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Home Repair The Old House Flooring

How do I fill the baseboard gap? Shoe molding too small

Marina Kookootsedes

3 years ago

We ripped laminate flooring out of our home and now have baseboard that float 1/2” - 3/4” off the floor (see pic below). I don’t want to tear them off the wall and place them lower as they were installed with SO MANY nails that ripping them out will damage the wall pretty severely. I bought standard shoe molding to cover the gap, but with barely any overlap we won’t be able to nail the shoe molding to the baseboard without splitting the wood. Any other ideas?

Featured Answer

PRO

G & S Floor Service

3 years ago

Double stick carpet tape to the back of the shoe molding for a nailless install.

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Comments (8)

ci_lantro
3 years ago
Or custom made shoe. Roundover bit in a router. Clear stock. Rip on a table saw to appropriate height.

But don't you have other problems? Like high water jambs & door casings?
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I suspect you will find that it is like any large dimension baseboard: even a well-laid floor will have subtle undulations and the bottom of the baseboard will rest on the high points causing gaps at the low points, unless scribing is done. The baseboard will be level - or close to it - if the floor and subfloor are level. The issue of being absolutely level is not as critical as the irregular gaps that one sees if shoe molding is not used.
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Sigh....another floating floor install that did NOT have the baseboards removed. The 'gap' in the middle of the floor is the bungled attempt to install an 'in-field' expansion gap. What the installer DIDN'T realize (like WOW...as in OMG) s/he NEEDED to drop in a T-MOLDING in that gap. That's how you HIDE an expansion gap. You don't just leave it there gathering junk. You COVER IT with a t-molding! Zoinks! The easiest fix in the MIDDLE of the floor is the T-molding. The SAME STUFF used at doorways. Geeze Louise. Who WERE these people? OK. Please send photos of the whole room where the gaps are sitting in the floor. The close ups do NOT give us the full picture. At the walls the easiest thing = more trim. As in shoe molding or quarter round painted to match your existing trim. What type of flooring is this? Laminate or engineered hardwood or vinyl? How long are the longest continuous runs (large rooms + hallways)? Are there t-moldings in the doorways (ie. into bedrooms with the same flooring? or through pinch points into the kitchen for example)? Who was responsible for purchasing the flooring? The trim required to finish the job? Did the job entail removing baseboards and reinstalling them?
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Mrs. S
3 years ago
I don’t understand why removing the baseboards will tear apart the wall? Aren’t they just finishing nails holding it on there?

your floors look nice, don’t you want the baseboards done right, for a clean look? And, as cilantro mentioned, casings and doors...
bry911
3 years ago
This is really easy to fix. Just install nailer strips under the baseboard. That will give you a backer to nail the shoe molding to. If you have a table saw, just buy some wood the same thickness as your baseboard and rip it down.

If you don't have a table saw, buy wood the same thickness and chop saw it down, making sure you have a filler piece at every point where you will nail the shoe in. When you nail your fillers in make sure the nail is long enough to get into the bottom plate.
Marina Kookootsedes thanked bry911
Marina Kookootsedes
Original Author
3 years ago
Thanks all! I‘m going to try the double stick carpet tape @G & S Floor Service as it seems like the path of least resistance and if not the nailer strips @bry911. In response to @ci_lantro and @Mrs. S - I do have high door jambs but I’m willing to live with that (it’s a 100+ yo house, trying to do least invasion possible). Also, the last owner put 64 nails in a single 6’ baseboard so prying it off the wall was hard without making dents in our plaster. Again, thanks everyone!
mainenell
3 years ago
Or use this. It is 1 3/8” high.

https://www.homedepot.com/p/Alexandria-Moulding-WM946-3-8-in-x-1-3-8-in-Primed-Pine-Finger-Jointed-Stop-Moulding-0W946-93192C/206013363
graywings123
3 years ago
last modified: 3 years ago
The double stick carpet tape without the nailer strip is not going to give you enough area for the baseboard to meet up with and stick to the shoe molding. A good bump to the shoe molding is going to dislodge it.

And once you have the nailer strip in place, you may as well actually nail the shoe molding in.
ci_lantro
3 years ago
Also, the last owner put 64 nails in a single 6’ baseboard so prying it off the wall was hard without making dents in our plaster.

Oh my. Sounds like someone who just got their first ever nail gun!

A trim puller is on my tool wish list: https://www.homedepot.com/p/Zenith-Trim-Puller-Multi-Tool-for-Baseboard-Molding-Siding-and-Flooring-Removal-Remodeling-ZN700002/206509569

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