Cutting Laminate Flooring Trim to Fit in the Doorway
When cutting the laminate flooring trim I want the transition to be as close to each side of the door jamb as possible.
Sometimes the door jamb is not installed square. You can usually tell by looking at it to see if its angled. When I notice this I cut the transition at the angle of the door jamb. It may be slight, but it is noticeable once the trim is installed. If you don't catch it you can fill in the gap with some matching wood putty. Click on photos to enlarge
When I measure for the trim I always cut just a little big. There is nothing worse then cutting it too short. It may be hard to get an exact measurement the way I'm doing it in this photo. So bigger is better, just cut a little at a time until you get it just right.
Next we will notch the trim out to follow the contour of the door jamb. Here I hold the trim to the door jamb in the position where it will snap into the track. I mark where I need to cut. You can see the trim is actually in the track here.
Next I make an additional mark so I can now cut the corner off.
I use my jig saw to cut the notch out. You could use a hand saw to do this also. Try not to cut the notch too big to ensure a tight fit.
Here is the finished cut. Now cut the other side and we are ready to put it in the track.
You may need to spread the track apart where the screws are. The metal tracks tend to pull together when the screws are tightened in the track. If the track is too narrow the trim will not want to snap in too easily. The plastic tracks cannot be spread apart before inserting the transition. When inserting the transition try to work it side to side into the track before tapping it down otherwise the plastic track can bend over and keep the transition from seating properly.
With the metal track I try to push each end of the transition into the track a little before I press the center in. With the plastic track I start at one end and work to the other end. Sometimes they can be stubborn. I use my tapping block and a hammer to tap it in if I need to. Or you could use a block of wood. Don't hit it too hard, tap it just enough to get it in the track. After you get it tapped down check along the edges to make sure it is sitting flat on the flooring with no spaces showing.
So here you have it, transition installed all done. Good job
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