Removing skirting boards to lay floors - new build

Ellebelle

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Hi

We are purchasing a new build in a new estate. As part of the finish of the house, the developers have laid the skirting boards (glued and nailed) - however this has happened before we have laid the floors.

The options we have is for us to:

1) lay the floors and putting beading down to conceal the gap between the floorboards and the skirting or
2) remove the existing skirting to lay the floors then refit the skirting - appreciating that this might cause some damage to the walls and the skirting.

I'm not too fond of the appearance of option 1. It's not ugly by any means but personally I'd prefer clean lines.

Does anyone have any recommendations or encountered the same issue when buying a new build in a new estate.

Thanks!
 
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Always!! but I have never, ever heard of a genuine tradesman using No More Nails (or whatever it is) on skirting. A real lazy DIY job IMO, knowing that flooring must be laid. Nothing looks worse than beading holding down a new floor in a new house.

I may have the name wrong, but you can buy a "glue saw" that fits between the wall (plaster-board) and the back of the skirting and cuts through the glue, leaving you to remove the nails with a pincers / nail-bar / block of wood combo.
 
builders did the same thing in my new house - floor fitter tried to persuade me to use beading. I said no and if skirting had to be replaced so be it. Beading was not the look I was after! In the end the fitter removed and put back the skirting with no damage at all.
 
Always!! but I have never, ever heard of a genuine tradesman using No More Nails (or whatever it is) on skirting. A real lazy DIY job IMO, knowing that flooring must be laid. Nothing looks worse than beading holding down a new floor in a new house.

I may have the name wrong, but you can buy a "glue saw" that fits between the wall (plaster-board) and the back of the skirting and cuts through the glue, leaving you to remove the nails with a pincers / nail-bar / block of wood combo.

The builders are saying that it strong glued and nailed down and therefore very difficult to remove without causing damage to walls and skirting.

Thanks for the tip re the glue saw - I will mention that to the guy fitting the floors.
 
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builders did the same thing in my new house - floor fitter tried to persuade me to use beading. I said no and if skirting had to be replaced so be it. Beading was not the look I was after! In the end the fitter removed and put back the skirting with no damage at all.

Oh thats good to hear - was your skirting nailed and glued? Fitter is warning me that there may be damage to the wall and skirting boards if we are removing them as they are very secure. I guess he is just trying to cover himself in the event of any damage which I can understand. Did you have to do any repainting / touching up on the walls and the skirting boards after they were put back on?
 
Oh thats good to hear - was your skirting nailed and glued? Fitter is warning me that there may be damage to the wall and skirting boards if we are removing them as they are very secure. I guess he is just trying to cover himself in the event of any damage which I can understand. Did you have to do any repainting / touching up on the walls and the skirting boards after they were put back on?

I did get the skirting repainted but the walls were fine. I think fitter is just covering himself. Also new skirting very cheap compared to my real wooden floor so was worth the risk IMO.
 
That's pretty typical for a lot of new-builds now. Glueing is also common as new builds give off a lot of moisture initially and most skirting supplied in these is cheap deal which can warp very badly if not glued. Did the builders know you were planning on wooden floors? Most would accommodate if told in advance.

A proper flooring contractor will have a trimming saw they can use to take the appropriate amount from the bottom of skirting, trim doors, etc.. But this is a slow messy job, so the guys after a quick buck don't want to know.

I'm not sure what a glue-saw is, but an oscillating multitool with appropriate blade will do a nice clean job of getting down behind the skirting. Again though, slow job.

The best solution will really be to remove the skirting, patch up the walls, put in the flooring and replace the skirting. There will likely be a lot of damage to the skirting though, so you may need to factor in replacing it all unless the exact profile can be sourced to replace any pieces that suffer too much damage.
 
If I went ahead and got the guys who are laying my floor to remove the skirting would I be able to get the builders back in to fix any damage (paying for this obviously) or would I have to get someone else to do it?
That's pretty typical for a lot of new-builds now. Glueing is also common as new builds give off a lot of moisture initially and most skirting supplied in these is cheap deal which can warp very badly if not glued. Did the builders know you were planning on wooden floors? Most would accommodate if told in advance.

A proper flooring contractor will have a trimming saw they can use to take the appropriate amount from the bottom of skirting, trim doors, etc.. But this is a slow messy job, so the guys after a quick buck don't want to know.

I'm not sure what a glue-saw is, but an oscillating multitool with appropriate blade will do a nice clean job of getting down behind the skirting. Again though, slow job.

The best solution will really be to remove the skirting, patch up the walls, put in the flooring and replace the skirting. There will likely be a lot of damage to the skirting though, so you may need to factor in replacing it all unless the exact profile can be sourced to replace any pieces that suffer too much damage.

The builder had already fitted the skirted by the time we had a deposit on the house - it seems part of their standard fit-out which seems unusual given that most purchasers will intend on putting wooden floors down in at least some rooms.

Thanks for the suggestion on the trimming saw - I'll mention that to the fitter.
 
Any wooden flooring fitter should be able to replace skirting themselves. If the same person is responsible for re-fitting it, they'll be a little more careful in removing it. So less damage to the skirting and the walls.

If the builders are still on the site, they might agree to do the patching up and refit for you.
 
For what it's worth, I have put down quite a few wooden floors in a lot of older properties where it's not practical to remove the skirting, and left a 3-5mm gap filled in with caulk. I can't abide beading, it's the lazy way out.
 
Hi, I have a question on this topic so I think it is worth reviving an old thread. I have concrete build and there is a hole in the block wall behind the skirting. As a new build, I am fearful of damaging the drywall. Is worth removing the glued MDF skirting or just drill a hole through the skirting to fill the hole?
 
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