In this post I am going to explain how I did this very popular project...SHIPLAP...I know it is been done everywhere and really popular and possibly trendy...but it is a simple trim detail that adds oodles of character to an otherwise bland wall...and it is or can be cheap...
I used Hardboard...you can use 3/4" pine or 1/4" sanded plywood or the cheap stuff like I did... $8.90 a 4x8 sheet at the time of this post....I had the lumber store rip the sheets down to 6" strips so they were 6"by 8'
I then brought them home and sanded the edges and primed one flat side and the edges, after that dried I sanded them smooth again and painted each strip twice with a latex paint...I used flat but after installing I would suggest a satin finish, it looks so much better....I did a final coat in satin...
Because the hardboard is thin and my baseboards were thicker I was able to leave them in place...
The next part is important to get a great result...if your baseboard is the thin cheap builder kind...YOU MUST REMOVE IT NOW....just do it, leaving cheap builder baseboard in place and adding shiplap will result in a cheap look a very amateur looking job...and let's avoid that!
It is best to add a new baseboard on top of the shiplap to get a professional look...unless you have a thicker baseboard...I hope I have explained this properly....
So onto installation: you will want to find the studs in the wall where you want to install the shiplap...and mark the wall, this is where you will nail the strips to the wall....make sure to paint the wall white prior to installation of the strips...
Then using no more nails adhesive you will make sure to add a good amount along the back of the whole strip and using a level you will level your first run of shiplap...and nail it into the studs...this will hold it while the glue dries...make sure not to set your nail gun too deep as the nails will easily go straight through the material and you don't want the nails to go all the way through, just slightly counter sunk...I always use my RYOBI airstrike...it's the best, treat yourself to one if you are doing to do more than one DIY trim project you need a good nail gun and a cordless nail gun makes all these jobs so much better.
For my project my walls were not longer than 8' so I didn't have an seams but if you have a long wall stagger your joints...I used a miter saw to cut the strips to length...
As far as the spacing goes I used an coin from Aruba...it was square so it was very handy with the flat side... you can use a nickle, or you can use a scrap of the hardboard for a more accentuated gap line, it all looks great...for the corners I just did butt joints for a clean contemporary result but if you like you can add strips of wood on the corners but then you get into issue with the baseboard if you have outside corners...just keep in mind you never want your applied trim or woodwork to jut out more then the baseboard, it is just wrong...I added adhesive to the butt joint to keep them together.
The last step is to add the baseboard if you removed what was there then it's time to fill the holes... and imperfections with a spackle and sand smooth...you can use a flash light to shine light on your wall before you paint because spackle dries white and when you miss one nail hole then paint it is really hard to get that smooth again...and it looks crappy if you paint over a bit of smeared spackle....
last step is a good coat or two of latex paint...I applied the paint with a small roller.
This is really a simple project and if you are thinking about doing it I would say you have nothing to lose...you will love it.
2 comments:
I love that shiplap wall! Looks awesome! Thanks for breaking down the process and sharing the details!
beautiful ive done the same thing to a few walls in my home too! i used under layment flooring and had them ripped to 12 and then we ripped them down to 6 at home
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