Replies

1. 
   markinca | Dec 02, 2003 08:56am | #1

   Hello Jill,

   Installing crown moulding presents several challenges.

   1. working overhead is tiresome and uncomfortable. I would recommend nailing up crown with a pneumatic nailer. They are quick and easy, compared to hand nailing. Depending on the size of the crown and the thickness of your wall and ceiling finishes, a 1 1/2" to 2" 18guage finish nail would work.

   2. crown typically nails easily to the wall surfaces due to regular stud intervals. The ceiling framing however may provide the same interval of framing members on the walls that are perpendicular to the span of the joists or rafters. However on the adjacent walls you may not have any ceiling backing to nail into. Although it may seem like nailing the base of the crown into the walls is enough, you will find that nothing in typical construction is perfectly flat and square, so the crown will be gapped at the ceiling in some locations. I have found that cross nailing into the plaster or sheetrock works if you are not trying to 'pull' the crown into position. This is where some panel adhesive may come in handy. The secret is to cut and install the crown with as little pushing and shoving as possible.

   3. mitres in crown moulding are very challenging. I'd recommend coping the mitres. I'm sure you can search the taunton site for coping methods. You will need a good quality and accurate compound mitre saw, large enough to cut your moulding size.

   4. caulking the installed crown is a must. The gaps I previously mentioned should not exceed 3/16", unless your walls or ceiling are very irregular. If the gaps exceed 3/16" the caulk will tend to sink into the joint and will be much more noticeable. Crown can be scribed to the irregular surfaces, but this is very labor intensive (remember working overhead) and can affect the mitre joints.

   5. when a piece of crown is not long enough to run the entire wall length, then you will have to join two pieces of crown. I'd recommend a biscuit spline in the joint if possible. Cut the joint with each meeting face bevel cut to 30 degrees. These joints require sanding, so if the crown is pre-finished this will be a problem. These joints very rarely disappear without some handwork.

   I hope this helps and doesn't scare you away from the project. Good luck. Mark

2. 
   Len | Dec 19, 2003 05:36am | #2

   Jill,

   I would nail crown. 2 to 2-1/2 inch long finish nails. I would highly reccomend using a nail gun. You can rent one or buy one. If your planning on other projects buying one would be the way to go. I know, it opens another can of worms.

   You will need a miter saw of some type or a miter box and a backsaw. I would get a miter saw if you don't already have one.

   Before I get into all the details of installing crown. Have a look at these web sites. They will give you lots of good information so you can decide if you want to tackle this job.

   http://www.josephfusco.org/Articles/Crown_Moulding/cuttingcrownpg1.htm

   http://www.altereagle.com/How_to_install.html

   http://www.thisoldhouse.com/toh/knowhow/handbook/article/0,16417,214981,00.html

   Hope this helps,

   Len

3. 
   crosscutter1 | Mar 20, 2004 02:54am | #3

   hi jill

   i agree with everyone on the use of nail guns . How much carpentry exsperence do you have ? have you ever done any coping before ? Coping does take some practice not to metion a good coping saw and some sturdy surface to hold the wood on as you cope it . I prefer to take a sample peice of the crown and lay it on a piece of wood .Once isee the angle i make a rough pencil mark on the wood and cut a bunch of these small blocks i usally use 5/4 pine for the blocks.I then get 2 milk crates and a 2x12 and use this for walking on . I then put a little glue on these blocks and use a 2" 18 gauge brad to toe the blocks to the top plates this eliminates having to find the studs as well as using long nails to hit the top plate . altough most people will insist on finding the studs i think this is just as fast. Kind of tough for me to type everything but hopefully this will give you some food for thought