How to install flooring around intricate door trim and molding
Installing patterned flooring around detailed door jambs, casings, and original plinth blocks requires tedious custom notching and alignment for every single board. This intricate fitting leaves no room for shortcuts and makes maintaining continuous patterns like herringbone a struggle.
What people tried
Every workaround mentioned in the threads below. We haven’t tested any of them — and nobody here is claiming they worked.
Found another way around this?
Share your steps and trade-offs so fellow engineers don't have to reinvent the wheel. No account required.
- 1Cutting custom templates and scribing boardsDid this help you?
- 2Notching around the trim instead of undercutting itDid this help you?
- 3Cutting and gluing a butt jointDid this help you?
- 4Cutting a U-piece, cutting the back of the leg to fold it up and maneuver it in placeDid this help you?
- 5Cutting a small sliver in-between doors with a knifeDid this help you?
- 6Changing the layout row so it doesn't fall on both doorsDid this help you?
- 7removing the door trimDid this help you?
- 8using an undercut saw to cut the door jambsDid this help you?
- 9modifying the locking mechanism and gluing the boardsDid this help you?
- 10prying the flooring with a flat bar and tapping it into placeDid this help you?
- 11Accepting quarter round or shoe molding installation to cover gapsDid this help you?
- 12Insisting on baseboard removal and reinstallation despite contractor pushbackDid this help you?
- 13using specialized tools and scribesDid this help you?
- 14avoiding radius staircase jobs entirelyDid this help you?
- 15Undercutting the trim to the exact height of the flooring using an undercut saw or jamb saw.Did this help you?
- 16Using an oscillating multitool with cheap disposable blades to cut the gap.Did this help you?
- 17Cutting off the tongue side of the flooring plank, butting it flush against the base plate, and finishing the joint with color-matched caulk.Did this help you?
In their words
Unedited, grouped by where they were said, most upvoted first within each place, each linked to the thread it came from.
“Every board had to be notched around the undercut original Victorian plinth blocks and details, so there was no room for shortcuts.”source ↗
“This flooring job was the most pain in my a. Dont wanna dovthe radius staircase”source ↗
“this is the last row of a 1400 square-foot job. First time DIYer with a back ready to go back to my desk job after this.”source ↗
“I finally reached my hallway and I have a 72 inch plank that needs to go into two different closets that have wrapped around space. Is cutting and gluing a butt joint my only option here?”source ↗
“When we were getting quotes for both hardwood and vinyl, it seemed like half of companies wanted to add quarter round/shoe to the baseboard and the other half wanted to remove it and put it back on.”source ↗
“Am I making a mistake by insisting it be removed and re-installed? Should I for any reason reconsider?”source ↗
“Getting herring bone under jambs and casings is definetly a struggle.”source ↗
“the real pain was pulling the old nails and reclaiming it.”source ↗
“Just curious here given I've come across similar things, would you use a multitool? Seems like you'd go through 10 blades if so”source ↗
“Been there. Good job 👏”source ↗
“I had nearly identical situation. Ended up undercutting. Worked well.”source ↗
“The quarter round on the side of the wooden rails system (sorry idk the name) is one piece (not nailed in/ not removable) and is low to the sub floor so the flooring doesn’t go under it. It is like this on both sides as in an upstairs open walkway. What would a flooring company do ? Router a small amount ? Undercut the whole length ? Just walk away and say hire someone else ? lol jk. What can be done here ?”source ↗
Where this came up
People with this problem also raised
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- 2How to fit trim against uneven walls