Designing Kitchens and Bathrooms - Help me PLEASE! Trouble with baseboard removal!

Hello! I just purchased a house and we are in the process of re-doing the kitchen floor. Originally, I wanted to remove the existing, grime infested baseboards, and get new. My handyman suggested I leave them there, as the removal may cause the plaster to come with. So, I took his advice and left them there. Last week, he came over to install the new floor, which is wood laminate. It looks GREAT. He bought new shoe for me to paint and he is to come back and nail it down. On Sunday, I got out my sander and started sanding the existing grimy baseboards that also had about 15 layers of paint on it. I sanded and sanded as best as I could with an orbital sander. I put the first coat of white paint on it and it looked horrible. I decided to go out and buy new baseboards. I went to tear out the existing baseboard and noticed that it is going to be nearly impossible, as the new floor butts up to the baseboard. What I also discovered is that the baseboard was not one piece, but two pieces. It's as if there is quarter-round on the top of it. That came off, but the actual baseboard didn't. It's nailed into the wall and wedged in between the wall and the new floor. WHAT DO I DO????

I can't even use the existing baseboard now because the top layer of it is destroyed from the quarter-round.

Is there some way I can get this baseboard out? Any and all suggestions are welcome. I am doing this myself so I don't have to pay the handyman to come back out. That tends to get a little expensive!

Thanks for helping me out! I am sure I will be back to post on other subjects, as the previous owners of this house were paint happy and have layers upon layers of paint on just about everything in the house. I can't even change a light bulb in the entryway because they painted the cover. I am so frustrated!!! :wall:

Anyway, thanks again!!
Jendam

Something that concerns me is that the laminate floor should have been
installed with a 1/2" (or so) gap between it and the wall.

I'd suggest your handyman remove the baseboards for free, and then when you install new, install them slightly above the floor so that
the floor has an expansion space.

If there is a gap, and you still cannot take them out, you might have to take a circular saw set to the thickness of the baseboard,
split them into a top and bottom half, and remove like that.

Otherwise, just take your time and go little by little.

Hi JPicasso. In all actually, he did leave room there, but it was filled with the existing baseboard. He talked me out of tearing that baseboard out because he was afraid it would cause more problems. So, thinking I was going to just paint the existing baseboard, he put the trim up against that, then is planning on coming back to nail down the shoe. I just decided 2 days ago, that I didn't want to use the existing baseboard because it did not look good.

Is that what you meant? He should have left space from the wall? Or are you saying he should have left space between the existing baseboard?

I am just at a loss. I came home from work and tried working on it today, and it is just not budging. I have no idea what to do...

this might work. if your flooring is tight to the baseboard, you might take a chisel (or two) and try to split the baseboard flush at the top of the flooring. If it's wood baseboard, with a couple of prybars behind the top of the baseboard, and a couple of cuts with a chisel, (and some luck) maybe you can get it to split off flush (or below) your flooring. then you could put on new baseboard and cover the imperfection with some quarter round. it could be alot of tedious work but.....:)

Hey Dirk - first - Welcome to the forum... we look forward to your input.... Second: Do you realize that's a 3 year old post? Willing to bet he's fixed his issue by now....

LOL well I'll be!! guess I should check that out from now on eh? thx for the heads up 'zster'. hey...I've asked before, and no one told me, do you need to erase your own messages, or does the site do it? (obviously not?)

After you go beyond your "edit" time allowance the messages are here for eternity, or until someone doesn't pay the bills.:)