Baseboard molding advice

[chocho111]

I am finishing my basement, just finished the laminate and am at the stage of installing baseboard molding and door/windows molding.
Any advice on what should kind I use and where would be best place to buy it from?
Specifically what size (width/height) should I go with for the baseboard molding?
I can see it comes in all kinds of sizes and shapes and is a bit confusing for someone who has never done it. Ceiling is about 7.5 to 8 feet in most places.

Thanks.

[coolspot]

In general, the higher the baseboard, the more expensive it is. However, there is also personal preference.

I personally prefer at least a 3 - 4" baseboard. However, some people have 6"+.

Go with wood baseboards, they'll last longer than MDF. MDF is fine for crown mouldings which.

If you want to take a look at styles, check out Royal Wood Shop in Aurora: www.royalwoodshop.com or Central Fairbank Lumber.

[Drthorne]

15% off mouldings at Rona this weekend. I'd probably go with the 4" baseboard in mdf if you're trying to save money.

[boyoflondon]

It's a basement ... doesn't really need anything fancy unless you went all out there in the first place. 3-4" is more then enough. The styles will vary along with the price.

[tjthemanto]

Make sure you nail the baseboard as opposed to glueing ( industrial glue ) .

I see lot of houses ( especially apartments & condos ) where the baseboard was glued to the dry-wall .

Tomorrow if you want to change the flooring or something & if you try to remove the glued basboard it will rip the dry wall when you remove it .

[CaptSmethwick]

Your mouldings should be consistent throughout your house and should, frankly, have a profile that is consistent with the era and style of the house or its interior design. If you don't care about that sort of thing, then just find something that is close to what you have in the rest of the house. If you are going to go with MDF, consider a moisture-resistant (MR) grade - as basements can get humid.

Typically, a very narrow baseboard (~3") provides the cheapest look but it's sufficiently functional for its intended purpose. Also, if you are planning to install quarter-round, 3" can look out of scale - 4" will provide a nicer look.

IMO, most mouldings sold at Rona and HD are pretty basic and are stuck in a couple of pretty narrow ranges and they're not that unique. But if they have something that is close to what you have in the rest of the house, then you shouldn't have a problem. Again, just look for MR.

[jollygreengiant]

Other than the big box stores, where else might you get MDF baseboards and crown moulding? We checked a few other places (small materials shops, centra fairbanks) and they only carry poplar or pine. Any suggestions for places closer to the city? The Aurora place is too far for us.

[bonterra]

Your mouldings should be consistent throughout your house and should, frankly, have a profile that is consistent with the era and style of the house or its interior design.

Definitely agree with that, also important to have the right proportion. I have a friend with a huge house but the moulding throughout is the smallest size available, it looks very odd.

Home Depot sometimes sells "contractor packs" of multiple lengths of moulding. It works out to be a better price buying it in the bundled packs.

Anybody else notice that lots of homes don't have quarter round anymore?

[attitude21]

Definitely agree with that, also important to have the right proportion. I have a friend with a huge house but the moulding throughout is the smallest size available, it looks very odd.

Home Depot sometimes sells "contractor packs" of multiple lengths of moulding. It works out to be a better price buying it in the bundled packs.

Anybody else notice that lots of homes don't have quarter round anymore?

I personally detest quarter round. I think it looks odd, and doesn't add anything to the appearance.

[jollygreengiant]

I personally detest quarter round. I think it looks odd, and doesn't add anything to the appearance.

"Door stop" - not sure if that's the proper name - seems to be more prevalent these days. Our hardwood guys suggested eliminating the extra bit of moulding all together. Door stop looks like with a colonial baseboard that has a wide bottom section - adds an extra bit of depth / interest.

[doggydoo]

Anyone know where to get a good price on doorstop in the GTA?

HD and Rona only sell 8' lenthgs and they charge quite a bit for them.