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How To Remove Wood Paneling: Removing wood paneling isn’t a very difficult job in and of itself. Removing the paneling and not damaging it, or removing the paneling and replacing it with drywall, are often a tougher task. Having an honest sense of what’s behind your paneled walls will dictate the quantity of labor involved within the project. Don’t worry! we’ll guide you thru this journey with helpful tips and provides you ideas about the way to remove wood paneling within the easiest method possible during this article.
How to Remove Wood Paneling in Three Steps
Things You Will Need
The best disposal option depends on the quantity of wood you’re tossing. If you’re removing panels from one small bedroom, you’ll be ready to throw it call at your weekly trash.
For larger areas sort of a basement or multiple rooms, renting a rattle down container is usually the foremost convenient option. Typically, a ten-yard dumpster will do the trick for one room, but if you’re removing wood paneling from a much bigger space, it’s usually best to use a 20-yard dumpster instead.
Companies like Rebuilding Exchange also will take the wood and refurbish it for various projects — from tables to cabinets and many things in between. Pastin says that tongue-and-groove paneling tends to be the simplest for repurposing, but as long because the wood is in fine condition, most places will accept the donation. “As long because it is in decent sized pieces and not covered in drywall or plaster most places will find how to use it
Step 1: Properly Prepare the area
Remove any pictures from the walls and consider removing furniture from the area or covering it with a sheet of plastic drop cloth.
Remove any molding, baseboards, light switch plates, and outlet covers:
- Slide your flathead screwdriver between the molding or baseboard and wood paneling.
- Gently pry until you create a few quarters of an in. of space.
- Use your pliers to get rid of any nails once they’re exposed.
- Carefully remove the molding or baseboard from the wall.
- Unscrew and take away any light switch plates and outlet covers.
- Store all items during a safe place where you’ll easily find them later.
Step 2: Look Behind the Panels
To determine the simplest thanks to a proceeding, you would like to seek out out if your panels are nailed in place or attached by adhesive.
- during a corner near the flooring, use your hammer to carefully tap your pry bar within the seam where the 2 walls meet.
- Wiggle the pry bar to loosen the wood paneling.
- Use your pliers to tug out any nails that come loose.
- Gently pry the panel faraway from the wall to check if it’s glued in place or nailed against drywall and wall studs.
Step 3: Remove the Panels
These general removal steps apply to tongue-and-groove, shipboard, and barn paneling. If you’re working with tongue-and-groove panels, it’s easier to pry away the tongue side first.
If it’s nailed to drywall:
- Pry back the primary panel using your pry bar and hammer.
- Remove all nails with pliers as they are available loose.
- Continue until all nails during a panel are removed, then ease the panel off of the drywall using your pry bar.
- Use either your chisel or pry bar to loosen panels round the removed one by wedging the tool between the wood panel and drywall. Repeat steps 1-3.
- Toss removed panels in your garbage bin or dumpster.
- Repeat until all panels are removed.
- Patch nail holes and any damaged drywall with drywall putty.
If it’s nailed to studs:
- Pry away the panel using your hammer and pry bar.
- Pull out nails using pliers as they are available loose.
- After removing every nail, shy away from the paneling.
- Stack your panels during a pile or eliminate them responsibly.
- Continue until you’ve removed every panel.
- Use drywall putty to patch nail holes.
- Add new paneling or install drywall over exposed studs.
If it’s glued in place:
- Pry away the maximum amount of the panel as possible using your chisel and hammer.
- Work slowly to avoid damaging the drywall; stop once you get to the glued-on portion.
- Beginning with rock bottom setting, hold the warm gun about 5 to 7 inches from the section of paneling that you’ve lifted.
- Keep moving your heat gun around to avoid burning the panel.
- because the glue softens, pry the panel away.
- still apply heat as you remove the panel together with your freedom.
- Scrape softened glue residue from the drywall using your chisel.
- Continue until you’ve removed every panel.
- Eliminate remaining glue residue from the drywall using sandpaper or your heat gun and chisel if necessary.
- Use drywall putty to patch nail holes.
- eliminate unwanted paneling responsibly.
How to Remove Paneling Glue From Drywall
Step 1: Scuff off glue or adhesives on the walls employing a paint scraper. don’t scrape too aggressively as this might cause deep gouges and greater damage to the wall.
Step 2: Apply heat on to the glue with a heat gun or hand blower set at its highest heat if the glue doesn’t come off. the warmth causes the glue to melt. Remove the glue off the paneling employing a scraper while applying heat. Scraping until all the adhesive is stripped off.
Step 3: Clean remaining glue spots using sandpaper and a circular motion.
Step 4: Restore the wall employing a mud exclusively made for drywalls. Put mud directly on the wall employing a spatula to hide holes or scratches that were created while getting obviate the adhesive from the walls. Leave the mud to dry out completely.
Not Sure If Removing the Panels is true for You?
There are other options to mask or maybe repurpose those panels without taking them off the wall. Pastin and Chris Camp with The Painting Company offer a couple of tricks to updating the wood without removing it.
- Paint it: Sometimes an easy coat of paint can go an extended way in making a difference. Camp says painting wood panels is a simple task when done properly.
- Sand the panels to get rid of the polyurethane or clear-coat sealer.
- Apply primer to the panels.
- Caulk the joints and any nail holes
- Paint the panels with two coats.
- Wallpaper Over It: Pastin notes that some people may prefer to simply cover the paneling with wallpaper. He suggests a product called wallpaper liner, which you’ll find at the most major home improvement stores.
- Camouflage It: Be creative. Pastin said that he has seen people use the panels to their advantage, like taking a bookcase without a back and putting it against the paneling in order that it appears the wood is that the back of the bookshelf.
Some Tips:
- If you aren’t sure what’s behind your wooden board, then remove a little section, like, a bit of trim or a light-weight switch cover to seek out out.
- Wear protective gloves and goggles for safety purposes.
- Before start working, remove all kinds of belongings, picture frames, and furniture from that room. If impossible, cover them with a sheet to assist keep them faraway from getting dirty.
- Consult knowledgeable to urge an estimation of what proportion it might cost you to put in drywall after you’re done removing the boards then decide if it suits your budget.
- you’ll also paint or put a pleasant wallpaper over the boards if you opt to not remove the panels in any case.
Conclusion: How To Remove Wood Paneling
With the panels off, your walls now have endless possibilities. Maybe it’s time to display those family photos you’ve been eager to hang up. Maybe you’ll paint the walls to vary the vibe of the space. the alternatives are all yours. Have fun, knowing you set within the work to form the walls your own.
Read more about How To Remove Carpet Tack Strips: Step by Step Guide
Hopefully, you’ve got picked up some tricks and recommendations on the way to remove wood paneling without damaging your interior from this text. If there’s still imperfection left on the wall, patch and paint over the surface and provides your home with the fashionable and complicated look you’ve got hoping to achieve!