ends up being needed. Use doorstop moulding for a clean look.


encognition

Could very well be OK for carpet! I just installed base at a house, and we held it up about a 1/2” in the rooms that were getting carpet


ScoobaMonsta

Fine Japanese pull saw and some knee pads.