Skirting boards, scotia and laminate flooring

Laminate is a floating floor, so it needs an expansion gap around the edges, and that gap has to be covered. The two usual finishes are scotia or beading fixed to the existing skirting, or removing the skirting and refitting it over the floor. Scotia involves less work; refitting skirting gives a cleaner look but takes longer.

The edges are where a laminate floor is finished, and the choice affects the look, the amount of labour and sometimes the decorating afterwards. Here is how each option works and when it makes sense.

Why does laminate need an expansion gap?

Laminate boards are made largely from wood fibre, so the floor expands and contracts slightly as temperature and humidity change through the year. Because it is laid as a floating floor, clicked together rather than fixed down, the whole floor moves as one. If it is fitted tight to the walls, that movement has nowhere to go and the floor can lift, peak at the joints or buckle.

So an expansion gap is left around the whole perimeter and around fixed objects such as pipes, door frames and kitchen islands. Many manufacturers ask for around 8 to 10 mm, and larger rooms or long runs can need more, sometimes with a break in the floor at doorways. The installation instructions for the specific laminate set the figure.

Option 1: scotia or beading

A slim trim is fixed along the base of the existing skirting to cover the gap. Scotia has a concave profile; beading (often called quadrant) is a quarter-round. Both do the same job.

• Pros: less labour, no disturbance to the skirting or the paintwork and wall above it, and it suits most rooms.
• Cons: it adds a small extra profile at the base of the skirting, which some people don’t like the look of. It needs painting or matching to the floor or skirting.

One important detail: the trim should be fixed to the skirting, not to the floor. Pinning or gluing it into the laminate stops the floor moving and defeats the point of the gap.

Option 2: remove and refit the skirting

The skirting is carefully taken off, the laminate is laid towards the wall with the expansion gap still left, and the skirting is refitted so it sits over the gap.

• Pros: the cleanest, most built-in finish, with no beading.
• Cons: more labour, filling and redecorating afterwards, and older skirting can split or break on removal, especially if it was fixed with adhesive or masonry nails. Replacement skirting may then be needed.

The refitted skirting must be thick enough to cover the gap, and it should sit on or just above the floor without being fixed through it.

Should you remove skirting boards for laminate?

It is mostly a look-versus-effort decision:

• Scotia often makes sense where the skirting is in good condition and well decorated, where you want to keep disruption down, or in a rental property. See our landlord flooring page for that context.
• Removing skirting often makes sense as part of a wider refurbishment, where the skirting is being replaced or repainted anyway, or where the walls are being re-plastered.
• New skirting is sometimes the simplest route when the old boards are damaged, and in a newer home, fitting flooring before skirting goes on avoids the question entirely.

Whichever you prefer, say so when you ask for a laminate estimate, so the quotation reflects the right amount of work. The guide to what a flooring quotation should include covers how trims and edging are usually itemised.

Doorways, door frames and thresholds

At doorways, the usual approach is to undercut the door frame and architrave so the laminate slides neatly underneath, with the expansion gap hidden. This looks much tidier than running scotia round the frame.

Where the laminate meets a different floor, such as carpet or tiles, or ends in a doorway, a threshold or door bar finishes the edge and protects the board ends. Internal doors may also need trimming if the new floor raises the level.

Pipes, radiators and awkward edges

Holes for radiator pipes are cut larger than the pipe to keep the gap, then covered with pipe collars (rosettes). Around kitchen units the laminate usually stops under the kickboards, which hide the gap. In kitchens and bathrooms, some manufacturers recommend a flexible sealant at the edges to stop water getting into the gap; check the product guidance, and see the LVT vs laminate for kitchens comparison if water is a concern.

Common questions

Can laminate be fitted under existing skirting without removing it?

Not properly. The skirting sits on or near the old floor level, so the laminate can’t slide underneath it. The options are scotia over the gap, or taking the skirting off and refitting it.

Is scotia old-fashioned?

It is still very widely used and, painted to match the skirting, it is fairly discreet. Some people prefer the cleaner line of refitted skirting, which is a matter of taste rather than performance.

Should scotia match the floor or the skirting?

Either works. Matching the skirting (usually painted white) tends to make it blend in; matching the floor makes the floor look as if it runs to the wall.

Next step

If you’re planning laminate, ask for a laminate estimate and tell us whether you’d prefer scotia or refitted skirting, or request a home measure to talk through the options in the room. If you already have the flooring, see our fitting-only service.