Clicking the last board in feels like the finish line, but a hybrid floor is not done until the trims are on. Transition strips hide the expansion gaps you left at every wall and doorway, and they give the floor a clean edge where it meets skirting, tiles, carpet, door tracks and stairs. This guide shows which trim goes where, exactly how to fit each one, and how many lengths to order.

The short version

  • Never fix a trim to the floor. Hybrid floats. Trims fix to the skirting, the wall, the subfloor or a base track, and the boards slide underneath.
  • Two trims clip, three are glued. T-moulding and reducers snap into a PVC base screwed to the subfloor. Scotia, L-moulding and stair nosing are glued or pinned to whatever they sit against.
  • Keep the gap. 8 to 10mm of expansion gap stays under every trim. That gap is the whole reason the trim exists.
  • Order trims with the floor. They are colour matched to every Hippo Floors range, and buying them together saves a second delivery.
0Trims fixed to the floating floor. Always the wall, subfloor or base
2.4mLength of every scotia, T-moulding, reducer and L-moulding
8 to 10mmExpansion gap that stays under the trim
$3PVC base per length. The part that holds T-mouldings and reducers

The golden rule: never fix a trim to the floor

Your hybrid floor is a floating floor. It expands and contracts a little with temperature, so it has to stay free to move. Every trim either covers an expansion gap or caps an edge, and none of them should be glued, nailed or screwed into the boards. Fix trims to the subfloor, the wall, the skirting, or clip them into a base track that is screwed down.

What goes wrong when you skip this

Pin a trim through into the floating boards and you have locked the floor at that point. Come summer the boards push against the pin, and the floor peaks at the doorway or lifts along the wall. It looks like a faulty board. It is a trim fixed the wrong way. Everything in the sections below is written to keep you clear of it.

Which trim goes where

Fix to skirting ScotiaRoom edge, skirting stays Clips into PVC base T-mouldingDoorway, floors level Ramps to the lower floor ReducerDown to tiles or vinyl Glue to the edge L-mouldingSliding door track, hearth, tiles Glue and screw to the step Stair nosingEvery step edge Orange is the trim. The orange bracket is the expansion gap it hides. Grey is the subfloor, black is the PVC base. Not to scale.
Five trims, five jobsEvery one sits over an expansion gap or caps a board edge, fixed to something that does not move.
Where the floor meets Use Fixed to
Skirting boards you kept Scotia The skirting, glue or pins
Another hard floor at the same height, usually a doorway T-moulding PVC base screwed to the subfloor
A lower floor: tiles, vinyl, lino, carpet Reducer PVC base screwed to the subfloor
A vertical edge with no skirting: sliding door track, hearth, tiled wall, step edge L-moulding The subfloor or the vertical surface, glue
The edge of each stair tread Stair nosing The step, glue and screws
A wall where you removed the skirting New skirting, no trim needed The wall, over the gap

What you will need

Tools and materials

Scotia: the room edge when you keep your skirting

Scotia is the quarter round bead that covers the expansion gap where the floor meets skirting boards you laid up to rather than removed. It is the neatest finish for a retrofit and the trim most rooms need the most of.

  1. Measure each wall and cut the scotia to length. Mitre internal and external corners at 45 degrees so they meet cleanly.
  2. Dry fit it. The scotia should rest lightly on the floor and sit flat against the skirting with the gap hidden behind it.
  3. Fix it to the skirting, not the floor. Run a thin bead of adhesive along the back edge that meets the skirting, or pin it into the skirting with panel pins angled slightly upward. Wipe any squeeze out straight away.
  4. Leave it free at the bottom. No glue on the underside. The boards need to slide under it.
Scotia
$13 per 2.4m lengthScotia2400 x 28 x 15mm quarter round in every Hippo Floors colour. Covers a gap up to about 12mm. Glue or pin to the skirting.Shop scotia

T-moulding: joining two floors at the same height

Use a T-moulding where your hybrid meets another hard floor at the same level, most often across a doorway between two rooms. Also use one as an expansion break in a very long run, over about 12 metres, so the floor can move in two halves.

  1. Leave the gap as you lay. Stop the boards on each side so there is a 15 to 20mm channel down the middle of the doorway. The trim wings cover about 20mm each side.
  2. Fix the PVC base down the centre. Cut it to the doorway width. On concrete, drill, plug and screw it every 300mm. On timber, screw or staple it. It sits in the gap on the subfloor, not on the boards.
  3. Cut the T-moulding to length with a fine tooth saw. Check it against the door jambs and file the ends smooth.
  4. Press it in. Line the stem up over the base and push down firmly along the length, or tap with a rubber mallet through a block, until it snaps in. The wings hold both floors lightly and still let them move.
  5. No glue. The base does the holding. Glue the T-moulding to either floor and you have locked it.
T-moulding
$15 per 2.4m lengthT-moulding2400mm lengths in every colour. Clips into the PVC base. One length covers two standard 820mm doorways.Shop T-moulding
PVC base
$3 per 2.4m lengthPVC baseThe channel that T-mouldings and reducers snap into. Screw it to the subfloor in the gap. One per trim length.Add PVC base

Reducer: stepping down to a lower floor

A reducer makes a smooth ramp where your hybrid meets something thinner: sheet vinyl, lino, tiles that sit lower, or the edge of carpet. It stops toes catching and hides the cut edge of the boards.

  1. Leave the expansion gap at the hybrid edge, the same as a doorway, so there is room for the base and the board can still move.
  2. Fix the PVC base along the join, screwed to the subfloor. Sit it hard against the lower floor so the ramp lands flat.
  3. Cut the reducer to length and check the ramp meets the lower floor without a lip.
  4. Clip it into the base. The lip rests over the hybrid edge and the ramp slopes down. Nothing is fixed to the floating floor.
  5. Carpet edge. Tuck the carpet under the ramp before you clip the reducer in, or run a carpet gripper to the base and fold the edge under.
Reducer
$15 per 2.4m lengthReducer2400 x 43 x 10mm ramp profile. Clips into the PVC base. Every colour to match your floor.Shop reducers

L-moulding: capping an edge with no skirting

L-moulding (end cap) finishes an exposed board edge against a vertical surface where scotia will not work: a sliding door track, a fireplace hearth, a tiled wall, a raised step or a floor that stops in the open. The L covers the gap and caps the board edge in one line.

  1. Leave the gap at the board edge, 8 to 10mm, as you would at a wall.
  2. Cut to length and dry fit so the horizontal lip sits over the board and the vertical leg drops into the gap or against the surface.
  3. Glue it to the vertical surface or the subfloor. A bead of adhesive on the leg, pressed against the door track, hearth or wall. Never on the underside of the lip.
  4. Tape it while it grabs. Painter's tape holds it for an hour, then peel off.
L-moulding
$15 per 2.4m lengthL-moulding2400mm end cap in every colour. Glue to the edge it sits against. Covers the gap and the cut board edge.Shop L-moulding

Stair nosing: every step edge

If the hybrid runs onto stairs, every tread needs a nosing. It wraps the front edge of the step, hides the cut edge of the board, and gives a rounded, non slip edge to walk on. It is the one trim that is fixed hard, because a step edge cannot move under foot.

  1. Lay the tread board first, stopping it 8 to 10mm short of the front edge of the step. The riser board goes on after.
  2. Cut the nosing to the tread width and check it sits flat over the board edge with the drop leg down the riser.
  3. Glue and screw it to the step. Adhesive under the whole nosing, then screws through the front face into the step every 300mm. Countersink them. On concrete stairs, plug and screw.
  4. Keep the screws in the nosing, not the board. The nosing is fixed to the step; the tread board still floats behind it.
Stair nosing
$50 per lengthStair nosing1820 or 1540mm lengths, 115 x 38mm profile, colour matched. One per step. Glue and screw to the tread.Shop stair nosing

How many trims do you need

All trims except stair nosing come in 2.4m lengths. Measure, divide by 2.4 and round up. Do not try to use offcuts across two doorways unless the piece is longer than the doorway.

Trim How many Also order
Scotia Room perimeter minus doorways, divided by 2.4, rounded up One spare length for a mis-cut corner
T-moulding One length per two standard doorways One PVC base per length
Reducer One length per transition to a lower floor One PVC base per length
L-moulding Total edge length divided by 2.4, rounded up Adhesive
Stair nosing One length per step Adhesive and screws

Worked example. A 4m by 5m bedroom with one 820mm door has an 18m perimeter. Take off the doorway and you have 17.2m of wall, which is 7.2 lengths of scotia, so order 8. The doorway takes one T-moulding and one PVC base, and you will have a spare half length for the next door. Add one extra scotia to every order for a mis-cut corner.

Do and don't

Do

  • Fix the base tracks first, then clip the visible profile in. Far easier than doing both at once.
  • Keep the expansion gap under every trim.
  • Cut PVC trims with a fine tooth blade and file the end. A coarse blade chips the face.
  • Order trims in the same order as the floor so the colour batch matches.
  • Fit trims last, after the boards, skirting and any painting.

Don't

  • Glue, nail or screw any trim into the floating boards.
  • Glue a T-moulding or reducer straight to the floor instead of using the base.
  • Fill the expansion gap with silicone or caulk. It locks the floor the same way a nail does.
  • Butt scotia into a corner without a mitre. It always shows.
  • Run one T-moulding across two doorways with a join in the middle of a door.

Frequently asked questions

Can I glue a T-moulding down without the PVC base?

No. Glued to one floor it stops that floor moving, glued to both it locks the whole doorway. The base sits in the gap and holds the trim without touching the boards. It is $3 and takes five minutes.

Do the trims match laminate and timber floors too?

Yes. Hippo Floors trims are colour matched across every range, hybrid, laminate, engineered timber and hardwood. Pick the trim in the same colour name as your floor. If you are unsure, order a free sample of the floor and check the trim against it.

What if my gap is wider than the trim covers?

Scotia covers about 12mm and T-mouldings about 20mm each side. If you left a bigger gap, fit new skirting or a wider architrave over it rather than stretching a trim. A trim floating over a void will crack.

Can I fit trims after the floor has been down a while?

Yes. Nothing about a trim depends on the boards being new. Just make sure the gap is still clear before you fit anything over it.

I removed my skirting. Do I still need scotia?

No. New skirting fixed to the wall over the gap does the same job with a cleaner look. Keep the 8 to 10mm gap under it and do not nail the skirting through the boards.

Can I paint or stain trims?

They are a finished PVC surface made to match the floor, so painting is not recommended and not needed. If you want a white finish against white skirting, use a timber scotia from a hardware store and paint that instead.

Finish the floor properly

Every trim, in every colour, in one place. Add them to the same order as your floor and they arrive together.

Shop trims and accessories Order free samples

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