Has anyone applied joint compound to Tyvek and how did it work out?

Slgibbs1
by Slgibbs1
I got some free Tyvek and my shed had wallpaper on the inside, but it fell down in some places, and has holes. I thought I'd cover the walls with the Tyvek and put a light coat of joint compound on it. Prime and paint with a semigloss to jazz up the place. Will the joint compound stick? After all, Tyvek is basically plastic, right?
  8 answers
  • Doug Hardy Doug Hardy on Jan 18, 2016
    I could be wrong as I haven't tried it, but Tyvek is a woven fiber material and is designed to be non-stick. I'd try it on a small board first, but I wouldn't be optimistic about the paint sticking to it. You might try newsprint as your covering material, as you're going to be covering it with joint compound anyway. Whatever you use, be sure to get a solid adhesion between your new material and the wall. If your wallpaper is falling off now, you can't count on it to hold the new stuff.
  • LD LD on Jan 18, 2016
    Tyvek is a product for stopping air from coming in from the outside to an indoor space. I'm assuming that the walls inside your shed are a wood product, so I would recommend that you remove the wallpaper and it's backing, then properly prepare the surface for painting. If there are holes in the walls, then repair those areas with holes before painting the walls. You can also remove the wallpaper, repair holes apply the Tyvek, then put up cedar, which will repel bugs, just remember that it should not be painted for its the smell of the cedar that repels the bugs, or you could instead put up Hardy Board, which comes in different designs and can be painted (this product is cement based and is fire retardant as well).
  • Mandy Brown Mandy Brown on Jan 18, 2016
    Are you talking about Tyvek home wrap? Tyvek is used as a moisture barrier for the exterior of a home prior to adding the façade. It allows air to circulate so mold won't develop and the exterior plywood doesn't rot. They sell a special tape to adhere it so you can seal it around the edges of windows and doors or you can use a carpenters staple gun (although a pneumatic gun works best so your arms won't tire.) If you want to use it for that purpose then it needs to go on the outside of the building. If you're just trying to cover a wall then I guess you could staple it at the ceiling and baseboard and use the tape to join the seams.
  • Johnchip Johnchip on Jan 18, 2016
    if you want to maintain or increase property value, do it right; take down wallpaper, prime walls properly and paint.
  • Slgibbs1 Slgibbs1 on Jan 19, 2016
    Also.... I live in a mobile home. I hate those molding strips they use when two panels are joined. If the shed works, then I'd like to use spray adhesive and tyvek to cover the seams and resist cracking due to movement, (I already have the Tyvek Tape) and then I'd apply joint compound and paint. But, I am starting in the shed. This is to replace vinyl wallcovering in the shed which I can't afford.
  • I, like Johnchip would do it right and forget about the Tyvek, if you want it to last, start from scratch and take your time you will be happy that you did.
  • Darla Darla on Jan 21, 2016
    Tyvek is flexible, and unless you glue down the entire surface, joint compound will probably crack and fall off after it dries. If you want to use the Tyvek, just painting it might work better.
  • Slgibbs1 Slgibbs1 on Jan 22, 2016
    good idea. Thanks