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Crown Molding – Wacky Wall

ranchodiablo | Posted in Construction Techniques on April 16, 2014 12:08pm

Hi, I am installing crown molding in the dining room and one wall that runs just over 9 feet isn’t as straight as it would appear.  About 2 feet from one corner, it bends in quite a bit.  Enough so that the bottom of the molding at the corner, is 1 3/4″ away from the wall.   Any suggestions on how to deal with this?  It’s too big to caulk and I like my trim work to be as professional looking as possible. Also, we just painted and so, redoing the drywall isn’t a first, second or third choice, according to my wife.

 

Thanks. (I am trying to post a pictures below, but this forum site is very wonky with my first generation iPad.)

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  1. calvin | Apr 16, 2014 01:45pm | #1

    rd

    Is it all in the wall?   could some of it be in that pc of crown you got?

    If you don't want to redo the wall-there's no way short of a very tall big plant to hide it.

    So, not being able to hide it-you try to make it look not so abrupt.

    If you haven't already run the crown and just found out about that corner.....................consider this:

    Put up a square edged base molding first-around the whole perimeter.  Cheat this to straight (trying to make up part of that "drops back" corner less abrupt by farting around with that base mldg b/4 you get to the corner.  Pull it out a bit (b/4 the bump that makes the corner drop back).  cut a scribe  to infill that base molding back to the wall.  Do this wherever you got a problem.

    Insert and glue it to the back of that base mldg and make that pretty.

    Now, run that crown on the near perfect "base" you just put up.

    Use caulk where there isn't that bad of a scribe to deal with-but do that nice as well-shim behind the base molding in those areas.

    To post pictures.........I've not tried of my ipad-but off a computer is no big deal-hit the browse button on the reply page and dnld it (no bigger than 300x400 pxls.    To place in the post-open your picture in another window-copy the location (FHB) , go back to the reply page and find the image button (top row-far right).  open and use the picture location-done.

  2. finefinish | Apr 17, 2014 12:19am | #2

    A bow like that I would suspect to find in one of the 350 year old houses I often work in, but you mentioned drywall so this is a "new" house I presume.  Do you see the same bow at the bottom of the wall?  How does the baseboard look?  If the bottom of the wall is more or less straight then you're only option may be to get into that drywall.  You will have to break out the wall and ceiling paint again anyway if you are installing crown.  A good painter or drywall guy can "straighten' out a situation like yours with Durabond.  Although 1 3/4" means scraps of board glued and screwed then mud.  Maybe instead of crown you can pick a moulding like a picture mould - something that will bend a bit and stay tighter to that funhouse wall you have.  Good luck.  I'd like to see a picture if you can get one up.   

  3. ranchodiablo | Apr 17, 2014 10:33am | #3

    Thanks for the suggestions.  The house is old [100 years] but the wall is not.  And along the baseboard, straight as an arrow so it's just up at the top, that it dives in so radically. I've checked with a few different pieces of crown molding, every time the gap is there.  Its too bad too because its on the front wall and everyone looks out the window and a joint above it would really stick out.

    I think they happened to make the stud using a scrap piece of timber that was hack, or they attached the top of the drywall to a 2x2 furring screwed to the brick exterior wall.  Regardless, I have to live and work with it.

    I like the idea of a backerboard and wondering if using some dentil molding or some other profile would help distract the eye enough to get away with it.

    I think I can attack the photo, givn' it a'nother try. 

    1. calvin | Apr 17, 2014 02:49pm | #4

      rd

      Man, a shame-a new wall.   If whoever did it had half a bit of talent-I'd have them mud it up as was suggested by finefinish.  You could tape or pin nail or screw a screed to the wall in that corner.  Go from near zero to where you want to be.  Do the same up top along the plate line (NEAR the bottom of where the crown will lay.  rough mud it up with some quick dry compound-then remove the screed running up the wall (leave the one up on the plate line) and feather it all in-as far as it takes to make it flat (er).

      Repaint the wall.

      Nothing will hide a gap that abrupt-and putzing with it to disguise something in a prominant place might not give you all the satisfaction you'll want.

      And, married?

      Dentil might help-but you'd have to custom cut it so it remains even along the crown bottom (if you do use the backer idea.

      Course, I've stil got a bad taste in my mouth trimming a basement-that drywaller liked to build up mud NEAR the floor................must not have been able to bend over because the last couple inches never saw any compound.  Made doing the base a real pain in the rear.

      Let the (insert trade name here ) guy worry about it..........................

      Said too much in todays world.

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