How to install reclaimed wood accent wall

To keep costs down, I used 1/4 inch plywood to make my planks. I read a lot of tips about saving money by using masonite, but I knew I wanted to incorporate some wood grain into my plank wall so masonite wasn’t a good choice for me.

Going from the bottom up is the way to go! Whether you are using tongue and groove boards or true rabbit edge shiplap – the process is the same. Once the next level board is in place insert a few of the paint sticks for an even gap between the two boards.

Shiplap cost ranges between $2.50 and $7.00 per square foot for real boards. A 4 x 8-inch sheet of drywall might cost you less than a shiplap board, but it can actually turn out to be quite expensive overall after the finishing process.

Shiplap is falling out of fashion.

Once used to waterproof boats, shiplap siding became a trendy way to decorate interior walls in the 2010s. Street added that tile, plaster, rattan, or living walls of plants are becoming more popular this year, instead.

Beware of Home Improvement Centers Saws!

The cheapest way to get thin wood shiplap strips at an exact height is to cut them out of 1/4″ plywood or MDF sheets (I went with maple plywood sheets because they seemed to be the smoothest of the 1/4″ plywood options at Lowes).

The shiplap boards have to be as close together as possible for a clean finish. This is because you do not have any drywall behind, and therefore any gap exposes the room to the inner wall, which makes the room less insulated, more echoey, and not as esthetically pleasing.

Tips for Painting Shiplap

If you‘re installing new shiplap, paint it prior to installation. It will be far easier to paint the edges before the shiplap is up on the wall.

Shiplap is made when panels are made to overlap locking together. The cost of one board is somewhere between 0.95$ to 4$ which is considerably expensive. To complete shiplap on one wall may take a lot of panels thus you can end up spending more than just buying some gypsum board.

The process of installing shiplap over drywall is pretty much the same as the faux planks, you simply attach it to the wall using a nail gun. The only difference is the real thing is heavy, so finding the studs and marking them first is a must.

If you plan to paint/sand the shiplap, do so before nailing the boards in place. Some people like the look of visible nail heads on shiplap. To avoid visible nail holes, nail boards through the rabbet or tongue. Don’t feel that you have to apply shiplap to an entire wall.

Your faux shiplap should be installed before anything else in the room — meaning baseboard, crown, and trim. You can install shiplap right on top of existing baseboards. If you have trim, very carefully notch out your shiplap with a saw and use wood filler/caulk to fill in the remaining gaps.

Shiplap Costs

Shiplap wood prices range between $2.50 and $7.00 per square foot for real boards. On average, shiplap interior installation costs $1,000, with most homeowners spending between $500 and $1,500 for one room. Installing exterior shiplap costs $4,000, with most homeowners spending between $2,800 and $7,500.

Paint the wall first.

this is probably a no-brainer. But, unless you have a paint gun and can spray both the wall and the shiplap once it’s installed, you’ll need to paint the wall behind where you are installing this.

Shiplap boards have grooves cut into their edges for a tight, overlapping fit. Shiplap paneling can add instant character, texture, rusticity and a focal point to any room in your house. It’s affordable and easy to install with just a few basic tools — a saw, level, stud finder, hammer and nails.

Peel and stick wood walls in white or light hues make the most ideal doppelgangers for shiplap because their pale patina best emphasizes and emboldens the voids between planks that are synonymous with shiplap.

You can install shiplap directly to studs. Shiplap siding is an older style of siding that is installed directly onto the studs. It can also be installed on top of sheetrock. We recommend adding insulation between the studs before installing your shiplap siding.

The concept of shiplap actually goes back much, much farther than the 1900’s. Like, at least 1,700 years– around the time of the Vikings! Shiplap originally used on the sides of a ship.