A job in an old Charleston house made me stop trusting my level

I was putting up crown molding in a historic home there, and my 4-foot level said everything was perfect. The homeowner, an older lady who'd lived there 50 years, just shook her head and said 'the floor has settled, dear.' She was right. I checked with a laser and the floor sloped over an inch across the room. Now I always check for level and plumb from multiple points, not just the wall I'm working on. How do you guys handle wonky old floors on trim jobs?

3 comments

3 Comments

vale191mo agoTop Commenter

That "floor has settled" line is the real lesson. I always snap a chalk line from the highest point in the room now, let the trim follow that instead of the floor.

the_sarah29d ago

Forget the floor, check the ceiling too. I had a place where the joists sagged over a century, so the ceiling line was way off. I ended up running the crown off a string line I set from the center of the room, ignoring both the walls and the floor. It looked straight to the eye, which is what really matters in the end. Sometimes you gotta find the visual level, not the true one.

fisher.diana12d ago

My last attempt at crown molding looked like a toddler with a crayon drew it. I got so focused on the level that I forgot to step back and actually look at the thing. Your string line trick is genius, because nobody's going to whip out a laser level at a dinner party. It's all about what looks right when you're standing there, not what the tools say.