Crown molding can quickly add value to any room in your house. It isn't hard to install yourself, although cutting crown molding can be very confusing. This guide explains how to cut crown molding in a few simple steps, and will help you avoid a frustrating process of trial and error.

Crown molding can enhance the look of practically any room in your home. With a variety of profiles and materials widely available, it isn't hard to find one that fits both your decor and your budget. Crown molding can't be cut like regular flat boards, however. Crown molding is milled so that it rests at an angle, against both the wall and ceiling simultaneously.

• If you're new to working working with crown molding, it may be helpful to review a few of the main characteristics of a piece of crown molding before you start planning to cut it:

1. Although crown molding may be made with materials such as solid wood, MDF or polyurethane, the techniques for cutting it are the same regardless of what it's made out of.Burton Mouldings: MDF Crown Molding Crown-Molding.com: Polyurethane Crown Molding
2. It is also available pre-primed, which will save a step if you are planning on painting your crown molding once it's installed.About.com:Primer
3. When you look at a piece of crown molding, you'll see the front side has a profile, and the reverse is mostly flat. The top and bottom edges of the reverse side have surfaces that angle away from the back.Askthebuilder.com:Cutting crown molding without losing your mind
4. When the molding is installed, these faces fit flush against the ceiling and wall; they are oriented at 90 degrees to each other.Askthebuilder.com:Cutting crown molding without losing your mind
5. In the U.S., these faces are usually oriented at 45/45 degrees or 38/52 degrees away from the back of the molding.Installcrown.com:Crown Molding the basics
6. The angle between the wall and the back of the molding is called the spring angle.Installcrown.com:Crown Molding the basics Spring angles will vary depending on the molding you have selected.
7. You must know your molding's spring angle if you are planning to cut it with a compound miter saw.Installcrown.com:Crown Molding the basics

1. Crown Molding
   • Buy about ten percent more than you need, which is a few feet more if you're doing a whole room.Buzzle.com:Installing Crown Molding, the Ultimate Guide The excess will be used for test cuts and probably a few mistakes, too.
2. Measuring Tape
3. 360 degree adjustable protractorAmazon.com:True Angle tool
   • This tool will allow you to measure precise angles of wall corners.CompoundMiter.com: Install Crown Molding Like a Pro
4. Pencil
5. Ear and Eye Protection
6. Power Miter Saw or Compound Miter Saw

• There are two types of power miter saws commonly used to cut crown molding: Miter Saws and Compound Miter Saws.Toolsofthetradeonline.com:Tool Test 12-Inch Miter Saw ToolCenter.com:Miter Saws

• Miter Saws:
  1. The purpose of a miter saw is to quickly and accurately make angled, or mitered, cuts.Lowes.com:Buying Guide for Miter Saws
  2. To do so, the miter saw's blade-arm can be pivoted left and right, to 45 degrees in either direction.
  3. This angle of motion is referred to as the miter. About.com:Compound Miter Saws

• Compound Miter Saws:
  1. A compound miter saw blade-arm can be pivoted left or right as usual, but can also tilt the blade itself.Lowes.com:Buying Guide for Miter Saws
  2. This tilt is referred to as the bevel.About.com:Compound Miter Saws

• Measuring the amount of crown molding you'll need for a particular room is far from the most difficult part of the project, but you'll still want to follow a couple of general guidelines:

1. Measure as accurately as possible the length of crown molding you need.wiseGEEK:How do I Go About Cutting Crown Molding?
2. At ceiling height, find the length of the wall from corner to corner.Crown Molding ABC's:Measure the lengths
   • -For outside corners, the length of molding you need will be to the long point of the molding.Install Crown Molding Like a Pro:Standard Corner Turns Crown Molding ABC's:Measure the lengths
   • -For inside corners, the length will be to the short point.Install Crown Molding Like a Pro:Standard Corner Turns Crown Molding ABC's:Measure the lengths

• In this step, you will measure accurate corner angles and transfer the measurements to your miter saw.

1. Set the arms of the adjustable protractor on each wall.RonHazleton.com:How to Use a Miter Cutting Gauge
2. Read the angle indicated by the protractor.RonHazleton.com:How to Use a Miter Cutting Gauge
3. Adjust the miter of your miter saw to match the angle indicated on the protractor.Extremehowto.com:DIY Crown Molding and Trim
   • -If you're using a compound miter saw, set the saw's bevel angle. You will need to refer to a chart to find the appropriate bevel and miter angles for your molding's spring angle.Installcrown.com:Cutting Crown on flat

• • Hint: Most angles will be within one or two degrees of 45 degrees.woodbymail.com:How to cut Crown Molding

• Here comes the tricky part. How you position the molding on the saw depends on the type of saw you're using.

1. Position the molding upside down against the fence and table of the saw so that the angled flats are positioned firmly against the saw's fence and table.DeWalt.com:Pro's Page Cutting Crown Molding with DeWalt Miter Saws
   • -Think of the table as if it were the ceiling, and the fence as if it were the wall, so that the bottom edge of the molding rests firmly against the fence, and the top edge rests firmly against the table.Crownmoulding.com:How to Cut Crown Moulding
2. Make a test cut.Askthebuilder.com:How to cut crown molding without losing your mind
   • -Because it's so easy to get confused working "upside down and backwards" when cutting crown molding, try making test cuts and labeling them, to ensure that you're positioning the molding properly and cutting the correct angles.ExtremeHow-To.com:DIY Crown Molding and Trim DaveOsbourne.com:Renos 11: How to cut and install crown molding around a ceiling
3. Check your test cuts for accuracy by holding them in position against the wall and ceiling.DaveOsbourne.com:Renos 11: How to cut and install crown molding around a ceiling
4. If you've got the angles right, carefully make your final cuts.ExtremeHow-To:13 Pro Tips for Crown Molding and Trim
   • -If you are cutting for an inside corner, the bottom edge of the molding will be longer than the top after you cut.DIY Network.com:Crown Molding
   • -If you are cutting for an outside corner, the top edge will be longer than the bottom.DIY Network.com:Crown Molding

• Using a compound miter saw to cut molding can be tricky, and isn't recommended for beginners.Installcrown.com:Cutting Crown on flat

1. Check that you have the bevel angle adjusted correctly, as in Step 2.
2. Lay the molding flat on the saw's table.Installcrown.com:Cutting Crown on flat
3. As described in the above section for using a miter saw, make test cuts and check them for accuracy.
4. Make your final cuts.

• It does take some patience when you first learn to cut crown molding yourself. But like any DIY skill, the job gets easier and the results turn out better with practice.