How to Mitre Cut Floor Molding

You can improve the appearance of any room by adding stylish base and shoe molding to make an attractive transition between the walls and floors of your home. This will require some simple knowledge of cutting inside and outside miters where the molding meets inside and outside corners of the room. With simple instructions and a little prior planning, these cuts can be made by any homeowner.

Things You'll Need

• Base molding
• Shoe or quarter-round molding
• Miter saw or a back-saw and miter box
• Pencil

Instructions

1. 

   Take a quick survey of the room and determine the number of inside corner miters to be cut.

2. 

   Position one end of base molding flush in the corner and, with a dark lead pencil, draw a line at 45 degrees from the corner across the top of the molding to the molding face (see photo).

3. 

   Position a second piece of base molding on the adjacent intersecting wall and draw a line at 45 degrees from the corner across the top of the molding to the molding face (see photo).

4. 

   Using a miter saw or a back-saw and a miter box to make 45-degree cuts on the end of each of these two pieces. Use the lines drawn in Steps 2 and 3 to determine the direction of the 45-degree cut.

5. 

   Repeat Steps 2 and 3 for any additional inside miters required and test the paired intersecting molding pieces for fit (see photo).

Cut Base Molding Miters for Outside Corners

1. 

   Position base molding to overlap the outside corner and draw a pencil line, running at a 45-degree angle from the point at which the corner meets the molding, across the top of the molding to the molding face (see photo).

2. 

   On the intersecting wall, position a second piece base molding to overlap the outside corner and draw a pencil line running at a 45-degree angle from the point at which the corner meets the molding across the top of the molding to the molding face (see photo).

3. 

   Using a miter saw or a back-saw and a miter box to make 45-degree cuts on the end of each of these two pieces. Use the lines drawn in Steps 1 and 2 above to determine the direction of the 45-degree cut.

4. 

   Repeat Steps 1 to 3 for any additional outside miters required and test the paired intersecting molding pieces for fit. (see photo).

Cut Shoe or Quarter-Round Molding Inside and Outside Miters

1. 

   Mark 45-degree cutting direction lines for shoe or quarter-round molding using the same techniques outlined for base molding.

2. 

   Use miter saw or back-saw and miter box to cut shoe or quarter-round molding 45-degree miters to fit at the intersection of the base molding and the floor surface.

3. 

   Complete floor molding installation by adding shoe or quarter-round molding at the foot of all base molding.

Tips & Warnings

• Always test fit miter cuts in the corner before attempting to nail molding in place.