Hi, i just installed some crown molding in a room very long piece
25-35 feet. I had to cut it in two pieces.. The smaller piece where I cut it is like 2 feet... But when I join it, (like a puzzle piece) there is a pretty big gap there. Quite obvious, even when I paint it it will show, what should I do???KOS wrote the following:
Fill it with Plaster or Joint compound, then carve it to match the molding.
Here is a link for you to check out and see if it would work for you. I did this to the baseboards in the room I just finished and it looks great. I also had a large gap in one of the corner joints and used the caulk to fix it. It took a couple of applications for large gaps but it worked great.
The key in choosing the right caulk is for it to be a blend of acrylic and silicone, you can paint or stain it, low shrinkage and use water clean-up.
There is a rule, measure twice, cut once. I would have cut the second piece knowingly too long, and then cut it shorter and shorter till I got it right.
Fill the gap with canned/aerosol foam, let set, trim off & fill with (say plaster?)
Cut another one that fits. It is normal to cut splices on an angle so that the pieces overlap rather than a butt joint. Wood will always shrink some in length, so the overlapped joint helps prevent a visual gap.
There are seveal possible problems. Crown molding can be a real change. I suggest you find a book on trim work and look up crown molding. Learn the basics and then practice. Once you get it rigiht, most of your problems will likely go away. There are a number of tricks you need to know to do this and have it work out. It is not impossible, but it takes some effort and practice to get it.
I htink I should add that one trick that can help, once you get the basics is not using square cuts, but use angled cuts. I find it hard to describe but once you see it you will inderstand. Maybe someone else will have a better explination.
Did you bevel the butt joints at 45°, so they mate up? Or are you speaking of corners ( In /Out ) that are not square corners in any home?
I would avoid the plaster, joint-compound and especially the foam ideas. If you must caulk this eye sore, use an "acrylic latex" painter's caulk. It will flex and not crack from expansion and contraction. But them again, what is the material? MDF or Oak?
I had to do a similar wall in my house. I used a scarf joint that fits the long piece and the shorter piece. Make the short piece 1" or so longer so you can sneak up on the perfect fit. Don't nail/glue until you got the best fit possible. A well-made joint should become nearly invisible.
Not quite as desirable, but ... To fix a gap without removing the molding, fill the gap with Bondo, shape, smooth and sand. Inspect with a work light, checking for any flaws. Prime the joint. Inspect again. In addition to a visual inspection, a slow brushing light touch can reveal irregularities.
And how wide is the crack? 1/16"? 1"?
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