Dumb question about baseboard in new home construction...come all wood workers!

[Kelvrick]

I did my own baseboards and can't see the nails unless from within 2-3 feet and staring at it.

Regular baseboards with color-matched caulk. Whenever the nail created an indent, I'd fill in with the color matched caulk, wipe with damp sponge, done.

I bought my house as a repo though, so almost everything is being replaced and I have no contractor to bitch at. If anything wasn't done right, it was because of me. But hell, I did it and I love it.

 

[leeland]

Can you get a pick of the door? If it's not terrible I'd almost use that as leverage for another issue that might be harder to mitigate...or an add in upgrade that's more of a labor cost than material. You can figure that the staining costs are around $350-$500 + new door, for whatever that material cost was.

So if there's other things like crown, built ins, having your blinds installed, ect that you can get the builder to do you might get more for your $$ than having a non dented door. But that's just up to what you can live with.

Sorry I have been away...I didn't abandon the post...I have basically been cleaning for the past 5 days 6 hours a night on the house to get it totally inspected...HOLY HELL what a lot of work cleaning three months of construction.

Nothing like walking around with a shop vac in a 3,000 square foot home and vacuuming ever square inch to get all the dust out.


ANYWAYS...a little update...

The contractor said he would get it fixed so that is good...how he will do it I don't know at the moment so I will reserve judgment until it is done.

But as I cleaned all the baseboard and trim I found multiple holes without puddy so the jackwagon he had helping him did a shit job on top of using the wrong color .

The door with the dent...I showed him...he didn't 'seem too impressed' but again was great and said he would get it fixed...again I will hold judgment on it and kindly let him know I want it to look right.

The last irritation is how in the hell do you get stain off of tile? I found multiple little spots around places where they must have been staining free hand and had droplets in areas...some would come off with elbow grease but some wouldn't budge.

I was told to use an eraser of all things but that didn't work.

Once I get it all cleaned up and get the carpet in I will post some pictures.

 

[vi edit]

For the tile, I'd maybe try a little dab of mineral spirits on an old wash cloth. Assuming it's an oil based stain. If it's water based, then try one of those Mr Clean magic erasers.

 

[leeland]

For the tile, I'd maybe try a little dab of mineral spirits on an old wash cloth. Assuming it's an oil based stain. If it's water based, then try one of those Mr Clean magic erasers.

AH...I had one of them with me "Mr. Clean" and didn't think of trying that...put that on the list for tomorrow.

Thanks for the tip! BTW how is the new home coming along? Feel good to be all done with that stuff? I cannot wait to get out of the rat shack that we are living in.

 

[alkemyst]

depends on budget and level of construction.

 

[TastesLikeChicken]

Sorry I have been away...I didn't abandon the post...I have basically been cleaning for the past 5 days 6 hours a night on the house to get it totally inspected...HOLY HELL what a lot of work cleaning three months of construction.

Nothing like walking around with a shop vac in a 3,000 square foot home and vacuuming ever square inch to get all the dust out.


ANYWAYS...a little update...

The contractor said he would get it fixed so that is good...how he will do it I don't know at the moment so I will reserve judgment until it is done.

But as I cleaned all the baseboard and trim I found multiple holes without puddy so the jackwagon he had helping him did a shit job on top of using the wrong color .

The door with the dent...I showed him...he didn't 'seem too impressed' but again was great and said he would get it fixed...again I will hold judgment on it and kindly let him know I want it to look right.

The last irritation is how in the hell do you get stain off of tile? I found multiple little spots around places where they must have been staining free hand and had droplets in areas...some would come off with elbow grease but some wouldn't budge.

I was told to use an eraser of all things but that didn't work.

Once I get it all cleaned up and get the carpet in I will post some pictures.

A little tip for you - It's the contractor's responsibility to clean up, not yours. A decent contractor will maintain a certain level of cleanliness during the process and should have a crew in to make everything spotless at the end. I guess it's too late to tell you at this point but now you know.

 

[amdskip]

You could also try some goop orange hand cleaner with the pumice in it.

 

[stinkynathan]

I'm an installer for a custom cabinet shop. We run a LOT of crown, base trim, cove, etc. So, a few things on at least the wood working stuff.

Go around and and put a little piece of painters tape on every nail hole that they missed. Actually, go around and put a little piece of tape on every "ding" everywhere you see them. Make the contractor fix them. The painters should probably be some of the last guys in the house before you move in. They touch up any paint and trim dings/scuffs to make it look all new for you.

We use a couple different types of filler to hide all sorts of blemishes in our cabinets and trim. The little Minwax cans you can get at Menard's or Home Depot are generally pretty good for small holes. (I've never seen the full assortment of colors in any store. I can't find teakwood, redwood, or briarwood ANYWHERE.) That stuff is quick and easy. It's best on the lighter colors of wood and gets tough to match darker stains on oak/lyptus/cherry. Hit it with some stain if it doesn't match.

We also have these:
Wax sticks
Stain markers
Graining pens

I've been able to fill counter-sunk screw head holes in plain sight with that set. We're talking next to a customer's dishwasher, hip height, full sunlight and I couldn't see it from three feet away. (It can take a lot of time, but that time spent is generally better than me having to call my boss to order a new cabinet.) It's probably way overkill for you, but know that it exists in case you ever have some trim damage that you'd like to fix.

Know that the guys are going to be pissed when you tell them about the nail holes they missed. If you don't putty holes as you make them, it's a shitty job to rework and easy to miss holes. They know it should have been done right the first time and will be frustrated at themselves for it, but probably focus that frustration on you.

Just some info and perspective from a trim/finish/cabinet guy.

 

[Greenman]

We need a sticky about construction questions, it should say, DON'T ASK THEM HERE!