How to Install Crown Molding: Simple Instructions
Crown molding makes any room appear more elegant. Among DIY-ers, installing crown molding is often viewed with anxiety or avoided altogether. Many resources are either replete with detailed explanations of geometric angles and specific mathematical calculations or they devote a great deal of time showing you how to cut complicated grooves and angles in order to create your own crown molding from sections of raw lumber. Fortunately, the entire process can be greatly simplified by purchasing prefabricated crown molding sections and corner pieces and using a few common sense techniques with a miter saw. This project can be completed within one day. Does this Spark an idea?
Other People Are Reading
Things You'll Need
- Paint (contrasting color for the room)
- Four 12- to 14-foot pieces of prefabricated crown molding (pre-primed)
- Four corner sections of mitered crown molding (pre-primed)
- Paint (white, glossy satin finish)
- 1 1/2-inch finishing nails
- Hammer
- Miter saw
- Caulk
Instructions
-
-
1
Paint the room where you will be installing the crown molding, leaving an area unfinished where the crown molding will be placed.
-
2
Paint the crown molding sections and the corner pieces white. Allow sufficient time for the paint to dry.
-
-
3
Secure the corner sections to the corners of the walls just below the ceiling with finishing nails.
-
4
Use the miter saw to cut the longer crown molding sections to the correct length, making sure to angle the ends. Cut small sections at a time to minimize the chance for error. Fasten the crown molding between the corner pieces using the finishing nails. Make sure that the crown molding lies flat along its length against the wall. Don't worry if the corner pieces are close to, but not exactly touching, the ends of the molding. You are only trying to get them as close to one another as possible at this point.
-
5
Fill in any gaps between the corner sections and the longer lengths of crown molding with caulk. Clean away any excess caulk and add a little more paint to cover the nails to finish installing your new crown molding.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Remember when using the miter saw to measure twice and cut only once. Be careful that you only remove small amounts of wood at a time when trying to cut your molding to size. You can always cut more if necessary. If you cut more away than you need, this simple project can become complex very quickly.
