# wall/door trim cut-ins - caulking and tape



## beedoola (May 18, 2015)

working at a place with lath and plaster walls and the seam where the side of the door trim and the walls meet isn't that even. I put a slight amount of caulking in there to even things out - not to build out a curve, I want to keep whatever (or close enough) 90 degree angle was there, but there is little waves and divots. 

I've seen people use caulking and tape on baseboards for clean cut ins, I'm assuming I can do the same thing here, ya? Get my finish coat on the trim, let it dry sufficiently. Use some low/medium adhesive tape - even though it will only be on the trim briefly, I don't want it messing up the finish coat.

Apply some clear caulking to the masked spot, hit it with the wall color, remove the tape and I should have a clean, straight line, ya? 

Am I missing anything here?


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## SemiproJohn (Jul 29, 2013)

beedoola said:


> working at a place with lath and plaster walls and the seam where the side of the door trim and the walls meet isn't that even. I put a slight amount of caulking in there to even things out - not to build out a curve, I want to keep whatever (or close enough) 90 degree angle was there, but there is little waves and divots.
> 
> I've seen people use caulking and tape on baseboards for clean cut ins, I'm assuming I can do the same thing here, ya? Get my finish coat on the trim, let it dry sufficiently. Use some low/medium adhesive tape - even though it will only be on the trim briefly, I don't want it messing up the finish coat.
> 
> ...


You have the right idea. Best-case scenario is to remove the tape before the caulk has time to set up. If you let the caulk dry completely, you run the risk of pulling some of the wall paint and your straight line is no longer straight.

If you use yellow frog tape and seal the edge with a damp rag (or damp rag wrapped around a blade), I think you have as good a chance of achieving your intended results as you do with the caulk method. If you need to cut in twice and have caulked the tape, the caulk will have set before you can remove the tape and you run the risk of pulling the wall paint if don't score the trim/wall border with a knife first. That can work great, but sometimes not so great. Trust me. Applying "just enough" pressure with a utility knife/box cutter takes practice, and you will leave a visible scored line if you get heavy with the pressure.


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## beedoola (May 18, 2015)

SemiproJohn said:


> You have the right idea. Best-case scenario is to remove the tape before the caulk has time to set up. If you let the caulk dry completely, you run the risk of pulling some of the wall paint and your straight line is no longer straight.
> 
> If you use yellow frog tape and seal the edge with a damp rag (or damp rag wrapped around a blade), I think you have as good a chance of achieving your intended results as you do with the caulk method. If you need to cut in twice and have caulked the tape, the caulk will have set before you can remove the tape and you run the risk of pulling the wall paint if don't score the trim/wall border with a knife first. That can work great, but sometimes not so great. Trust me. Applying "just enough" pressure with a utility knife/box cutter takes practice, and you will leave a visible scored line if you get heavy with the pressure.


Yeah, I meant to say that I'd just hit the fresh caulk with the paint, make sure it covers (I'm talking about the wall color) and then pull the tape so the caulking is still wet/not set up.


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