How to Install Vinyl Baseboard Molding
Vinyl baseboard molding serves as an alternative to traditional wood-based molding. Simple to install and functional, vinyl baseboard molding comes in a large variety of colors and provides an accent to the furnishings and coverings in your room. Installation follows much of the same process as installing wood baseboards and requires precision in cutting and fitting the baseboard. Once cut though, installation goes quickly, needing only the application of adhesive to the molding, followed by placing it where you wish. Does this Spark an idea?
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Things You'll Need
- Measuring tape
- Carpenter’s pencil
- Carpenter’s square
- Utility knife
- Scrap plywood sheet
- Baseboard adhesive
- Notched trowel
Instructions
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1
Measure the length of the wall where you wish to install the baseboard.
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2
Mark out on a piece of vinyl baseboard molding the required length for the installed piece using a carpenter’s pencil.
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3
Place the molding face down on a piece of scrap wood. Lay a carpenter’s square onto the molding at the marked area with the top of the square lying horizontally across the top of the molding. Press the piece of the square lying across the surface of the molding down onto the molding to hold it steady and cut along the line of the square at the marked point with the utility knife.
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4
Apply a layer of adhesive to the rear of the baseboard molding. Place a line of glue down the center of the piece and spread the adhesive along the back of the molding with a notched trowel. Spread the adhesive into a thin layer using the flat of the trowel, and then turn the trowel at a 45-degree angle and raise a series of ridges in the adhesive to aid in the glue spreading evenly when pressed into place.
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5
Press the vinyl baseboard onto the surface of the wall at its base where you wish to install the molding, beginning in a corner of the room. Use a firm pressure along the length of the baseboard to ensure the entire surface adheres to the wall. Take care, however, not to dent the molding as you press it into place.
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Mount a piece of baseboard directly against an installed piece when the wall is too long for a single piece. Leave no gaps between the two pieces. For inside corners, run the vinyl baseboard to the adjacent wall of the corner, and then mount the second piece against the front of the first on the opposing side of the corner. If the baseboard has a protruding curve on the bottom, cut the curving portion on the first piece to the width of the second piece of vinyl so that the second piece butts squarely against the front of the first.
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7
Wrap the vinyl around outside corners of the wall by bending the vinyl at the corner edge slightly. Remove the vinyl; score a thick line at the bent portion on the rear of the vinyl; and remove a layer of the vinyl you've scored so that it bends more cleanly. Place the vinyl back around the corner and finish the bend so that the piece lies flat against the corner. Glue it in place.
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Tips & Warnings
Make certain the room is well-ventilated to provide protection from adhesive fumes.
