No Baseboard Molding in Modern Bedroom w/ Carpet

I am trying to achieve a modern, minimalist look in a carpeted bedroom. The builder has recommended having no baseboard molding at all, with the carpet just running right up to the wall.

In the other rooms in the apartment, I've got hardwoods with stained quarter round, and stone tiles with 4" tile as a border, so really no other painted moldings to speak of.

Is having no baseboards at all a viable option, and will it look strange?

Reply to
gobofraggle
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I used to do work for a designer years ago and in his own home he had no baseboard molding at all. As I recall I don't think he had any molding anywhere and the place looked fabulous. He had hardwood floors. Of course he had the talent to make it work. I like the look of no baseboard molding.

Reply to
John Grabowski

One of the purposes of a baseboard is to absorb the impact of things like vacuum cleaners, chairs, and the like.

If you're careful, that shouldn't be an issue.

As to your question: try it. If it looks weird, or if your guests can't stop giggling, you can always retrofit something.

Reply to
HeyBub

i don't have any baseboards in my house. it's all either carpet or tile. i've noticed that most custom houses in my area in the past N years have not had it. it does mean that the rock hangers have to know about this and do it differently.

Reply to
charlie

Yeah.

Story: back when I was doing the bathroom remodel, I supplied the vanity, sink, mirror, etc., contractor the rest.

Well, I got a vanity and counter that was too deep :*)

No problem - my contractor cut the vanity back and the counter down to fit. But the little backsplash on the back of the counter was cut off. He worried that it would look weird. Against the half-way up tile that was also put in, it looks *better*.

If the decor is a modern style and the walls and carpet are finished properly and one is careful; I agree - so what if there's no baseboard. If there are a lot of mouldings elsewhere, it may look 'off', though.

Banty

Banty

Reply to
Banty

As a practical matter, it seems it would be very difficult to keep the carpet clean without bashing the wall. What color the carpet and walls?

Reply to
Norminn

The carpet and walls are in very neutral tones, in the taupe family. The ceilings are high, and I'm going for a minimalist, architectural kind of look. So it looks like no baseboards is a viable option?

Reply to
gobofraggle

On Wed 19 Mar 2008 07:23:07a, told us...

We havev no baseboards at all in the carpeted areas of our house. The kitchen and baths have sheet vinyl flooring was a small painted wood baseboard but no quarteround.

Reply to
Wayne Boatwright

It is a lot harder on the carpet guy and the painter/drywall guy. Hard to get a clean straight edge on the joint. If you really wanna do this, recommend you have the drywall guy hold the wallboard off the subfloor half an inch or so, and use J-channel on the bottom. That will give a crisp edge, and provide a crevice for the carpet guy to tuck his loose ends in. Expect to pay extra- this is fussy detail work. And unless you flush in the door casings and have a no-trim inset for the window, the effect will be a little jarring, making the room look half-finished.

Also note- the bottom edge of wall will be hard to keep clean and undented. Carpet guy with kicker, vacuum cleaner, furniture, etc. will all be prone to leaving marks.

Personally, I'd go with thin square-section baseboard and door casing, with eased edges, in the same hardwood as the rest of the apartment. No quarter round.

-- aem sends...

Reply to
aemeijers

The look strange part is only your concern, no? Doesn't matter what anyone else thinks.

The baseboards, as others have noted, protect the walls from bashes and bangs. A vacuum cleaner will leave marks on drywall. One way of dealing with the impact is to use something harder as a baseboard that's flush with the surface of the drywall. You could use 1/2" MDO or MDF and paint it. The top edge could be taped to conceal the seam, or you could use some vinyl trim to create a reveal.

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Baseboard also allows clearance so furniture isn't banging up against the wall (floors flex and walking would make the nightstand, or whatever, vibrate against the wall leaving marks. The clearance also helps so electrical outlets and plugs don't get so much abuse.

R
Reply to
RicodJour

replying to aemeijers, Artisan Custom Floors wrote: I agree. Being a floorcovering installer myself, it is much more difficult to get a really finished look for carpet, especially if you are putting in a patterned berber. You WILL definitely pay more for this. Leaving the drywall up three eights of an inch to half an inch does leave at least a little something for the carpet installer to talk underneath. Be aware though, you might see a "halo" around the perimeter of your room due to the smooth edge, or tack strip, being lower than the carpet underlay that you choose. There will be a definite dip right before the wall. Baseboards usually hide this. Another potential issue, is the carpet being lifted off by somebody cleaning with a vacuum. If you're like me, you detach the powerhead from the hose, and go around the perimeter of your room with just the hose to get in the corner. If you're not careful, and the carpet has nothing holding it down i.e. a baseboard, it could pull off of the smooth edge and thus you lose the stretch your carpet. As for others who have said that they have sheet vinyl in their homes with no casings, I would never recommend this. For the sheer fact that casings hold the perimeter of the sheet vinyl down. As we have all seen in houses that I've had sheet vinyl down for years, vinyl will likely curl. This is due to its continued loss of its plasticizers in its top layer. This happens especially around heat vents and vertical abutments like cabinetry or gable ends. If you do not have casings, the only way to hold something down is with the small bead of silicone. And this is not a permanent hold. Just look at the front of somebody's tub after the flooring is been down for 10 years.

Reply to
Artisan Custom Floors

Artisan Custom Floors posted for all of us...

I first I thought you were only spamming the n/g but you have some valid points here.

Reply to
Tekkie®

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