Up or Down?

[DrPhill]

We are starting to paint our lounge. The ceiling will be white, the walls magnolia. I plan to paint the ceiling, coving and down the wall past the picture rail line first. then mark a line round for the picture rail and paint magnolia up to it.

How should I measure the picture rail line? Down from the ceiling or up from the floor?

{Edited to add a third option.....]

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

neither....both will be out of true. Eyeball where you want it and then use that as your level datum for the whole room. There may be a "rule of thumb" for rough distance from ceiling...that could be your starting point for the measurement for where you start the datum.

At least......I think

My personal rule is if (by eye) the ceiling looks really out of true, I don't do any decorating that underlines the out of trueness. I also avoid anything offensive if its at eyeline

 

[Racers]

I thought the rule of thirds was used, dado rail 1/3 up and picture rail 1/6 down.

Pete

 

[DrPhill]

I thought the rule of thirds was used, dado rail 1/3 up and picture rail 1/6 down.

Pete

But not both at once......?

Useful info, though. Thanks I will probably try to copy the other rooms if they are consistent though.

 

[mind_the_goat]

Can you get a laser level? At least then you picture rail will be straight, even if the floor and ceiling are not.
Might be interesting if they are noticeably out.

 

[Paul Chapman]

Mark roughly the height you want the picture rail, then draw a line round the room using a spirit level.

Cheers :wink:

Paul

 

[Mike.S]

In my 1930s house the top of the picture rail is level with the top of the architrave around the door. Looks fine.

 

[nev]

I'd go with the one thats in the same field of view i.e the ceiling.
The amount of times I fitted a TV to the wall using a level and the customer agreed that it looked 'off' , so ended up doing it by eye in the end, to match the nearest 'level' line.

 

[SteveF]

I always measure down
your eyes will be drawn to the ceiling when u look at it
a spirit level could end up a good 2" out from one end of room to the other

Steve

 

[Random Orbital Bob]

That's why I said I never decorate with a level line when another "pineappled" plane is in view. They always look out and the by eye method is actually better than dead level. I had a 400 year old originally thatched cottage....believe me when I say I know about out of true

In the upstairs landing we had a fall of 6" over 11'. It felt like Porlock Hill!

 

[carlb40]

Can you get a laser level? At least then you picture rail will be straight, even if the floor and ceiling are not.
Might be interesting if they are noticeably out.

The trouble with that is if the ceiling is out of level it will make the picture rail etc look out of level even if it isn't. Sometimes you have to fit stuff to make it look right, even if it isn't level/plumb :wink:

 

[AndyT]

Our house is Victorian and doesn't really have much that is perfectly straight or level. I have put picture rails back in several rooms that used to have them. Mostly I measured down from the ceiling so that the white stripe above the rail was reasonably consistent in depth, but that had to be adjusted a bit so as to look right.

 

[bugbear]

We are starting to paint our lounge. The ceiling will be white, the walls magnolia. I plan to paint the ceiling, coving and down the wall past the picture rail line first. then mark a line round for the picture rail and paint magnolia up to it.

How should I measure the picture rail line? Down from the ceiling or up from the floor?

{Edited to add a third option.....]

I'd check the floor and ceiling for level first. Knowing how bad (or good) the situation is would be an excellent start to designing and evaluating solutions.

BugBear

 

[deema]

I would use a spirit level, however to over come the inerrant error in any spirit level you turn it end to end each level you take around the room. This way the error is cancelled out. Use a board with a set length and level that, Mark, move the level onto the end of the line, turn it end to end, keeping the top of the level on top, I.e. Don't when turning it end to end turn it upside down at the same time, or this doesn't work.

You should be able to go around any size if room and arrive within a fraction of where you started.

 

[NikNak]

Seems obvious to me.... (homer) :idea:

drill through from room other-side of wall (that you wanting to decorate with builders magnolia :-o ) where that rooms picture rail runs.... (hammer) (hammer) then using the holes you prepared earlier :wink: to mark the line in the room you want to decorate, cos if you're happy with that room then the one you're about to decorate should be good too simples :-k \/ \/

(of course if you hit any electrical wires or copper plumbing pipes #-o then i didn't give you this tip.... :-? :mrgreen: )

 

[Cheshirechappie]

Picture rail?

Slap a couple of coats of magnolia on the lot and forget the picture rail. Then you can bang a nail in anywhere you want a picture - no faffing with them funny hooks and chains and the dust-trap that picture rails create.

 

[DrPhill]

Thanks for all the replies - some food for thought there. The reply that pulled me up short was:

I'd check the floor and ceiling for level first. Knowing how bad (or good) the situation is would be an excellent start to designing and evaluating solutions.

Remarkably good idea - define the problem!

I have a longish (1.8m) level, and thought about working my way round the room. But it occurred to me that level is not the problem, but difference between ceiling-floor distance. So I measured the distance between the floor and the coving at each corner and in the middle of the long edges. Maximum difference was 3/4", in a room 25'2" x 10'.

The coving looks straight, so I think that I will be best measuring down from the coving. I will maintain the 7" above the door architraves found in other rooms, losing a bit of the distance between the picture rail and the ceiling as the room has lost an inch or two due to battening/re-plasterboarding. So about 17" down

Sorted. Thanks for the thought provoking replies - it is good to think these things through.

 

[maltrout512]

Have not read all posts, what age is the house would help, then I will be able to make my statement to your question which once I know will help.