The next advice you must follow is to use a nail that is long enough to strongly hold the baseboard with your wall. Run your fingers over the trim with your eyes closed. A baseboard is the trim that runs along the bottom of a finished interior wall. Installing baseboard trim will frame your interior walls and protect the junction where the wall and floor meet. Baseboards have no structural purpose except to decorate or cover the construction behind it. Brad nails are thinner in cross section allowing them to leave a smaller, neater hole which can be filled up and smoothed down easily. The angled magazine allows the operator to working tight corners and confined spaces with … The top-selling finishing nails product is the Grip-Rite #13 x 2 in. Use a stud finder to locate wall studs to nail into; alternatively, knock on the wall to differentiate the hollow areas from the studs. Stay tuned with us for more info-guides like this. Nail a small piece of drywall to the pieces of rough lumber. Pre-drill your nail holes if you are concerned about the baseboard splitting. Here’s what a ready-to-paint hole typically looks like. Now, we’ll talk about the size of brad nail for trimming purposes. If you’re using baseboards that haven’t been painted yet, you should use a punch while sinking up to the hole. They are more likely to give a smoother finish on your interior walls and best suited for all trimming purposes. It is also meant to protect the bottom of the wall from damage. Twenty-Five Times. In trim work, paneling, smaller crowns, interior moldings – you should use finishing nail guns. The length of a finish nail is important. Finish nails are used for attaching trim and fine woodwork. Because, the thicker your nail, the more wood fibers it will use to hold all the materials. Hammer … They come in a variety of sizes for fastening things that will be exposed or where materials will be finished such as window and door frames in wood, where a big headed nail may look bad. Another tool you should know is the brad nailer. Have you ever wondered what the “D” stands for when shopping for nails? Test-drive screws or nails to find the studs. Sink two nails into every stud below the surface with a downward angle on a nail set, or by using a nail gun. We carry Grip-Rite, Simpson Strong-Tie, Everbilt and more.  This makes a smoother finish because the small nail barely leaves a hole, leaving you with less filling up to do. In addition, the second half of this guide will cover what size brad nails you should use on your baseboards? Trim nailers are categorized by the thickness or “gauge” of the nails they shoot. This method will give you a cleaner cut hole which you can easily fill up with wood glue or putty. between 15 to 23 gauge (15, 16, 18 or 23 gauge). As they leave smaller holes, it takes you less amount of filler to put after the trimming process and also reduces the chance of occurring damage on your baseboards. You don’t ever wanna experience it, do you? As we’ve discussed earlier, using nails that are way thicker than the average may even split up your baseboard as they are not used to consume much pressure. William is the Chief Editor at TheSprucetools.com. As there are no special reasons to use a baseboard other than covering the bottom of your wall or decorate it, a longer nail will ensure more strong and secure fixture on your home. Because of this, finishing nail guns use smaller nails. Required fields are marked *. What are a few brands that you carry in finishing nails? Mainly he is the owner of a tools garage with over 15 years of experience in the profession. For jobs that will be left natural or treated with a clear or semi-transparent finish, we recommend our stainless steel "Slim-Jim®" nails. Our wood trim nails are specifically designed for exterior siding and trim. On the other hand, nailers that range from 18 to 23 gauges are more likely to use for finer finishes. Because they are thicker than brad nails, finish nails are more likely to split thin or delicate pieces of wood trim. There was a time when nails were hand-forged, one at a time and some say that a hundred 3-1/2 inch nails would have cost 16 pennies backing the day and since then they became known as 16-penny nails. And because of their size, you’ll notice a smoother finish on your fixtures & can easily fill those tiny holes later with a small amount of wood filler. Step 2. 1 ½ inch nails are the perfect size for installing baseboards with a brad power nailer. Typically 15-gauge and 16-gauge nails are used on these tools. Now let’s talk about gauge number. Mouldings can be fastened using brad nails or a power nailer but you should never use nails that are more than 2 inches. The greater diameter of finish nails leaves a wider hole after fastening a piece of wood. Finish nailers have shorter and lighter gauge nails, and the lengths are … You should never use nails that are too long or which might penetrate unseen wiring or piping. If you can feel anything, you’ll be able to see it when you’re done. Nail Types, Tips and Tools. In contrast, finish nail guns that drive thicker nails offer more … Use short, stubby galvanized nails (about $2.65 per box for 8d x 1) to anchor your joist hangers. You must keep in mind that the bigger gauge number denotes to the thinner nails. When installing the nails with a hammer, use a … The strength of a properly placed nail is also dependant on its diameter because this will affect the quantity of wood fibres that will bear against the surface. The rule of thumb is that the bigger the gauge number, the smaller the nail it uses. This power tool is also used for finish nailing but shoots smaller 18-gauge nails. Drive and countersink at least 25 nails before you advance to a real piece of trim. As you’re working on a baseboard, it’s recommended for you to use a thinner nail which will leave a small or acute hole that can be easily covered with any wood filler. As we’ve discussed before, if you aren’t certain about the inside wiring on your wall, it’s better for you to use a nail that isn’t too long or short. Subsequently, you’ll get a smoother finish and don’t have to put much wood filler on the holes. Before you go out and shop for a nail finisher, take the time to figure out what size nails you will be using. For jobs that will be left natural or treated with a clear or semi-transparent finish, we recommend our stainless steel "Slim-Jim®" nails. Since finishing nails are used in the finish work there is usually no need for a very long nail. And, they have a sharp tip on the top that makes the nailing process much easier to perform. How to Nail Quarter-Round Baseboard. 8 D finishing nails will work but you could also use 6 D finishing nails. The small 18-gauge brad nail helps you to attach delicate trims without splitting the trim. Because the nails are thinner in cross section, they leave a smaller hole and are less likely to split narrow trim and molding, making them a good choice for stop and cove moldings or baseboard shoe molding. Others say the “D” indicates that a single 6d hand-forged nail would have cost 16 pennies. For trim purposes you should be looking at using 15-, 16-, 18-, or 23- gauge nails. Find Trim nails brads & finish nails at Lowe's today. Checkered head helps to hold paint or stain. Finish nails with tiny heads are standard for molding installation. Now he loves to research the DIY tools as well as share his experiences, opinion, commentary, to helps readers. The reason for this is that wood shrinks and swells according to climate and your home might have a different climate to the one where you purchased the mouldings. The two guns make a winning combination. Now we’ll talk about the recommended size of brad nails that you should use on your baseboards. In this case, we suggest you to use nails that are . Nailers that shoot the biggest trim nails are usually finish nailers and range between 15 and 16 gauges. Building furniture and cabinets are also objected to where you can use finish nailers. In this case, we suggest you to use nails that are between 15 to 23 gauge (15, 16, 18 or 23 gauge). The “D” stands for penny, so an 8d nail refers to an 8-penny nail. to 2-1/2 in., are strong enough to secure door jambs and other heavy trim materials. There are nails that are coated with rosin, or that have rings or twists in them to increase gripping strength. You want to use a drill bit which is slightly smaller than your nail size. Hammering a finishing nail properly is a fairly … Galvanized casing nails in 8d and 16d lengths are also part of the carpenter's nail bag. After the trim has been removed from the wall, you’ll find nails along the length of it. Baseboard is the finishing touch that, when properly installed, ties walls and floors together smoothly. First working with John Deere to reduce their impact on the environment, whilst building his love for writing in his spare time. Now, we’ll talk about the size of brad nail for trimming purposes. To choose the right-sized nail, add to that 1/2 inch the thickness of the drywall, usually 1/2inch, and the thickness of the trim … The rule of thumb is that the bigger the gauge number, the smaller the nail it uses. Now, when you’re going to buy the nail finisher, you should choose the 15 and 16 gauge nailers for all sorts of interior wall trimming. Some finishing nails can be shipped to you at home, … Due to the nature of the material, you might end up splitting the wood if you use a nail that is too thick in size. This makes brad nails the perfect choice for all your trim applications. This is how the nails length is indicated. If the nail is the correct length, it will be driven far enough into the supporting material. Although the size or “gauge” will mostly depend on the project you’re working on, but selecting the accurate size may save you from some worst-case scenarios like splitting the baseboard, or perhaps, you may end up punching a hole through an unseen wire or pipe. But if you use small diameter nail, you’ll definitely notice smoother finish on your baseboards because of their size. They will help you to drive the nails smoothly through your baseboards. The 15-gauge nails, ranging in length from about 1-1/4 in. 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