How to fix gap between skirting board and wall?

Question

Hey.

I'm renovating a master bedroom and it's time to sort out the skirting boards. As you can see from the photos, the skirting boards aren't flush with the wall. That's not the problem. Where there's a gap, what's a good way to clean up the edges before filling with Sellys No More Gaps? The mouldings are pine.

Cheers

MikeTNZ · Answer

Hi @Bad_Spellerer, Welcome to Bunnings Workshop, it's certainly great to have you here.

Is there any chance that you could address why the skirtings have come away from the walls in the first place?

I suspect that over time the nails that hold the skirting in place, may have "popped" out of where they should be (the studs), using a nail gun or a hammer and fitting new nails (possibly small annular ring brads or the like) could bring the skirting back to the wall and retain this in place a lot better.

Merely filling the gap with sealant only hides a problem that could more than likely appear later on again, all timber buildings "move" to a certain degree as the seasons change, if the wall has bent in a concave or convex fashion, the nails will pull themselves out over time, meaning that the skirting will to a certain degree come away from the wall, hence the gaps you see now.

Should you require any further help with this, by all means let us know.

Cheers,

Mike T.

JacobZ · Answer

Hi @Bad_Spellerer,

Welcome to the Bunnings Workshop community, it is fantastic to have you with us.

The perspective and lack of shadows make it little bit difficult to tell exactly what is going on. It looks like you have a standard skirting board with a triangular shaped trim sitting on top. Is that correct?

If so, then I'd suggest running a utility knife along the seam between that triangular trim and the wall to make a clean cut of any gap sealant or paint that is currently there. Please remember to wear gloves, protective clothing and enclosed shoes when using knives to reduce the risk of lacerations.

Once you've cut whatever is there, you can give the triangle fillets top edge a light sand to remove any jagged paint edges. A medium grit sandpaper such as 180-grit would be fine for this.

After sanding, use a soft brush to remove any sanding dust, and run a vacuum along it to pick up any leftover.

You can then seal up the seam with your No More Gaps, strike it off smooth, allow it to dry, then paint if you plan on doing so. Check out

https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-advice/diy-skills/tiling/how-to-silicone-a-gap

for some guidance with applying sealants.

Let me know if you have any further questions.

Jacob