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Posted by Colbyt on December 9, 2006, 2:51 pm
> Buck Turgidson wrote:
>> I had a contractor, whose opinion I value, tell me that the way he does
>> baseboards for a room intended for carpet is to raise the baseboards so
>> the carpet guy can slide the carpet in under. He said that that's the
>> typical way of doing it nowadays. He wants to do that on a job for me.
>>
>> I am not sure if I like that look, and have always seen the carpet butted
>> up against a baseboard.
>>
>> Any opinions on the aesthetics of his approach?
>
> OK, I am going to give my assessment of this and why. I have been doing
> trim for over 35 years. I am a general contractor now, but I started out
> as a trim sub about 30 years ago. I have been putting in baseboard for a
> long time.
>
> This raised base technique is fairly new. It started about 20 years ago
> or so, but I had never seen it before that. At first, I balked at doing
> it that way because I thought it was stupid. I had always run base right
> against the floor and the carpet was butted against it. I had several
> builders that demanded it and so I did what I was told and installed it
> however the client wanted it. I did do some research to find out why
> people would want it this way and although I have not found anyone that
> can give me a definitive answer to this question, I have come to a
> conclusion.
>
> Baseboards and door casing used to be 2 totally different animals.
> Similar, but different. If you had 2-1/2" casing, the base would be
> 3-1/2". If the casing was 3-5/8", the base would be 5" or thereabouts.
> Same profile on the small edge, but a wider "flat area". It still exists
> like that today.
>
> Compare the two at this site:
>
> http://www.door.cc/Wood-Moldings.html
>
> Some builders began to use casing for everything, door trim and base. It
> saved a little money. These are the guys that wanted the base raised off
> the floor. If you want the same width (or the appearance of the same
> width), then if you use the casing for base, you have to raise it off the
> floor in order for more of it to be visible after the carpet is installed.
> You don't have to do this when using casing and base.
>
> It was done so much, that it became the standard for about 50% of
> builders, whether they used base or casing for the base trim. Since noone
> knew any better, it has become an accepted way of doing things.
>
> Just my informed opinion, but I defy anyone to give a better reason for
> raising the base off the floor.
>
> --
> Robert Allison Rimshot, Inc.
> Georgetown, TX
As almost all of your posts are this was a nice informative post Robert.
BTW for the OP. It is also the defacto standard around here in all price
ranges of home.
tmurf has a very valid point about future painting.
But, there is one downside to the raised BB process. There is no way to
caulk between the BB and the floor when you raise them. Even in a new
insulated house this can be a major entry point for cold air in colder
climates.
Colbyt
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