Sheet B-3 · Finish trim: crown, casing, and baseboard
Crown moulding, casing, and baseboard quotes: what a trim bid should settle
Trim carpentry bids vary widely when one carpenter prices single-piece MDF baseboard with mitered corners and another prices multi-piece poplar crown, coped inside joints, and window stools. A person at finalist.cc reads your trim quote or writes a scoping document so every bidder prices the same profiles and joinery.
Six trim details that belong on the scope sheet
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Single-piece vs built-up crown moulding
A 5-1/4-inch crown profile runs as one board from wall to ceiling. Larger 7-inch or 9-inch cornice profiles in rooms with 9-foot or 10-foot ceilings are usually built up from two or three separate mouldings (a vertical frieze board on the wall, a crown profile, and a ceiling cove or lip moulding). Count how many linear passes go around the room.
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Coped inside corners and biscuit or pocket-screwed miters
On inside corners of crown and baseboard, coping one piece to fit the face profile of the adjoining piece keeps the joint tight as house framing moves with humidity. On door and window casing miters, check whether the carpenter glues and clamps or pocket-screws the miter joints before nailing to the wall.
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Window casing: picture-framed vs stool and apron
Windows can be trimmed four-sided like a picture frame, or built with a projecting horizontal sill board (the stool) and a moulded apron underneath, plus jamb extensions if the drywall return is being replaced with wood. Specify which window style the bid covers.
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Baseboard height, shoe moulding, and drywall scribing
When replacing shorter 3-1/4-inch baseboard with taller 5-1/4-inch or 7-1/4-inch baseboard, the old paint ridge on the drywall is covered, which saves wall patching. Over hardwood or tile floors that dip, check whether the baseboard is scribed to the floor or finished with a 1/2-inch by 3/4-inch shoe moulding.
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Wood species: finger-jointed pine, solid poplar, or MDF
MDF trim is inexpensive and comes pre-primed in long lengths, but dents easily on door casings and swells if mopped or exposed to bathroom moisture. Solid poplar or finger-jointed pine holds crisp edges on doors and baseboards. Check the material line on every bid.
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Nail filling, caulking, and paint responsibility
Settle in writing where the carpenter stops and the painter starts. Often the carpenter installs the trim and leaves nail-hole filling, sanding, caulking to the wall, and two finish coats of enamel to the painting crew.
| Trim location | Standard detail | Upgraded architectural detail |
|---|---|---|
| Inside corners | Mitered and caulked | Coped to the adjoining profile |
| Window trim | 4-sided picture-frame casing | Wood jamb extensions, horned stool, and apron |
| Door headers | Mitered 2-1/4-in or 3-1/2-in casing | Butt-jointed legs with 5/4 head casing and cap |
| Floor transition | Quarter-round nailed to base | Baseboard scribed to floor or slender shoe moulding |
Related sheets: Use the interactive sketch worksheet on Sheet A-3 · Sheet B-1: Built-in bookcases · Sheet B-2: Wainscoting and wall paneling
Send this checklist for a scoping document
This form goes to the same desk as finalist.cc. A person reads it and replies by email with a scoping document or questions. You send that document to carpenters yourself.
Already have a quote? Send it on finalist.cc for a benchmark note instead.
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