Some help with skirting please!!

[.:mike:.]

Hi all - my first post here - and i really need some help...

I'm just finishing a room - done the plastering etc, now just need to put some skirting in to complete it. I bought some deep torus style softwood skirting and its been a complete disaster - so its time to take some advice, have a think and start again.

Problem one seems to be that pretty much all the wood i've bought - from wickes - just isnt straight (its bowed like a 'c'), which is driving me nuts as it seems impossible to get a good finish.

Problem 2 could be my own mistake that i may have realised in that im using a mitre cut for internal angles - apparently i should be 'scribing' them?

Despite the above the internal corners are by and large passable, but the external corners are a total mess (where i should mitre cut them).

Is it all down to bad wood and inexperience?? Any help would be very very appreciated

[ultimatehandyman]

Hi Mike,

welcome to UHM

There is a page here on fitting skirting-


fitting skirting board


You are fighting a loosing battle trying to use warped skirting. It would be best if you took it back and got it replaced.

[RichieRambler]

Hi Mike, sorry to hear of your plight. I dont mean to rub salt into the wounds but if you have a look at my thread in this section, you will also note that I have just completed my first attempt at skirting and it went off with astonishing success. Amazingly, I used the same 15cm taurus that you described.

I had some recent plastering done and I guess I must have been lucky in that the walls are pretty good.

That said, there were some difficulties.

Anyhow, I used the scribe method and coping saw, having used one end of a cut off as the template. With the simple taurus profile, I found this to be quite straight forward The easy bits were the opposing walls, dont worry about the angles and just make sure that the skirts are the right length to cover the entire wall - or two sections. For the internal, ensure that an accurate silhouette is drawn (think about how the profile will be as you could get it facing the wrong way round).

Then with the mitre, cut 45 degrees for the external angles, ensuring that you measure accurately so that the chamfer starts at same length of the wall for that section.

I used No Nails for fixing but if you have any issues with uneven walls, as I did, then plug the walls, screw and cover the screwheads with wood filler. Any gaps in the corners or betwen the skirt and wall I had were then filled with a bead of caulk and then finished off with a watered finger run over the bead.

I have done the undercoat primer today and it looks almost professional. Beginners luck, I think. I'm sure it wont work out quite so well the next time around.

Hope it goes well for you.

Richard

[.:mike:.]

Thanks for the tips guys - useful guide

Richard - was the skirting board bent or was it straight, the real problem im finding is that it sits away from wall by up to around 2cm in places and this makes cutting the corners at 45 degrees a nightmare as the cuts are then angled!

[Hoovie]

2cm is much too big a gap to try to work around - you would be onto a loser always with that much warpage. 2mm is fine!

[RichieRambler]

Thanks for the tips guys - useful guide

Richard - was the skirting board bent or was it straight, the real problem im finding is that it sits away from wall by up to around 2cm in places and this makes cutting the corners at 45 degrees a nightmare as the cuts are then angled!

I was about 5mm max from the wall in a couple of places and then screwed this part to the wall i addition to using No Nails.

[.:mike:.]

Thanks for the help guys - got it all sorted now - went and got some decent skirting from jewsons. Its still nice and deep but properly straight now, no problems Stuck it on with "Sticks like sh*t" and fingers crossed it'll look good when the room is finished.

[Wood Magnet]

Nice one Mike, thanks for letting us know, any piccy's?

[.:mike:.]

Nice one Mike, thanks for letting us know, any piccy's?

Cheers WM - will do when i get the room painted - needs to ve done for xmas - clocks ticking!