No nail crown molding is a great alternative to traditional wood molding. No nail crown molding uses polystyrene, which is much lighter than wood. This means the crown molding can be installed using glue instead of wood. It also means that one person can complete this project in a weekend.

Installing No Nail Crown Molding
No nail crown molding (also known as faux wood molding) comes pre-cut and primed to accept paint. You’ll need a hand saw with a miter box, a utility knife, a sanding block, painters tape, construction adhesive, acrylic caulk and white wood filler. Here are the steps for installing no nail crown molding:

• Establish a baseline. It’s important that the molding be parallel to existing trim or wall features. Align a piece of molding with the top of a door jam in the room. Mark the wall at the bottom of the molding with pencil and use this as a baseline for the rest of the molding.
• In a corner. Start you installation at an inside corner by cutting the pieces of molding at 45-degree angles using a miter box for accuracy. Test fit the corner pieces and remove material from the back of the joint with a utility knife or sanding block to insure a tight fit. Glue the pieces in place with construction adhesive.
• Repeat as necessary. Continue installing sections of molding, cutting to fit as needed. Corners need to be cut at 45-degree angles, but side sections can be butt jointed for ease of installation.
• A bit of support. Painter’s tape can be used to support the crown molding while it dries. Use low contact tape to protect the finish of the walls. Remove the tape after the adhesive has had a chance to dry.
• Mind the gap. Gaps between the wall or ceiling and the molding can be filled with acrylic caulk and smoothed by hand. Corner gaps can be filled with wood filler and sanded.
• Life without miters. If you’re not comfortable cutting mitered corners, consider using corner blocks. Corner blocks are pre-molded corner sections that allow you to use only straight sections of molding.