Looking for chair rail ideas? You have come to the right place. If you do not know what a chair railing is, it is actually a protective chair rail molding that is placed horizontally around a room to protect the wall from the damaging effect of chairs being slid backwards. They were originally placed about 36 or 900mm above the floor. However, since these are becoming more of an aesthetic tool, as opposed to a more practical use product, they are now more commonly being placed a little higher, usually in the 45 to 60 range.

Questions to Ask Yourself When Shopping For Chair Rails

When considering different chair rail molding ideas for your home or office, there are many things to think about. For example, you should be asking questions like:

• What type and style are currently in the room or are planned for the room?
• What style molding are the baseboards?
• Do you have any kind of ceiling molding or trim? If so, what style is it?
• Is it a very simple design or is it very fancy with lots of details? You want your chair rail to match the design of your other trims.

Chair Rail Installation

Installing a chair rail is not too hard. If you are able to install baseboards or a trim around the ceiling, then this should not anymore be too difficult. In fact, it is made easier due to the fact that it is installed at a more easy to access height. Regardless of what kind of chair rail ideas and crown molding ideas you have decided to go with, they are usually all installed the same way with nails, which is through the studs in the wall and then they are painted over. They are usually cut with a slight bevel on the ends to both fit together properly and for them to look tidy when exposed. When planning what room you want them in and how high you need to place them, you want to take a few things into consideration.

Materials to be used in installing chair rails:

• assistant to help you with the process
• measuring tape
• level
• chalk line
• nails
• miter saw
• pencils or markers
• glue for wood
• paintable caulk
• stud finder
• chair rails to be installed

Steps to follow for installation:

1. First, get the measurement of your wall. You can do this by using the tape measure. After you get the measurements, do some markings on the molding to know how long you should cut it depending on the measurements you’ve taken.
2. Second, for the corners of the chair rail moldings, cut some 45-degree angled pieces by using a miter. Do so, if it is applicable for your chair rail design.
3. Third, make sure of the height in which you will put in your chair rail. It has been a common practice to put it around 1/3 the distance from the floor. As for chairs in the dining room, most homeowners usually base it on which part of the wall will the back part of the chair hit.
4. Fourth, with the use of the measurements you’ve taken in the third step, stretch a chalk line along the wall. This will be your guide as you install your chair rails. Thus, to make sure it is even, you can use a level. Then after, pull string while snapping it hurriedly against the wall, with the use of two fingers. If you find this step difficult, you can ask for assistance from another individual.
5. Fifth, with a stud finder, look for the studs present in the chalk line. Once found, mark its positions using your marker or pencil.
6. Sixth, with a wood glue, apply an ample amount on the back part of your chair rail molding. Then, align its bottom part using the chalk line. To help in holding the chair rail in place, ask for another person to assist you. To strengthen its hold, you can add some nails on the molding to push back the studs to the wall. Then after, have other nails inserted in the top part, so as to stop the molding from splitting.
7. Lastly, by using the nail set, recess the nails into it. Then, conceal the holes made by these nails and fill in any gaps and holes with paintable caulk. Then after, leave to dry.

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You may want to determine whether there are windows in the room. You don’t want the horizontal lines of the rails to conflict too much with the outline of the window. Only you have the final say and who can decide as to what look you want.

There are many different ways to incorporate any variation of chair rail ideas into your home or business décor. They are usually thought of as being strictly for the dining room or perhaps the office where there might be more chairs being slid or rolled around. However, chair rails can add a little bit of class to any room such as bedrooms, bathrooms and even hallways. Living rooms, parlors and dens can also benefit from this added touch as well as other rooms. Don’t be shy when planning to include them into your decoration plans because in doing so, you just may end up with a very unique, distinguished look.