Dado Rails
Dado rails are an important feature in the interior design of your period house and are usually used at a height of around 1m. The original purpose of dado rails was to prevent the back of chairs from damaging wall coverings hence their height at around the height of the top of a chair back.
Choosing your dado rail
A dado should be chosen to complement all of your other mouldings both in terms of size and type of design. A dado that is too large may provide difficulties in taking items up and down your stairs and through your hallway due to a restricted access width. Therefore the dado chosen must be in proportion to your house and width of thoroughfares.
Dado rails are fixed in place with wood adhesive and screws and are available in softwood (redwood) and a choice of hardwoods. They are most commonly painted in eggshell or gloss paint to match the rest of your wooden mouldings but can be left unpainted and waxed or varnished.