What Molding Do You Use When Installing Laminate Floors on Concrete Slab and Around a Brick Chimney?
- Install baseboards to hide the space between your flooring and the wall. Baseboard selection is not influenced by the substrate under your floor; whether your laminate is installed over concrete, plywood or even old vinyl isn't important. Instead, make your selection based on style, function and budget. Baseboards, also called shoe molding and wall base molding, are available in several species of natural wood, including oak, ash and maple. They are also available in medium-density fiberboard and plastic. Baseboards range in style from simple, straight lines to tall, ornate boards installed in two or three pieces. Plastic and fiberboard baseboards are the least expensive and the easiest to cut and handle. Many wood and fiberboard baseboards come primed for painting to save you time during installation. Many homeowners install quarter round at the base of a baseboard to create a seamless transition from the floor to the wall.
- To hide a gap between your laminate flooring and brick chimney, or other type of fireplace surround, use either quarter round molding or end molding. Quarter round molding is rounded on one side and wedge-shaped on the other. One flat side fits against the floor, the other flat side fits against the fireplace. The rounded side faces outward. End molding is somewhat hook shaped. A thick, vertical piece fits between the flooring and the fireplace while the horizontal portion reaches over the edge of the flooring to hide it from view. Quarter round may not work if the gap between your fireplace and floor is large.
- There are other types of molding you may need after you've installed your laminate flooring. Reducer strips are used to transition from two types of flooring of different heights, like tile or low-pile carpeting to laminate. T-molding joins two rooms of laminate flooring. Step nosing is rounded to cover the edge of stairs.
- Check with the manufacturer of your laminate floors for trim pieces. It may have them in the same design as your laminate flooring. Include measurements and trim cost in your initial installation plan. Floors left unfinished because you failed to account for trim cost are both unsightly and susceptible to damage. Plan ahead when you install your floors. Many laminate trim pieces are secured to your floors using the same tongue and groove as are on the planks and tiles. They may be difficult to install if you've cut off the corresponding tongue or groove.