Installing Basement Pole Cover
First and most important: When your package arrives, do not cut the plastic ties until you are ready to install the Basement Pole Covering the same day. If the two halves are not left together, they may experience slight movement, causing the factory edges to mismatch.
When you are ready to install the Basement Pole Covering, carefully cut the pole cover to length while the two pieces are still strapped together. Then cut the plastic ties that hold the pole covering together. Separate the two halves by pulling them apart. You may have to use your hammer handle inside as a lever to pry them apart.
Next prepare your metal pole for the cover so the pole cover will not move after installation. Spacers are provided to help install the cover around 3", 3 1/2" and 4" diameter metal poles (see right photo).
- If you have a 3" pole, you will need all three spacers on each side.
- If you have 3 1/2" pole, you will need two outer spacers on each side.
- If you have a 4" pole, you will need one outer spacer on each side.
The two-spacer halves should connect around the pole. Spacers can be duct-taped together to temporarily hold them in place. The location of the spacers around your pole should be approximately 10" to 12" from the top of the pole and 10" to 12" from the bottom. Center the additional spacers between these two measurements.
If for some reason your metal pole is smaller, larger, out of round, tapered, or not perpendicular to the floor, make spacers by cutting strips of cardboard from the shipping container. Simply cut 3" wide strips and tape them to the metal pole.
To test the spacers in place, remove the 12 wood biscuits from the pole cover. Put one half of the cover around the pole and have a helper hold it in place. Now put the other half into position. Your pole cover should feel solid around the pole. If the two halves do not meet, remove some spacers and try again. If the two halves move around the pole, add some cardboard spacers until if feels solid.
Once you are comfortable with the fit, glue and pin-tack spacers to the pole cover halves. Do not use long nails that will penetrate through the cover. When the glue has set, apply yellow glue to the biscuit slots in one half only (see left photo). Do not overfill the slots or you will not be able to seat the biscuits completely into the slots. You may have to use a hammer to carefully tap them into place. Then run a small bead on the same half on both inside edges. An even coat of yellow glue is what you are looking for.
Quickly add glue to the slots on the other half. Stand both halves up and put them together around the metal pole. You may need a rubber mallet to tap the two halves together. Use 4 C-clamps to hold the two halves together while the glue sets up. If your cover has a hardwood surface, be sure to protect the surface when using C-clamps. Immediately wipe off any excess glue from the surface edge using a warm damp sponge.
Note: If the pole cover moves after everything has set, stabilize it by drilling two small holes in both halves in an area that will be concealed by the base or cap. Insert the nozzle of a can of insulating expanding foam into the holes and spray the foam into both sides of the metal post. Do not overfill! Once the foam has set, the pole cover will not move.
Once the cover has set, check both seams to see if they do not match exactly and need sanding. Use 320-grit sandpaper, sand with the grain, and do not over-sand. Fill any gaps in the seams with the properly matched filler. Again, sand lightly.
The Base and Cap moldings are made a little longer so they can be cut to match the diameter of the Basement Pole Cover after it is in place. Once they are properly fitted, start with cap first by placing yellow glue on the inside edges of both halves. Have a helper hold the cap in place while you tighten a C-clamp around it. Wipe off any excess glue from the surface edge using a warm damp sponge. While your helper holds the completed cap in place, drill pilot holes, two for each half, for finish nails. Set the heads, apply matching filler, and sand. Repeat this process for the base molding. Finish the seams the same way as for the Basement Pole Cover seams.
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