Do it yourself interior trim

Trim Specialties Inc

" Here comes civilization"

On this website I will explain the methods I use to do residential interior trim. I will write about installing cabinets, prehung doors, countertop substrates, closet shelving, door and window casing, installing baseboard, and stair railing. I will also discuss some special projects, like fireplace mantles, built-in units, columns, coat cubbies and wainscoting as well as some, do it yourself projects, for around the house.

I always work on a house before the walls are painted and any of the woodwork is stained or laquered. This way I am free to sand any rough places on the wood without the finish in the way. If the finish is already applied and I need to sand the wood it will create a smooth area that will not take stain at the same depth. Also some painters will finish wood that is not good enough to use, and once it is stained the lumber company won't take it back. This way I can control which lumber gets used and I can send everything else back. Part of my job doing interior trim is to use the lumber in an efficient manor so as to save the builder money and to save our natural resourses as best I can. If the builder can save a little money he can pass it along to the customer.

This is a built-in wall unit with adjustable shelving, raised panels,and an arched apron at the desk area. While a project like this is not for a beginer, many aspects of it can be applied to more simple designs.

When I am doing the interior trim in a house, there is a certain order in which I like to proceed. First I will check my supplies and make sure there is nothing missing. In my case, The home builder I work with supplies the materials and everything is stored in the garage. I will check all the prehung doors to make sure they are all there. I make sure all the material is there for the closet shelving and all the lumber I need for the window casing and the door casing. I check the prehung doors and make sure the doors I have on hand matches what is called for in the blueprints.
I will have a meeting with the job superintendent as early as possible and get the house specifications. This will give me a better idea of the lumber I will need. Then I can make sure I have the lumber for any fireplace mantles and all the parts I will need for the stair railing.
Once I know the work load I can check it against the woodwork on hand. Then if I notice anything missing I can order it right away and, hopefully it will be there before I need it. There is nothing that will slow the interior trim down on a house more than if you end up starting a half dozen or more projects, and can't finish any of them. Believe me spending a little extra time at this point can save a lot of time later. Sometimes a superintendent will wait for me to review the plans to let him know how much lumber I will need. I will usually order about 15% more woodwork than I need. That way I can pick out the better pieces and send the rest back when I am done. It is always best to make sure the lumber is a stock item as sometimes you can't return special ordered materials.

When I am sure that I have all the woodwork on hand or ordered I will usually begin by installing cabinets. There are a couple reasons for this. First the cabinets are usually stored in the garage and take up a lot of space making it hard to get around. Secondly the contractors who install the granite countertops that we usually use will need to get in to make templates of the finished cabinets so they can be installed before they delay any of the other trades. Also moving the cabinets around after any of the pre-hung doors or the rest of the interior trim is installed I take the risk of damaging either the cabinet or the doors as I move the cabinet through the doorway.

After installing cabinets I will move on to the countertop substrates. Then I will install the pre-hung doors. The next step is the door casing and the window casing. With the window casing done I will install the closet shelving. This takes care of the basic interior trim with the exception of the baseboard. Next I tackle all the really fun stuff like fireplace mantles, stair railing, built-in units, and the special woodwork like crown molding and wainscoting. After all the cabinets and the other woodwork is in place I will install the baseboard.

I won’t install any of the hardware like the cabinet knobs or the rods for the closet shelving at this point. Also I can only install baseboard in the areas that will get carpet or have a pre-finished floor already in place. After I have walked the house to make sure I haven’t missed anything I will clean up and move out. After the house is painted and the woodwork is finished, the rest of the trades will have their turn. I will come back when the carpet is in and the house is nearly finished to rehang the doors that the painters removed to finish them and install the door and bath hardware as well as any cabinet knobs.

A midsize house of around three thousand square feet can take a couple weeks to finish. The big houses of around seven to ten thousand feet can take a couple months or even more.

This site is a member of WebRing.
To browse visit Here.

↑ Grab this Headline Animator