How to attach skirting boards to the floor: installation methods, step-by-step instructions, wizard tips

At the final stage of the repair of the premises, the owners have to complete several finishing works that give the finished look a finish. One of the final touches is the installation of skirting boards. This process can not be called complicated, but if mistakes are made during installation, the work can be significantly delayed. We suggest that you familiarize yourself with how to attach the skirting to the floor so that your repair is completed as soon as possible.

Varieties of floor skirting

Today we have several types of decorative panels available. The most popular options are PVC. They are characterized by lightness, resistance to changes in air temperature and humidity level. Plastic panels can be cleaned with chemicals, which suggests their hygiene. They are used in tandem with a flooring of laminate, linoleum and carpet.

But with a natural parquet, a wooden baseboard looks more harmonious. It emphasizes the nobility and sophistication of an expensive finish. Such elements are made of pine and spruce wood. Products are characterized by a variety of shades, which allows you to successfully combine it with different types of natural cladding.

For those who cannot afford wood materials, MDF products will be an excellent alternative. They are made of wood chips, and their front part is covered with paper imitating natural wood. Such products have an extensive color gamut, are easy to clean and are characterized by an affordable price tag.

Due to the listed variety, it is impossible to describe one method of how to attach skirting boards to the floor. Therefore, we will consider all the methods available for each option.

What to fix: to the floor or to the wall?

When choosing a base for fixing decorative strips, you should be guided by a reduction in labor costs. To do this, pay attention to the base of the floor. If the flooring is laid on top of a concrete screed, and the wall is made of wooden materials, then it is better to fix the plinth to it. And vice versa: if the floor is made of boards, then it is more advisable to fix the skirting board on it.

If your room has drywall constructions, study the information on how to attach a prefabricated baseboard to the wall. In such situations, special self-tapping screws and zinc coated nails should be used.

In cases where both the floor and the wall are made of solid material, to install the skirting boards, you will need to drill holes for the dowels, and then screw the screws. The same method is used in cases where the wall and floor are quite loose.

When working with all of the listed varieties, use the following rules that indicate how to properly attach the baseboard to the floor:

1. The minimum distance between fasteners is 25 cm.
2. The maximum distance between fasteners is 50 cm.
3. The skirting board is fixed to the base, which guarantees sufficient fastening strength.

In the course of work, ordinary self-tapping screws, anchor plates, special clips, adhesives can be used. The choice depends on the type of floor skirting used.

Fixing PVC products with screws

To begin, we will figure out how to attach plastic skirting boards to the floor. During installation, you can use several methods. The simplest of them - on the screws. The order of the work is as follows:

1. Mark the wall or floor under the dowels. Determine the optimal distance between the fasteners and put the appropriate points. Start marking from the longest wall, while 6 cm from the corner.
2. Using a drill or punch, drill holes in the marked areas. Drive in plastic dowels.
3. Measure the length of the walls and cut the skirting boards to fit. In the course of work, you can use a grinder, an electric jigsaw and a hacksaw for metal.
4. Attach the baseboard to the wall, mark on it the space for the holes for the screws.
5. Assemble the strips using end, connecting and corner elements.
6. Drill the required number of holes in the skirting boards. Try to get to the installation site of the dowel as accurately as possible.
7. Through the resulting holes in the strips, fix the screws in plastic dowels.

To attach the plastic baseboard to the floor as carefully as possible, do not screw the screws too tightly, this can contribute to the curvature of thin elements. At the end of the work, close the hats of the screws with a decorative strip or caps in color.

Fixing a plastic skirting board to glue

Another simple method of attaching a floor skirting board is glue. It is suitable for inexperienced craftsmen and those who are looking for a way to attach the baseboard to the floor without a drill.

For this purpose, the composition "Liquid Nails" or any other glue recommended by the manufacturer of plastic strips is used. In the course of the work, you need to cut the skirting boards to the desired length, arrange the resulting segments under the corresponding walls. Then, in zigzag movements, apply glue to the back of the plank and press it against the wall. Thus, install the baseboard around the entire perimeter of the room.

This technology is very simple. It resembles instructions on how to attach a ceiling plinth. If you are faced with such work, use this particular method.

When choosing mounting on glue, pay attention to the fact that it will be difficult for you to replace the skirting board. Give preference to such installation only in those cases when you are sure that in the near future you will not have work to replace the floor covering.

How to attach a skirting board using kleimers

The highest quality installation can be done by using special fasteners - clips (kleimers). Their use allows you to quickly install decorative strips and easily perform their dismantling.

Consider how to properly attach a plastic baseboard to the floor using clips. The work is carried out in the following sequence:

1. Step away from the corner of the wall 5-6 cm. At the resulting point, position the clip, press it against the wall and make a mark for the hole for the dowel.
2. In increments of 50 cm, mark all fasteners.
3. Drill holes for the dowels. Select the diameter of the drill in accordance with the dimensions of the plastic fasteners included in the kit.
4. Fasten all clips with self-tapping screws.
5. If necessary, pull the cable, and then install the baseboard on the clips.

If the wall is rough, reduce the distance between the clips. This will ensure the most tight fit of the slats and reduce gaps.

Installing a wooden floor skirting board

To the question of how to attach a wooden plinth to the floor, it is also impossible to give a definite answer. Fixation can be carried out by various methods.

The easiest way is to glue it. This type of installation is suitable for both solid wood products and for MDF options. It can be used if the walls and floor of the room are relatively even.

On the baseboard glue are placed as follows:

1. The composition "Liquid Nails" is applied to the inside of the board.
2. The bar is firmly pressed against the wall, after which the second element is installed. The seam between adjacent boards is also carefully oiled. In this case, the adhesive should not fall on the front of the bar.
3. For arrangement of internal and external corners, the edge of the board is sawed at an angle of 45 ° C.

First, make the inner left corner, and then the right. It is desirable that knots and resinous patterns are absent in the seam area.

To make the cut on the panel as neat as possible, use a pre-prepared template or miter box to cut corners. Make sure that the thickness of the profiles at the joining point is the same.

When using this method, you should remember that you will be able to achieve a perfect fit only when the walls and floor are as even as possible. In other cases, there is the possibility of large gaps.

Eliminate such a defect with putty. Take a narrow spatula and carefully fill the voids between the wall and the board. Grind surfaces treated with putty and fine-grained sandpaper.

Mounting a wooden skirting board on anchor plates

You can attach skirting boards to the floor (both on wooden and on laminate flooring) using special anchor plates. Their advantage is that such a fixation can be used even in cases where the walls are not too smooth.

A step-by-step instruction (how to attach the baseboard to the floor using the plates) is as follows:

1. Determine where the plates will be located. The maximum distance between such fasteners is 0.5 meters. Mark on a wall or floor.
2. Use a punch to make holes to fix the plates.
3. Carefully drive the dowels into the prepared places.
4. Using self-tapping screws, pull the anchor plates to the wall.
5. Install wood panels so that the product fibers are located strictly perpendicular to the teeth of the plates.
6. Fit the slats firmly so that there are no gaps between the wall and the baseboard.

This method of installing wooden panels allows you to securely fix the planks around the perimeter of the room, while the appearance of the expensive finish does not change at all. If necessary, the skirting board can be easily removed and reinstalled.

Mounting on nails and screws

If you need to fix a wooden plinth over a wooden floor or parquet, you can use self-tapping screws or small nails as fasteners. How to attach skirting boards to the floor in this way? Follow the instructions below:

1. Measure the desired length of the plinth with a tape measure. Transfer the resulting dimensions to a wooden plank. Make a cut.
2. Docking will be carried out at an angle of 45 degrees. Saw down the boards for arranging the corners in advance.
3. If the baseboard is fixed on a wooden base, use small nails in the work. Just press the planks firmly against the wall and hammer in the cloves. In order not to spoil the front side of the tree, perform the final driving of fasteners with a chisel.

If you are installing baseboards on concrete surfaces, first hammer the nails into the wooden plank. Attach the product to the wall and hammer once on each nail. This way you will get marks where you will need to drill holes for fasteners.

Using the punch, make the required number of recesses in the wall. Drive in special plugs. Set the slats and hammer the nails into the plug holes. If you will use dowels, carry out installation in the same way, but use self-tapping screws instead of nails.

Masters Tips

As already mentioned, the choice of plane depends on the condition and strength of the base. However, when determining the installation method, professional craftsmen recommend taking into account the type of flooring used.

So, if you install a skirting board over a laminate or parquet, fix the products only to the wall. Otherwise, the flooring itself may prematurely fail.

Before placing the baseboard over the laminate, make sure that there is a technical gap of several millimeters between the panel deck and the wall. If it is absent, there is a risk of coating deformation, expansion of joints.

Products made of veneer or wood are most often installed on top of a solid wood floor or on parquet. If there are a large number of defects or irregularities on the wall, in addition to standard plates, it is recommended to use parquet studs in addition.

It is better to install skirting boards made of similar material on top of porcelain stoneware floors or other types of tiles, but plastic varieties can also be used. In this case, they need to be fixed to the wall.

To fix the plinth over the bulk floors, special glue is used, which is selected in the color of the coating itself. Plinth joining places are covered by connecting fittings or putty putty.

As for comfort, it is better to install skirting boards made of wood or MDF in children's rooms, but PVC products are optimally suitable for the kitchen, corridor, loggia and bathroom.

To summarize

Having considered all the options for how to attach the floor plinth to the floor, you can understand that the work of installing it is quite simple. A variety of fixing methods allows you to install it even for novice masters who do not have a professional tool.

However, it should be remembered that it is not so much the observance of all the rules for the installation of decorative panels that is important as the choice of the optimal method for their reliable fixation. If the strips are laid on top of a laminate or parquet, their reliability is of particular importance, since it is the skirting board that presses this coating to the floor.

Otherwise, the choice of method of fastening products depends on your preferences, capabilities and skills.