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DIY Installation of Cornices

Posted on 25 Aug, 2014

Our plaster cornices and moldings provide an excellent addition to any home, complementing any style of décor and creating a professional, finished look to any room, but one of the questions we often see is whether DIY installation is feasible.

The short answer is yes, the long as is still yes, but with some instructions to go with it!

Before you start

The first thing to do is get your tools together, don’t worry, you don’t need many:

• Your AllPlasta Cornice
• Cornice adhesive
• Adhesive Spreader
• Measuring Tape
• Mitre Box
• Fine Toothed Saw
• Sponge

Once you have them, it’s time to move on to installation.

Cornice Installation

Preparation
Preparation is everything when doing a job like this, so it’s time for the tape measure and pencil! Measure and mark where the bottom of your AllPlasta cornice will be, so you have a guide when installing it. Then measure the length of each wall to work out how much cornice you will need for each one.

Sort your cornice for each wall, it can be helpful here to mark on the back of each length which wall they will go on, although for a small room this probably isn’t necessary.

At this point it is time to cut the corner pieces, and although this is the bit that tends to worry many, this is not difficult, just take your time with it.

Using your mitre box, place your cornice in upside down, with the bottom edge at the top of the box. Then it is simply a question of using the guides to cut the cornice accurately. Cutting plaster is not a problem if you use a fine toothed saw and only use the forward motion of the saw to cut. That is, only put pressure on the blade as you push forwards, and allow it to drag back without any weight. This will ensure a nice clean cut, just be patient. You can always practice on an offcut first to get the hang of it.

Remember, for an internal angle, the long point is at the bottom, for external, it is at the top.

Fitting
With everything measured up, cut, marked up and sorted, it is time to put up the cornice. Fitting it is actually straightforward, mix up some adhesive, spread a bead along the top and bottom edges of the back of the cornice, and along edges that meet other sections, such as the mitres. Do one piece at a time, mix and apply the adhesive, and simply press it into place. When you are happy with its position, leave it for around half an hour to set. For longer pieces of cornice it is possible to support it with temporary nails that you can knock in just below the bottom edge to hold it in place should sagging be a problem.

Final Steps
First take out any temporary nails if you used them, and smooth off the adhesive at joins and mitres before it fully hardens, you can clean the whole cornice down with a damp sponge to remove excess adhesive and ensure a good surface for decorating.

And that is it! Cornices look great and are easy to fit, just a bit of care and planning required really, AllPlasta have such a huge range of cornices to choose from, there really is something for everyone, so what are you waiting for?