How high to install baseboard?

Not understanding your question. Baseboard comes in two widths like 4" (modern) or 6" (farmhouse). Suppose you could make anything you want too.

How high off the flooring?
 
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Just a smudge higher than the thickness of the laminate, then shoe mold
 
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jmccracken1214 said:
I know it doesn’t go against the subfloor.

I’m asking how high off the sub floor it gets nailed to the wall.
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It gets installed after the laminate and then you only need a very small gap, maybe 1/16-1/8”. It doesn’t matter much since the shoe mounding will cover any gap.
 
When I was helping my dad years ago, from the subfloor we nailed it 3/4” up.
 
Laminate flooring ...

You’ll need to cut the door trim and jamb to be able to slide the flooring under it. So whatever the thickness of the flooring plus a little for “wiggle room”.
 
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Cut off a few short pieces of your base board lay them down flat, use them as gauge blocks, set your base on top and you should be good to go
 
Jerzsubbie said:
It gets installed after the laminate and then you only need a very small gap, maybe 1/16-1/8”. It doesn’t matter much since the shoe mounding will cover any gap.
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What he said. If you try install now, and say you you have some low or high spots in your subfloor.....you will have extra work to do! Plus you want to be sure you have plenty of board to nail your quarter round- shoe moulding to. When you trim around door frames and such....stack a scrap piece of underlayment, a thin piece of cardboard, and a scrap piece of flooring. Lay your oscillating saw on top of this and trim away. This should leave you a perfect sized slot for your flooring.
 
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Good advice here, but they've left one thing out: if you accidentally nail it up too high, and someone notices, just scoff and tell them it's wainscotting. :)

Seriously, though, if you can wait till after the laminate is down, it's easier to get it "right." And when you put in the shoe/1/4' round, just be sure to nail it horizontally to the baseboard, not at an angle or to the floor, so you don't inadvertently restrict the floor exp & cont movement.
 
Windini said:
Seriously, though, if you can wait till after the laminate is down, it's easier to get it "right." And when you put in the shoe/1/4' round, just be sure to nail it horizontally to the baseboard, not at an angle or to the floor, so you don't inadvertently restrict the floor exp & cont movement.
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A pneumatic brad gun is invaluable!
 
I always install the base first and just use a piece of the laminate to install height. I then adjust my jamb saw to that to cut casing. I will leave the floor approximately 5/16” from the base for expansion and the install shoe or quarter round. As said above, nail shoe horizontally or you lose the expansion area which can cause issues.
 
Having done this, if you have the boards off or they are non existent leave it alone. Lay the flooring leaving a gap between just past the baseboard and the stud for expansion. When the floor is done put the baseboard in with a slight gap for expansion as well. Then finish it tight with quarter round.

If you do it now we can start taking bets on whether you have to remove it to make it right later.
 
The guy I’m having help me has done it for years. Did my parents house and it looks great. He told me he installs base first, so that’s what we are doing. I double checked with him because most of what I read said to do floor first. Everyone has their own way I guess.
 
I can think of no advantage to doing trim first if you’re putting down laminate, probably just the way the guy has been doing it forever. For carpet I prefer trim first, better to tuck the carpet in than to try to level it on top of the carpet.
 
JimB said:
I can think of no advantage to doing trim first if you’re putting down laminate, probably just the way the guy has been doing it forever. For carpet I prefer trim first, better to tuck the carpet in than to try to level it on top of the carpet.
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I guess.

If you do floor first and sit the molding on top of floor, doesn’t that make it non floating?
 
jmccracken1214 said:
I guess.

If you do floor first and sit the molding on top of floor, doesn’t that make it non floating?
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You don't adhere or pin down the molding to floating floors. It might look like a flush/tight fit, but it can still expand/contract as needed. Between the top of the floor and the bottom of the molding..... a gap the thickness of a piece of paper will work. You will figure this out as you go. Floating floors need to expand and contract horizontally, not so much vertically.
 
If your flooring is 5/8” hold the base up 3/4”. If it’s thicker, hold it up an inch. Seriously. This isn’t rocket science :D
 
I would suggest installing base boards while youre sober. I tend to screw things up pretty well enough, never mind trying when I'm high.
 
Johnny said:
I would suggest installing base boards while youre sober. I tend to screw things up pretty well enough, never mind trying when I'm high.
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I work better after some alcohol. It slows my brain down so i can think about one thing at a time
 
As long as you don’t screw and glue the molding to the floor it’ll expand and contract just fine with no visible gap between it and the trim. It’d be hard to screw this up.
 
15 years flooring experience. Floating laminate, LVP, tile, hardwood, you name it. If you are doing qtr round there is no need to slam the base to the floor, you can leave an 1/8 inch gap btwn floor and base when installed, then just push down the qtr round when it's installed. Short answer is, it doesn't matter which is done first, the base or the qtr round will not restrict the floor from moving, as long as the 1/4 inch gaps exist somewhere away from the 2x4's and or base, whichever is lowest.

Edited to clarify: if you install baseboards first, leave 1/4 inch gap to them, if not you have more than enough room for your 1/4 inch gap to the 2x4. Proper baseboard height doesn't matter as long as the qtr round has something to catch a nail. I install both ways and don't have a problem either way. JUST DONT NAIL DOWNWARDS!
 
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The only advantage to installing the base first is painting it. Your going to have to do touch ups regardless but it’s so much easier to get 2 coats on without having to protect the floors. If you’re painting your shoe molding, paint it first and then just touch up the fingerprints. They also sell the prefinished shoe to match the laminate
 
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