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Flooring
Accessories
Every Edge of the Floor Gets a Finish
Tap a molding below to see where it goes. We measure each doorway, step and wall during the free visit, then order the profiles that fit your floor's thickness and the surface it meets.
Transitions Between Floors
Where one floor meets another, the right piece depends on height. A T-Molding joins two floors that sit level, a reducer slopes down to something lower, and a baby threshold finishes the edge next to thick carpet or a sliding door.
Stair and Step Edges
Stair nose gives each step a rounded, finished edge and takes the wear that would chip a bare board. Flush styles sit level with nailed or glued floors, while overlap styles rest on top of floating floors so they can still move.
Wall and Hearth Trim
Along the walls, trim hides the expansion gap the floor needs. Quarter round and shoe molding get nailed to the wall, never the floor, so the boards can still shift with the seasons. Around a fireplace, a reducer or threshold frames the hearth.
Moldings Need Time in the Room
Shaw's install guide says to let wood moldings acclimate for 48 hours and to predrill any piece that gets nailed, because thin profiles split easily. It's a small step that keeps joints from opening later.
Flush or Overlap?
Flush moldings lock into the floor and sit at the same level, which suits nailed and glued hardwood. Overlap moldings rest slightly on top of the flooring, the right pick for floating floors that expand and contract underneath.
Why Big Rooms Get a T-Molding
Shaw calls for a T-Molding as an expansion joint once a floor runs past 40 feet in length or width. In a long open plan New York loft, that strip lets each section move on its own without buckling.
Doorways and Sliding Doors
A threshold should overlap the floor by about 1/2 to 3/4 inch and leave the rest of the space for movement. It's the usual finish in front of sliding glass doors and exterior doors, where the floor has to stop short.
Matching Color and Species
Most flooring makers sell moldings milled from the same species and finished in the same color as each floor, so the trim reads as part of it. With unfinished floors, raw moldings can be sanded and stained right along with the boards.
Stair Nose on Floating Floors
Overlap stair nose is meant for floating installs and gets glued and nailed to the step itself, not to the flooring. That way the floor keeps its room to move while the nose stays put under daily traffic.
Molding Questions
What molding goes between hardwood and tile?
If the tile sits at the same height, a T-Molding works. If it's lower, a reducer strip slopes down to meet it, so we check the height difference at your Connecticut home or wherever we're working before ordering.
What is a baby threshold?
It's a molding that finishes the edge where a wood floor ends, often next to high pile carpet, a sliding door or a hearth. Some makers call it an end cap or a square nose.
Is quarter round the same as shoe molding?
They do the same job, covering the gap at the wall, but quarter round is a full quarter circle while shoe molding is slimmer and taller. Both get nailed into the wall or baseboard, never down into the floor.
How are moldings priced?
Moldings are sold by the piece and installed by the linear foot, so the number of doorways, steps and walls sets the price. You'll get it in writing after we measure each room in New Jersey or nearby.
Do vinyl and laminate use the same moldings?
The shapes are the same, but each maker sells trim built for its own planks, often in matching colors. Most are overlap styles, since those floors float instead of being nailed down.
Moldings can be added to the same financing plan as your floor.
We bring molding samples to your Massachusetts home at the free visit.
Every T-Molding, reducer and stair nose is cut and fit by our own crew.
Floors get checked for height changes first, so each transition sits flat.
Ready to Finish Every Edge?
Book a free visit, and we'll measure each doorway, step and wall in your Rhode Island home and price the trim in writing.
