Do I Have To Use Base Shoe On Wood Floors

If the base shoe is bonded to the baseboard by decades of paint buildup leave it in place.

Do i have to use base shoe on wood floors. The only real question was whether you chose 1 2 or 3 4 inch quarter round. After you ve put in the time installing the new floor trimming it out frames the floor showcasing the hardwoods just like a quality frame showcases quality art. If you have newer baseboards and no quarter round leave it in place but expect a lot of touching up. If you plan to let the wood show you should choose trim of the same species and color as your flooring.

Base shoe also has a 90 degree angle on the backside but the front of base shoe is slightly more square and does not follow the radius of a circle like the quarter round does. Hardwood shoe molding including oak ash and walnut. We are building an open concept transitional traditional home with hardwood floors throughout. In most homes base shoe molding teams up with baseboards in rooms that have hard flooring surfaces such as tile stone sheet vinyl hardwood and laminate.

Baseboard and shoe molding dress up a new hardwood flooring installation. Since the shoe molding is such a small and flexible piece of trim it can meander up and down with the floor hiding the unevenness with much less work than with just a baseboard. Removing the base shoe sidesteps both problems. Whether to use base shoe is largely what you want or need but if used imo should match baseboard.

The simplest builder grade primed. Baseboard comes in many different shapes and sizes and should be picked based on a balanced approach to style and money. Label the base shoe as you remove it to avoid confusion when you reinstall it. We like both looks the baseboards will be 5 1 2 to 6 high we are worried if we don t use i.

The old baseboard and molding may suffer some damage during removal. Wood is the most common type of shoe molding and you can buy inexpensive paintable pine shoe molding for 5 to 6 per eight foot section. Using shoe molding gives the floor installer more latitude in their end cuts and also allows the trim carpenter to hide un level floors. For years quarter round molding an obvious name based on its end view was considered the base shoe.

If floor put in after baseboard you may need base shoe to cover gaps. We don t know if we need the shoe moulding to protect the baseboards or any other reason we are not aware of. Replacing it will let you choose the look you want. No base shoe conveys modern shoe can add a more finished look.