Hanging Crown Molding On Plaster Walls

Position the molding in the desired location on the wall.

Hanging crown molding on plaster walls.

If you think something is too heavy then it s best to mount it in a more secure way to the wall. Before installing crown molding test fit a piece of molding in place image 1 and mark the height of the molding where it meets the wall below the ceiling. As with all trim secured to old plaster walls locate the studs. Fastening crown molding directly to walls can be a headache but well fastened rail trim makes nailing the crown foolproof.

Use a level or laser level to extend this mark along the walls from corner to corner image 2. There were lots of holes chips and cracks in the plaster where they had nailed the molding in the plaster. After all it is just a piece of wood molding. I repaired the plaster and have painted the walls and now want to put new crown molding up.

The second trick is to set the molding against the saw and mark a line on the table with a pencil image 2. Hanging without picture rail. The furring strips add more stability to the larger heavier crown molding and greatly simplify nailing the molding to the wall. Install chair rail approximately 34 inches above the floor.

The nail came out of the gun into the crown molding and then did a 180 against the plaster walls and came back. Make a marking gauge the same size as the crown then use it to position the crown on the rail. Well obviously that was just a misfire so we upped the pressure in the tank and fired a few more. If you don t have picture rail or don t want to install some that s just fine.

I can still give you some great ideas for hanging on plaster walls. This type of molding was once an elegant way of hanging artwork on hard to penetrate plaster walls. Install baseboard along the floor at the base of the walls. The number one trick to cutting inside and outside corner crown molding is to cut each piece upside down with the ceiling side on the bottom and the wall side on the top image 1.