Announcement

**Kruzin** · 4 July 2012, 11:16

I have been doing up skirts for decades, and love it!

Oh wait....yer talking about something different....

VJ · 4 July 2012, 12:10

Not sure if it is the same material, but in my loggia, the previous owners installed this 80cm high skirting board. It sits below the window, and consists of vertical panels (about 8 cm wide) that interlock and sit in rails at top and bottom. The structure of the panels look the same (open structure with supporting things inside). I think it is cheaper and lower quality though - like most things that were done in that apartment, so take my comments for what they are worth.

1.
The material looks quite solid, also from impact. The exception is when there is an impact that is either on a position that allows the material to be bent beyond some limit or on a corner: it then gets this kink (like a garden hose: if you try to bend it at too small a radius, it folds rather than bends) and does not recover well from that. However, in my loggia, the panes are sitting a few cm from the panels they are covering, are 80 cm long and only have support at the top, middle and bottom; and it is nearly impossible to achieve that (you almost would have to hit it with some force to do it). I had to remove some of the panels to make an opening, so that is how I noticed it. For sure, this would not be a problem if they are as close to a wall as those skirting boards are.

2.
The material is quite soft, so I think it would be prone to scratching, or scraping from sharp objects.

3.
The panels in my loggia cover a metal panel that is basically the outside wall (the loggia originally was a balcony that has been closed). As such, they are submitted to quite some temperature changes (winter: -30 C outside of that metal panel, summer: 36 C and sun shining straight on that metal panel). And it seems to generate some clicking noise at times, particularly in winter. Despite that, the panels don't seem to suffer from expanding or contracting.

4.
The panels I removed were quite exposed to the sun (through double glass though), and I expect they have been there for about 8-10 years. Despite that, the colour still was white - it did not turn yellow.

From the panels I have seen, my main concerns for such skirting boards would be
- looks: does it look like plastic or not?
- scratching/scraping from contact (e.g. when installed near a narrow passage way)

If you could see them in a shop, and perhaps get a short piece to experiment on (hit it with shoes, bend it, ...), for sure you will see the weak points and if they are a problem or not.

Hope this helps...

**Brian Ellis** · 4 July 2012, 23:04

I'd do it after laying the carpet, so you can put the skirting over the carpet edges.

UPVC is OK. I have installed UPVC window frames and doors. No problem with light degradation, even with the strong UV here. Very stable. MUCH better than the old aluminium frames and melamine-faced chipboard doors.

**Fat Tone** · 6 July 2012, 06:41

Thanks for all the input.

VJ, sounds like you had a lot more than we are planning on. This will just be 125mm tall.

I tracked down the manufacturer and visited them this morning. It looks really convincing and feels solid enough. It has a front-surface protector which I will leave in place until after the carpet is fitted.

All our external windows and doors are upvc and about 10 years old. Not one of them is showing any signs of discoloration or deterioration. So far they seem ageless.

By visiting the manufacturer I got the whole lot (including architraves for a double-door) for Â£160 delivered whereas the online supplier was ~Â£220, so I am happy. Plus, wifey has now seen it and given her seal of approval...that alone is worth a fortune

Cheers

T.

Announcement

Has anyone tried upvc skirting board?

Has anyone tried upvc skirting board?

Comment

Comment

Comment

Comment