Flexible rubber or vinyl coving along the base of a wall covers any gap or other blemishes at the edge of the flooring, and protects the wall from scuffing by vacuums or other equipment. Coving comes in a variety of colors, often to match specific flooring styles, and can either blend in or add an accent color to a room.
Typical costs:
Coving generally comes in 4-foot lengths or 120-foot rolls. It costs about 50-90 cents a linear foot, depending on type and quality; the adhesive runs from $6-$30; and tools that make the job easier such as a cove base gouge or trowel can add $16-$30. Do-it-yourself materials would cost $45-$65 for a 10x15-foot room or $210-$330 for 300 linear feet (in a house with multiple vinyl-floored rooms).
Contractors almost always install coving as part of a larger project, such as putting in new flooring or cabinets and coving is generally included in the total price. Materials and installation charges for coving run $1-$2.50 a linear foot, depending on the quality of coving and the complexity of the job; that's $45-$115 for a 10x15 room or $300-$700 for a house.
Coving is considered more hygienic than wood baseboards, and is usually used in kitchens, bathrooms or commercial/industrial settings. Vinyl and rubber coving cost about the same, but vinyl is generally used for residential projects, while rubber coving is on the higher end of the price scale and more likely to be installed with industrial-grade rubber flooring.
Typically coving is 2.5-, 4- or 6-inches high, but some manufacturers now make some that is 3.5- or 4.5-inches high, providing a little extra to cover any damage or markings when removing and replacing 2.5- or 4-inch coving. Installing 6-inch coving is at the higher end of the price scale; 2.5-inch is at the lower end.
Easy2DIY.com provides a series of video illustrations showing the installation process[1] .
Additional costs:
Ripping out old coving can add 50 cents-$1 per linear foot, or labor costs of $40-$65 an hour, depending on the difficulty of the job and how the contractor charges for removal.
Lots of corners and other obstacles require additional time and skill, and can bump installation costs to the high end of the scale or more, depending on the circumstances.
Shopping for rubber or vinyl coving:
FlexCo[2] , Armstrong[3] and Johnsonite[4] are some of the major manufacturers of both vinyl and rubber covings.
Lowe's[5] sells a limited selection of coving supplies and offers installation for an additional charge; Tools4Flooring.com[6] and MySimon.com[7] sell coving online. Most flooring stores provide installation referrals.
Get several estimates, ask for and check references, and make sure the company is properly bonded and insured, and licensed in your state.
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