Gap between skirting and original pine floors

[Sarah_W]

Hi,

I've just had my floorboards stripped and varnished and they look great. I've put new skirting on, but as the floors are 120 years old and not perfectly flat I've got gaps of a few mms in places. What do people normally do with these? Fill or ignore?

[sherman]

Fill it, it will look better.

[Sarah_W]

sherman said:

Fill it, it will look better.

What would you use? I used caulk to fill the gap on top of the nwe skirting which was perfect, but can't imagine white caulk would look too great on the bottom :-O

[Mr E Driver]

Lots of caulk, paint the skirting white.

[jas xjr]

i would fix quadrant to the skirting board ,then paint it white.use an electric nail gun to fix. will look like part of the skirting board. much better than filler

[Mr E Driver]

I think this stuff looks cheap. When I had flooring laid I took the skirting off and replaced it with new painted rather than have it look like this.

[jas xjr]

of course new would look better . but as a better option to filling i thing fitting quadrant then painting is fine. what do you call the profile that curves the other way? more concave

[Sarah_W]

jas xjr said:

of course new would look better . but as a better option to filling i thing fitting quadrant then painting is fine. what do you call the profile that curves the other way? more concave

Ah - it is already new 6" skirting I've fitted over the old pine floorboards. I was unsure if I would be able to caulk it tidyily. I've caulked the top gap where it meets the wall and to do the bottom gap would presumably put masking tape on the floor, right upto the skirting, then caulk, run my finger along it and then finally remove the masking (hence avoiding getting caulk on the new pine floor.

Does this sound sensible? I painted the skirting vinyl silk white before fitting

[Mr E Driver]

Yes that's the way to do it, wide masking tape! I would stuff the gap with newspaper first using a scraper as if there are any gaps the filler will just disappear

[jas xjr]

bodger that i am i would have applied pressure to the skirting board as i fitted it to minimise the gap. when i bodge up property i use mdf skirting which is quite pliable. in your place i might just fill will caulk. when people come round to view places they tend not to notice things like that. just put a nice piece of artwork on the wall to take their mind off the skirting.you then take the artwork to the next house. i make these myself with funky wallpaper and sheets of ply/ off cuts of plasterboard .punters love them.

[FlossyThePig]

jas xjr said:

i would fix quadrant to the skirting board ,then paint it white.use an electric nail gun to fix. will look like part of the skirting board. much better than filler

The oldest rooms in my house (built about 1850) have quadrant around the skirting board. I am replacing the skirting board in the last room to be tackled, trimming the bottom to fit the irregularities of the floor.

[mgtony]

jas xjr said:

of course new would look better . but as a better option to filling i thing fitting quadrant then painting is fine. what do you call the profile that curves the other way? more concave

Called "scotia" moulding I believe
You could use brown or cream frame sealent instead of caulk. If you choose to go the beading route, get it in long lengths from a proper timber merchants instead of the superstores which will probably only do 2.4m lengths. The less visable joints the better.

[W66OCH]

Unless everything else in the house is mm perfect then I'd suggest you ignore it, its all part of the character of an old place;)

Mind you the Quadrant would be a useful dust collector

[robinhood21]

W66OCH said:

Unless everything else in the house is mm perfect then I'd suggest you ignore it, its all part of the character of an old place;)

Mind you the Quadrant would be a useful dust collector

As said; ignore it.

[bga]

robinhood21 said:

W66OCH said:

Unless everything else in the house is mm perfect then I'd suggest you ignore it, its all part of the character of an old place;)

Mind you the Quadrant would be a useful dust collector

As said; ignore it.

I agree. Personally I would prefer to see a small gap between the bottom of the skirting and the top of the board.

[Ranger 6]

Sarah_W said:

...Fill or ignore?

Ignore - it's an old house with old floors.

[Sarah_W]

Great - thanks for the suggestions folks. I'm going to ignore it and when I decide upon an estate agenmt to sell the place, I'll ask for minor tasks I should undertake to maximise the properties appeal and if they suggest filling the gaps I'll do so

Thansk ever so much!

S

[Penny-lope]

Ranger 6 said:

Sarah_W said:

...Fill or ignore?

Ignore - it's an old house with old floors.

But can be draughty....We filled the gaps, and then faced with pine, and waxed the same colour as the skirting and floors.

[Graham]

If you've got a draughts coming through that you want to stop, I've used clear silicon to seal the gap between the floor boards and the back of the skirting before.. that way you've still got the orignal gap at the front, cant see the sealant as its recessed and no draught..

[MOTORVATOR]

Ignore it. You won't even notice it's there once the carpet's fitted.