I have some wood paneling in my garage and all over the house. I think it will be too much of a hassle to tear down the paneling just to put drywall up. So has anyone painted wood paneling and it was a success with the color and how it looked?
Has any one painted wood paneling?
- Thread starter evil_twin
- Start date
I had the same decision to make when i redid my basement last winter. I ended up tearing out the paneling after test painting a small section. I used zinser primer and flat latex b.m. paint. I could scrape my fingernail down to the paneling with minimal effort after it dried a couple days. I just decided to do it right once.
Absolutely it is worth painting. We had ugly dark wood paneling in our family room when we moved in and we painted it a lighter neutral color. The "panel" lines were not really heavy or prominent to begin with, so from a distance most people can't even tell that it is not drywall. And in fact, the texture of the paneling breaks up the wall and it looks pretty good now.
We did not prime it (rookie homeowner mistake I guess) and so the durability is not superb, but it only came off where there was something rubbing against the wall.
We did not prime it (rookie homeowner mistake I guess) and so the durability is not superb, but it only came off where there was something rubbing against the wall.
Last edited:
CrashTestDummy
Well-known member
- Joined
- Apr 20, 2009
- Messages
- 232
Our house had very dark wood paneling in the great room. With the dark brown **** (the house was built in 1974, and not updated), you had to carry a flashlight around in the room to see things, even during the day.
Our neighbor had a similar house (built by the same builder same time), and they had their great room paneling painted. It looked GREAT. We had the same guy do ours, about 12 years ago. It's holding up pretty well. He ran a little paintable silicone sealant down the rough-textured beads, just enough to smooth over the texture, but not fill in the 'divot', and sprayed paint on all 4 walls. I'd to it again. The beads add a nice texture to the walls, and the color lightens up the entire room (we did also replace the carpet, twice now).
Gene Beaird,
Pearland, Texas
Our neighbor had a similar house (built by the same builder same time), and they had their great room paneling painted. It looked GREAT. We had the same guy do ours, about 12 years ago. It's holding up pretty well. He ran a little paintable silicone sealant down the rough-textured beads, just enough to smooth over the texture, but not fill in the 'divot', and sprayed paint on all 4 walls. I'd to it again. The beads add a nice texture to the walls, and the color lightens up the entire room (we did also replace the carpet, twice now).
Gene Beaird,
Pearland, Texas
Intel
Well-known member
Runs a nice primer and paint and it will really brighten up the place. Did it all over our current and old house and it made a big difference on the cheap.
W_KY
Well-known member
I redid some for my church's rectory and it turned out pretty good. It was dark wood paneling in pretty rough shape. Here were my steps (they went with a final color of light gray)...
1. Two coats of killz primer
2. Put paintable latex caulk into any large cracks. I also ran a thin bead between each panel. The lines were going to show terribly if I didn't. I then filled in any cracks between the paneling and the ceiling.
3. Two coats of final color
It was alot of work but I was pleased with the results. The lady that painted the other room with woodpaneling, redid her's because mine tuned out so much better. IMO the caulking is a must and makes all the difference.
1. Two coats of killz primer
2. Put paintable latex caulk into any large cracks. I also ran a thin bead between each panel. The lines were going to show terribly if I didn't. I then filled in any cracks between the paneling and the ceiling.
3. Two coats of final color
It was alot of work but I was pleased with the results. The lady that painted the other room with woodpaneling, redid her's because mine tuned out so much better. IMO the caulking is a must and makes all the difference.
APEowner
Well-known member
I've done it several times. It's a nice, cheap way to update and brighten a room. As others have said the panel lines actually look pretty good and add some interesting texture to the walls. No, it doesn't look like expert drywall but I think it looks at least as good as most drywall installs.
Falcon67
Well-known member
The clowns that did a refurb on our house in the past used some kind of mud to simulate a "stucco" look in parts of the house. Most of that is in the trash. We're ripping it off the wall and replacing with MDF paneling. It's too much of a job both hassle and cost wise to tear the inside of the house apart to re-rock. Most of it is done in straight painted paneling, so we're just making it all look the same. The method I use is to cut the panels to size, then sand the finish real good with a hand held electric sander. Next, it's glued to the wall. The baseboards and ceiling trim come off but I **** up against the older door frames. I don't want to get into taking apart a door frame set in 1926 if I don't have to. (like to keep the few of those left). The panels go under any replacement door trim. I caulk the edges if possible to avoid as much corner trim as possible to try and not create the mobile home look. Then prime and paint the panels. Prime and paint the trim, and air nail it in place. Touch up and done.
Note that if you do rock/texture in one room and panel the rest, it'll stand out big time. Since 2/3 of the old part of our house was already painted panel in good shape and a good portion of the rest had to be worked on anyway, we stayed with panel over rock.
With wall framing built in the 20s, I kinda have to roll with what I get. So not all the corners are straight. I'm in the front hall now and the original 4 panel bathroom door and frame is 3/4" off plumb to the south LOL. It's also shorter by 2" than a standard door. They don't build 'em like they used too and it's a damn good thing. If you bought a new house built like this one, you'd sue the hell out of the builder. It had to be a cheap build in 1926.. But it's put up with a lot and is still here, so it's a keeper.
Like others, I had a house with dark paneling that I applied a liquid sander to and then primed. The finish color was white and it brightened up the room a great deal. The lines also added some character to the walls that would have been missing if it were returned to drywall and texture - that I never could have matched to the rest of the house.
fourfeathers
Well-known member
Oil primer, and have them add color to it too. Scuff the paneling up 1st.
Stuart in MN
Well-known member
What kind of paneling are we talking about? 4x8 sheets or is it wood planks? Is it real wood or 'wood pattern'? Dark or light? Why do you want to paint it?
JOHNMAN
Well-known member
I think it depends upon what paneling you are considering painting.
Adhesion is the main worry.
In my case, the DAPO decided that "barn siding" paneling would look good in my shop and lined the walls of my "office" side of my shop. They stained it all dark and it's like a cave in there.
Luckily, the stuff does cover up with paint. I used KILZ for primer and then 2 coats of latex. My problem was that it took all 3 coats to really cover and seal the stuff. The primer and first coat of latex seemed to "soak in". So far, the paint is stuck and I believe that since it "soaked in" it should have good adhesion. I still have 2 more walls and the OSB ceiling to paint, but it's amazing how much better the walls look that now are light colored instead of dark brown.
So, in my opinion, it's well worth painting and not worth tearing down and replacing with wall board.
(I hate taping, mudding, sanding, mudding, sanding, mudding, sanding.....)
Adhesion is the main worry.
In my case, the DAPO decided that "barn siding" paneling would look good in my shop and lined the walls of my "office" side of my shop. They stained it all dark and it's like a cave in there.
Luckily, the stuff does cover up with paint. I used KILZ for primer and then 2 coats of latex. My problem was that it took all 3 coats to really cover and seal the stuff. The primer and first coat of latex seemed to "soak in". So far, the paint is stuck and I believe that since it "soaked in" it should have good adhesion. I still have 2 more walls and the OSB ceiling to paint, but it's amazing how much better the walls look that now are light colored instead of dark brown.
So, in my opinion, it's well worth painting and not worth tearing down and replacing with wall board.
(I hate taping, mudding, sanding, mudding, sanding, mudding, sanding.....)
kartracer23
Well-known member
When I did mine, I did two coats of Kilz 2 primer, followed by a latex top coat. I can't imagine trying to fill the lines & all - I'd just take it down or cover over it before going to that much trouble.
Wash it with TSP first - you'll never get the paint to stick otherwise.
Before:
After:
Wash it with TSP first - you'll never get the paint to stick otherwise.
Before:
After:
Last edited:
thdewey
Well-known member
I have painted paneling in my living room. It was done properly as discribed above; chaulk, primer and 2 top coats. Now some people flat out hate this look. To me it's reminecent of the old 'farm house' interior wood walls. I much prefer the painted panel look to unpainted.
Now lets be honest here for a minute. If I make any real changes to my living room, ie my wife makes me remodel, I'm going to put drywall in for resale purposes.
Now lets be honest here for a minute. If I make any real changes to my living room, ie my wife makes me remodel, I'm going to put drywall in for resale purposes.
ymerej
Well-known member
Our family room was 100% dark wood paneling from the 60's, and the paneling had spread to other parts of the house too.
In the other parts of the house we used three coats (maybe four) of Kilz2 primer and then a creme colored paint. I hated the Kilz2, but in the end it looks fine.
In the family room I just put on two coats of Behr's paint and primer in one in a dark blue. It looks great, and I even debated whether or not I needed that second coat for a minute. As for applying the paint, I'd definitely recommend it. As for durability, well, it's only been on the wall for a month or so now, so I can't say yay or nay.
One other suggestion - take some sandpaper and quickly scuff the paneling and then wipe it down with a wet rag to clean the surface. It will help the paint stick much better.
In the other parts of the house we used three coats (maybe four) of Kilz2 primer and then a creme colored paint. I hated the Kilz2, but in the end it looks fine.
In the family room I just put on two coats of Behr's paint and primer in one in a dark blue. It looks great, and I even debated whether or not I needed that second coat for a minute. As for applying the paint, I'd definitely recommend it. As for durability, well, it's only been on the wall for a month or so now, so I can't say yay or nay.
One other suggestion - take some sandpaper and quickly scuff the paneling and then wipe it down with a wet rag to clean the surface. It will help the paint stick much better.
onewaydave
Well-known member
Depends, and I don't mean the grown up diapers.
If it is wood paneling, clean with TSP or mineral spirits, prime and paint.
If it is plastic laminate, you can try the above and it may or may not work so good.
The groves will almost always, except with exorbitant amount of prep work, look like end grain plywood painted. That is only noticeable with close inspection and often does not detract from the end product.
Holes from previously hung and now removed pictures are harder to hide, but not impossible.
Removal may reveal studs, 1/2" drywall or 1/4"drywall. Its easy to cover any of these with drywall to fill out to the correct thickness. I just added 1/4" to the existing same in my house to match the new 1/2" drywall in the addition.
The best appearance is in old time real wood 1/2-3/4" pine or what not paneling. When painted with a few thin coats of oil based enamel it gives a rich very nice appearance.
If it is wood paneling, clean with TSP or mineral spirits, prime and paint.
If it is plastic laminate, you can try the above and it may or may not work so good.
The groves will almost always, except with exorbitant amount of prep work, look like end grain plywood painted. That is only noticeable with close inspection and often does not detract from the end product.
Holes from previously hung and now removed pictures are harder to hide, but not impossible.
Removal may reveal studs, 1/2" drywall or 1/4"drywall. Its easy to cover any of these with drywall to fill out to the correct thickness. I just added 1/4" to the existing same in my house to match the new 1/2" drywall in the addition.
The best appearance is in old time real wood 1/2-3/4" pine or what not paneling. When painted with a few thin coats of oil based enamel it gives a rich very nice appearance.
Out of all these replies I only see one person that mentioned "liquid sandpaper". That is the key to getting good adhesion when painting paneling. I am new here and this is my first post, but I couldn't resist mentioning this. For me it is the most important step before painting panelling.
It's a darker color, all around the house. It looks like real wood about 4" sheets at a diagonal, not your normal straight up and down style.
Wingnut65
Well-known member
The Masonic Lodge polling place I was at yesterday had painted paneling. It was uniform width strips and overall, it looked like painted beadboard.
I had some fake panelling in my new to me house that I panted over with Cashmere Flat from sherwin williams. No priming, just roughed it up with some 120 sandpaper and aside from the ex throwing a screwdriver at it, it has held up fine. And that's with a 3 year old putting it to the test..
I would first wash it down (and rough it up) with a damp sponge and a bucket of **** and Span. Wipe it off with a damp towel to get the grit off. Then, I would prime it with KILZ as someone mentioned. Then you can paint it with whatever you want. Water base paint should be fine. This is how the Sherwin Williams paint store around here would recommend it. jwillis