Basics of baseboard installation?

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farmerjohn1324

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Do I have to find the studs? Or is the bottom plate of the wall enough to secure them to?

How far apart do nails need to be? I have a 15 ga angled finish nailer. What angle do I drive the nails in? At what vertical height on the board? Halfway up?

How close should a nail be to the end of the board?

Do I need a nail set if I'm using a nail gun?

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Q 1: How far apart do nails need to be? I have a 15 ga angled finish nailer.

Q 2: How close should a nail be to the end of the board?

Q 1:
Couldn't find a "baseboard nailing schedule" but did find
"as many 18 gauge nails as required to make the trim is tight. this could be a pair of nails every 16" with 3 nails at the mitres to keep it locked, but can sometimes more to make sure casings are tight to the wall and tight to the jamb."

Q 2:
One or two inches for softwoods & closer if you drill a clearance hole?

Depending on the nail axis vs. the grain, I recently found out that you can put a nail very close to the edge of a board if you clamp the board so that the clamp compresses the grain.
 
If you tell the whole story, the lessons are shorter.

1st you need to scrape the walls for a clean uninterrupted surface.

2nd, and depending upon the height of the new base, you follow the original nailing, or you find the studs and nail the top first, the lower.

The length of the nail depends upon the thickness of the base, usually 2" or 21/2" will do.
 
#1, That old paint and old caulking needs to be clean off or the base will not sit flat on the wall.
#2, Learn how to coup cut the inside corners.
https://www.familyhandyman.com/carpentry/trim-carpentry/how-to-cope-joints/view-all/
#3, If the gun is set right there should be no need to set the nail.
#4, It's always best to hit the studs for more holding power.
The way I do it, right or wrong is to find two studs to see if the wall was laid out on 16 or 24" centers, once I find the center of a stud I mark it and pull my tape measure out and lock it laying flat on the floor with the end of the tape on the mark and start nailing the base at the 16 or 24" marks.
That way your not wasting time measuring for each stud.
#5, One nail at the bottom low enough so the 1/4 rd. will cover it up and another one 1" down from the top
#6, Every other stud should hold it, but I go back and look for big gaps and push on it to check for flexing, if there is any I push it in and nail it at a slight angle for more holding power.
#7, There always will be small gaps at the top that can be filled with latex caulking, when caulking always only use just enough to fill the gap, there's 0 reason to have it all over the wall or the face of the base.
I use Fast and Final when filling the nail holes, once again you only need enough fill the hole, not all over the face of the base. It drys fast with no flashing when painting.
I use one of these when measuring to cut the outside corners.
http://www.rockler.com/starrett-7-p...3fcHnn4p_-9LGmOfLfpcbfZnbnKgVsFgaAtL_EALw_wcB
(outside and inside corners are almost never an exact 90 deg. angle.)
When measuring for cutting the short piece at the end of a wall it's best to install the long pieces first.
I find it works best to over cut the angle by a few deg. so just the outside tips are touching so there is no gap on the outside edge.
I also would much rather have the piece a tiny bit to long and have to gently tap it in then to have it too short and have to deal with the gap.
Often times there's a tiny tip that will stick out that can be sanded off.
 
This procedure ^ probably covers 99.9% of the cases anyone will ever encounter.
:thbup:
 
A couple more tips.
Paint the ceiling and walls before installing any trim.
If your doing a whole house I'd be buying the primed contractors packs of trim.
Always lay it out and inspect before installing or painting, often times there's flaws in the primer that need to be lightly sanded.
I buy all my trim in 16' lengths and lay it out on three sawhorses to inspect, sand, and paint one coat before installing.
That will save you from 75% of the time having to cut in and crawling around on your hands and knees.
Once installed fill the nail holes, caulk any gaps and paint a second coat.
 
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