How To Plan Flooring Installations With Baseboards and Door Casings

When designing the floors in your home, you have to consider many factors. Unfortunately, many homeowners accidentally design their floors without thinking about where baseboards and door casings fit into the equation, and that can negatively impact the installation process.

If you are planning a flooring installation, the order of events is critical. If you don’t plan for baseboards and door casings, you could risk doing things out of order. That mistake might mean you have to double back, redo some work, or compromise the overall look of your floor.

Before jumping into how to plan your flooring installations, let’s discuss the importance of baseboards and door casings. What are they, and why should you include them in the flooring design process?

What are Baseboards and Door Casings?

Baseboards are typically wooden or vinyl coverings that protect and conceal the joint between the wall and floor. Contrary to what people might think, it’s not just about aesthetics. Baseboards provide many benefits.

They protect against physical damage, like scuffs and dents, when moving furniture. In addition, they prevent the buildup of dirt, debris, and excess water. Plus, they are also used to block dirt and moisture from getting into the extra space included in hardwood installations.

Door casings are similar to baseboards, except they conceal the seams and joints between the wall and the jamb. As a result, they help hide unsightly cracks, openings, and hardware. They also have an aesthetic appeal that many homeowners find attractive.

Door casings and baseboards don’t have to be just plain slabs of wood attached to your walls and doors. Get creative and make them interesting. Take into account the trim and crown moulding used throughout your home and try to pick complementary or identical designs.

Why They Should Be Included in the Design Process

You should include baseboards and door casings in the design process for a few reasons. One, you want to make sure you’re choosing styles and colors that work well together. You may want to play with different colors and flooring patterns based on your interior design aesthetic, but you can’t do that if you don’t plan ahead.

Plus, the installation processes for flooring, baseboards, and door casings are interwoven. They need to be done in a particular order. If you do them in the wrong order, you might have to double back, start over, or risk hurting the overall look of your floors.

Planning Your Flooring Installation with Baseboards

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Like flooring installations, baseboards and door casings can be simple and incredibly complex at the same time. You must pay meticulous attention to what you’re doing and follow the steps outlined in your guide.

If you don’t feel up to the DIY challenge, we recommend hiring a professional contractor to handle the installation for you. If you do choose to install your own floors, baseboards, and door casings, there’s a specific order you need to follow.

Installing with Hardwood and Cement Flooring

Baseboards are sometimes installed before flooring, but that’s not always the case. For hardwood and cement flooring, you usually install the baseboards after the flooring. The reason for this may be a little surprising.

Hardwood expands and contracts based on the moisture in the air, so there’s always a little extra space left at the edges. The baseboards and casings cover and protect that extra space. For cement floors, the cement must dry before you install the baseboards and casings.

Installing with Carpet Flooring

For carpet flooring, on the other hand, you typically install the baseboards and casings right on top of the subfloor. Once the baseboards and door casings are installed, you can proceed with the carpet installation. Once you’re finished, simply tuck the edges under the baseboards to give it a clean and finished look.

This is also useful because it makes painting and adding finishing touches to your baseboards and casings much easier. Though it can be done, painting on carpet flooring is not easy.

When to Paint Baseboards and Door Casings?

Painting baseboards and door casings also depends on several factors. Many sets of baseboards, casings, moulding, and trim come pre-painted. If they don’t come pre-painted, you can paint them before you begin the installation.

Of course, once the installation is complete, you’ll need to cover up any holes left behind and add any finishing touches. For hardwood and cement flooring, you’ll want to do this after the floors are installed and use a ton of caution and painter’s tape. For carpet flooring, you’ll want to paint and finish the baseboards and casings before you install the carpets

Partner with Metrie for High-Quality Baseboards and Door Casings

If you’re looking for the best quality baseboards and door casings on the market, you’ve come to the right place. At Metrie, our products are expertly crafted and built with you in mind. For more information, find a Metrie dealer near you. If you’re unsure which baseboard or moulding style is right for your design, check out Option {M} today.. It’s an incredible tool that pairs popular design trends and mouldings so that you can eliminate all the guesswork.