dining room ideas wainscoting
chair rail molding adds a bit of eleganceto any room. it serves as a good transition between wallcolors, and can also be used to cap wainscoting. installing chair rail molding is somethingyou can do on your own in about forty-five minutes per wall. here’s what you’ll need for this inexpensive,intermediate-level project: when taking on this diy task be sure to equipyourself with the proper safety gear. throughout the video, we’ll alert you regardingwhen you should and should not use the safety gear. step 1 lay out rail heightif you’re using a chair rail to cap wainscoting,
skip to step 3. otherwise, measure a third of the way up eachwall, marking each side of every corner. snap chalk lines between your marks on eachwall. step 2 find studsmove a stud finder along the chalk lines, marking the center of each stud. step 3 install first piecemeasure along the chalk line to determine the length of your first piece of molding. cut the ends at forty-five degree angles witha miter saw. align the rail along the top of your wainscotingor chalk line and fasten with a sixteen-gauge
finish nailer. if you have wainscoting, you can nail directlyinto it or nail into your wall studs. if you don’t have a finish nailer, use ahammer and two four-d finish nails, one above the other into the stud. be sure to use a nail set to drive each nailbelow the surface of the wood. if you need to use more than one piece ofmolding to span a wall, cut a forty-five-degree miter on the first piece, planning the cutto fall over a stud. nail the first piece in place, then put thesecond piece in place, marking where it overlaps the miter.
miter the second piece, apply wood glue onthe joint, and nail into place. step 4 install first outside corner pieceif your molding turns an outside corner, cut the other end as needed to fit into the corneror join another piece at forty-five degrees. put the piece in place and mark where themolding meets the wall. set your miter saw to forty-five degrees and—withthe back of the molding against the fence—make an outside miter cut from the notch to thefront of the molding and nail it into place. step 5 install second outside miter piecelike inside corners, outside corners may not be perfectly square. to check, cut a forty-five-degree miter ona scrap of chair rail and test the fit.
if the miters don’t match perfectly, adjustthe angle of the saw and make test cuts until you get a perfect joint. apply wood glue to the piece that’s alreadynailed in place, put the second piece into place, and secure with nails. step 6 creating returnsmake a forty-five-degree cut on a piece of wood that’s long enough to safely cut. flip the board over and make a straight cutwhere the forty-five-degree cut meets the back of the board. then glue the return piece into place on themolding that needs a return.
step 7 finishing touchesfill all nail holes with wood putty. once they’re dry, sand until smooth. take the sandpaper or sanding block and slightlyround all the meeting edges of outside miters, then prime and paint as needed. once your paint is dry, caulk along the topof the chair rail for a smooth finish. your installation is complete!