How to cut the corners of ceiling plinths correctly: both with and without a miter box Ceiling plinths: features of their processing from various materials. Methods for cutting the outer and inner corners of ceiling skirting boards. How to use a miter box.
Different materials and their features
- Wood. The most durable material in comparison with the other two, listed below, the advantages of which are in hardness, impact resistance and the ability to withstand certain mechanical loads. Nevertheless, wooden skirting boards (another name for fillets), glued to the ceiling, are also relatively easy to process, they can be cut (for this, a hacksaw is used for wood), varnished. Wood will add warmth to the interior. Of the minuses, you can name a higher cost than foam. However, wooden fillets also retain their appearance longer than foam ones.
Styrofoam. Perhaps this material is the most fragile, it is unstable to mechanical damage, scratches and even minor impacts. Of the advantages, light weight, the ability to paint in various colors and ease of processing (it can be cut with a clerical knife, however, very carefully).
Expanded polystyrene. This material can be considered a kind of foam, however, its strength characteristics are slightly higher (extruded polystyrene foam is denser than foam). With regard to processing, expanded polystyrene is just as easy to cut with an ordinary sharp knife, and also has a low weight, and this is an important factor when considering the load on the walls.
Both polystyrene and expanded polystyrene have one significant advantage: the softness of the material allows you to press the plinth as tightly as possible to the corners and to each other, as a result of which there are no gaps. In addition, modern polystyrene skirting boards are made in such a way that they have a small recess specifically for hidden wiring.
Useful. Polyurethane stucco molding can transform the appearance of a standard apartment into an elegant, stylish interior.
Cutting inner corners
Important! To cut the inner corner, the fillet should be placed on the bottom of the miter box with the upper part of the one that will stick to the ceiling. In this case, the lower part of the plank should be firmly pressed against the wall of the tray.
Step 1: correct measurement of the length of the plinth according to its markings on the wall, drawing a notch with a pencil on the material for the future cut.
Step 2: installation of material in the miter box. The correct placement of the plinth in the tray will determine the correct cutting of the fillet edges, and, accordingly, the accuracy of their placement on the ceiling.
Step 3: after the plinth is installed and tightly fixed in the miter box (you can just press the material firmly with one hand), a hacksaw is put into the groove under 45. The material can now be cut. The edges of the second skirting board, which will be installed adjacent to the first, are cut in the same way, only as if in a mirror image (the skirting board is installed in the opposite direction, the edges are also trimmed at an angle of 45).
Miter box tool for cutting skirting corners
There are two ways to cut corners with and without a tool (miter box). We’ll cover both methods.
The miter box is a carpenter’s tool, which is a small rectangular tray (you can make it yourself from wood or purchase a ready-made one from plastic or metal), in the walls of which there are grooves. The slots guide the hacksaw blade at a specific angle to the axis of the tray.
How to trim the corner of a ceiling plinth using ceiling markings
Marking the skirting board on the ceiling also allows you to cut the corner straight and precisely. The only drawback of this method is that it is difficult and inconvenient to keep the plinth strip suspended during the cutting process. Otherwise, you can mark the cutting angle in this way even more accurately than in other ways. Applying the plinth to the installation site, all wall flaws and deviations in the angle size are immediately taken into account.
Cutting the corner of the skirting board:
- The first step is to cut two workpieces at a 90 degree angle.
- Then we first apply one plank, resting its end against the perpendicular wall. We draw a line on the ceiling, outlining the contour of the plinth.
- We remove this bar and apply a striker, also resting its butt against the wall. We outline the line.
- The intersection of the marked lines will be the mark at which the skirting board needs to be cut.
- Again, we apply each bar in turn and mark the cutting point on them.
- We draw the line from this point to the other edge of the plinth.
We cut off the skirting boards along the outlined lines, join them and apply them to the installation site. Note that this method makes it easier to cut inside corners.
How to trim a ceiling plinth using a miter box template
Something resembling a miter box can be done by applying the required cut angles to paper, cardboard or wood. Draw two parallel mowing lines, locate the center, and then set the required angles using a protractor. The advantage of this method is that you can postpone any angle, including more than 90 degrees. Of course, before cutting the corners of the ceiling plinth, you must first check the angle between the walls with a corner and measure it with a protractor.
The technique for cutting a ceiling plinth using a painted miter box is exactly the same as using the miter box itself. We press the plinth plank to one of the parallel lines, then set the hacksaw at the desired angle, which is already outlined, and cut it off.
How to cut a corner of a ceiling plinth using a miter box
The miter box is a simple carpentry tool that allows you to cut the workpiece at the desired angle. Most often it is a plastic, wood or metal tray with vertical slots for cutting at an angle of 90 and 45. There are also more complex miter boxes for cutting at 90, 60 and 45 degrees. For more professional work, a miter box with a swivel mechanism is used, where the hacksaw can be fixed at any angle to the workpiece.
How to cut a ceiling plinth with a miter box:
- We apply the plinth to the ceiling, measure the required length.
- Then we install the plinth plinth in the miter box so that the position coincides with the position of the plinth on the ceiling.
- The plinth strip should be pressed against the far wall of the miter box.
- We hold the plinth with your left hand.
- We choose such a position of the hacksaw when the angle is 45 degrees and the handle of the hacksaw is as close as possible to the left hand.
- We cut the workpiece without making excessive pressure on the saw.
- The next step is to trim the plinth striker. We also install it to the far wall of the miter box.
- Press and hold with your right hand.
- We choose such a position for the hacksaw when the angle is 45 degrees and the handle of the hacksaw approaches the right hand.
- Cut off the skirting board.
Next, we join the trimmed plinths and check the cutting accuracy. For a more accurate orientation, they also say that to complete the inner corner, it is necessary to start cutting from the front of the skirting board. Wooden skirting boards will most likely need to be filed after trimming.
How to cut a ceiling plinth with a miter box outside corner:
- In order not to be mistaken with the dimensions, it is better to start by marking the inner corner, and then cut out the outer corner. Otherwise, a situation is possible when the planks may not be enough in length.
- It is necessary to attach the plank to the ceiling and outline the dimensions.
- Install the plinth strip and press it against the nearest wall.
- Hold it with your left hand and choose a position for the hacksaw at an angle of 45 degrees, when the handle approaches the left hand.
- We cut off the workpiece.
- We install the striker to the nearest wall, hold it with the right hand.
- We set the hacksaw at a 45 degree angle when the handle approaches the right hand.
- We cut off the workpiece and join the corner.
Trimming the workpiece with a miter box is only suitable if the angle between the walls is even 90 degrees. If the accuracy is poor, you will have to use other methods.
What is it made of and what is it called
The very first skirting boards on the ceiling were made of plaster. They were cast in special molds and then installed on the ceiling with mortar. Such figured decorations were called fillets. Today you can rarely see them: they are expensive, and outwardly they are almost indistinguishable from the cheaper options. And the name is almost lost.
The most popular ceiling skirting boards are made of polyurethane or polystyrene. They are inexpensive, look great, easy to install, have a wide range of profiles and patterns. The width can be from 5 mm to 250 mm. They are used in almost any room, decorated in any style. An exception is wooden houses with a suitable interior. Wood products are most often used here; the style dictates its own terms.
There is also a similar plastic finish. It is mainly installed in bathrooms. But even in damp rooms, you can safely mount polyurethane strips, they are not afraid of dampness.
You need to cut the ceiling plinth in the corners of any material in one of the ways described below. The only exception is plastic skirting boards: you can arrange such a corner only using ready-made corners.
How to cut ceiling plinth in corners
The quality of the ceiling finish greatly affects the appearance of the room. Therefore, they try to do everything perfectly, or very close to it. The finishing touch to the design is the ceiling plinth. They give the finish a complete and holistic look. The strips themselves are mounted on flat surfaces simply: on special white glue, but problems arise with the design of the corners. Without knowing how to make the corner of the skirting board correctly, a lot of material deteriorates. We will tell you about how and what to cut it in the corners.
With decorative corners
There is one more, simpler way. For skirting boards made of polyurethane or polystyrene, use ready-made, factory decorative corners. They are installed in a corner, strips are glued to them closely. It is very simple to cut them if necessary: by a few millimeters with an ordinary clerical knife.
Outside corner
- Measure the length of the plinth from the nearest wall to the outer corner, leave the fishing line on the wrong side with a pencil, indicating the desired length. It should be noted that the edge (its upper part) should protrude slightly outward.
- The plinth is moved to the miter box and cut off.
- The adjacent strip must also be measured with a margin and cut off in a mirror image to the first part.
Trying on the ceiling plinth: the joining of the parts should be perfectly flat. If the result is not achieved and there are irregularities at the joints, you can trim the edges with a regular knife to a perfect fit.
The first way with a miter box
The miter box usually looks like a tray with vertical holes for a hacksaw. It can be made of wood, metal or plastic. This tool represents the oldest and simplest carpenter’s tool, designed for cutting wooden parts at an angle of 90 and 45. There are types of such a device for professional work, with a swivel mechanism, in which the cutting tool can be rotated and fixed in any position.
How to cut a ceiling plinth correctly
Ceiling corners are divided into internal and external, the method of joining them is slightly different.
How to cut the corner of a ceiling plinth straight
A beautiful and neat edging of the ceiling hides the joints between the coatings and is an additional element of the room’s decor. But in order for the ceiling plinth to look really beautiful, you need to be able to properly join its corner joints.
How to cut the corners of the ceiling plinth evenly can be found in our article.
Related article: how to properly glue the ceiling plinth with glue and putty.