caulking baseboards
#1
03-09-14, 04:00 AM
caulking baseboards
My husband and I have different opinons about caulding baseboards. Our livingroom walls are already painted with white baseboards with some gaps here&there in some areas of each wall, and there are other areas where the baseboards are tight up against the wall. Two questions: is cauking necessary (merely functional)- or are esthetics as important as filling in gaps? And if you are going to caulk because of the gaps here and there on the walls, do you caulk each wall completely within the room (the entire perimeter of the room), or just caulk the gaps on each wall?
#2
03-09-14, 04:06 AM
JGirl, welcome to the forums. I moved your post to its own thread so as not to hijack the one on sheetrock finishing. Once you have the baseboards in place, you will caulk the seam on top of the baseboards where they meet the wall board, then wipe down with a damp sponge to minimize the caulk. This is where functionality and aesthetics go hand in hand, so to speak. I usually run the caulk around the perimeter, one wall at a time and wipe down. It gives a finished look all over rather than having spot caulking.
Now if you are talking about the bottom of the baseboard, where it meets the floor, no, I would not caulk there. Basically, baseboard flexes horizontally with the wall, and you may see gaps between it and the floor. That is the job of shoe molding, as it flexes with the floor and wall, and will cover any aberrations in each.
If this didn't address the question, let us know.
Now if you are talking about the bottom of the baseboard, where it meets the floor, no, I would not caulk there. Basically, baseboard flexes horizontally with the wall, and you may see gaps between it and the floor. That is the job of shoe molding, as it flexes with the floor and wall, and will cover any aberrations in each.
If this didn't address the question, let us know.
#3
03-09-14, 05:28 AM
I agree! I always caulk painted base to the wall and at every joint. If you caulk it to the floor it makes painting a little more difficult and unpainted caulking tends to get dirty. Caulking is mostly for aesthetics but failure to caulk makes the job look amateurish.
