Baseboard / Shoe Molding

Related terms

• Expansion Gap

  The deliberate space left at walls and fixed objects so wood/laminate/vinyl can expand and contract without buckling. Hidden by baseboard…

• Berber

  A durable looped-pile carpet style. Hides traffic well; snags can run if a loop is cut.

• Bamboo Flooring

  A grass-based floor; strand-woven bamboo is very hard and durable. Quality and formaldehyde emissions vary widely by manufacturer.

• Buckling

  Flooring lifting off the subfloor, the extreme result of moisture or no expansion gap. Usually requires replacing affected boards and fix…

• Backer Board

  A rigid cement or fiber-cement panel providing a stable, water-durable base for floor tile over a wood subfloor.

• Carpet Pad / Cushion

  The resilient underlayment beneath carpet that extends its life, adds comfort and insulation. Correct density matters more than thickness.

• Acclimation

  Letting flooring sit in the installed environment to reach equilibrium moisture before installation, preventing later gapping, cupping, o…

• Carpet Pile

  The visible fiber surface of carpet — cut, loop (Berber), or cut-and-loop — which drives look, feel, and wear performance.