Flooring Before Baseboards

Number the walls and corresponding sections of baseboards to easily match them up later.

Flooring before baseboards.

Builders prefer to do the baseboards first and then bring the tile right up to the tile. Home owners generally prefer the look of doing the tile first and then installing the baseboard trim. Baseboards are often installed before flooring since they must be finished in place with either stain or paint and this is much easier without worrying about staining the hardwood tile or carpet. Remove the baseboards the day before the flooring installation so you can move furniture away from the walls.

Interior doors and trim all should be done before the flooring. With unfinished hardwood always run the floor first. Caulking the gaps in trim joints and the gap between flooring baseboards improve water impermeability of the floor. When we do the interior trim and the prefinished bamboo flooring in a house or any prefinished flooring for that matter we always do all the trim first using 3 4 spacers or whatever width the floor you are using is under the doors cased openings and baseboard.

If it is installed with the tile up to the baseboard trim then you should leave about a 1 8 gap that you should fill will caulking. Spot prime and then add another coat of paint to baseboards because it lessens the chances that something happens to your floors since now you only have to spot prime and add one. The baseboards should be primed and painted with one coat.