What can i do to change the look of old dark paneling on the wall

Sari
by Sari
  8 answers
  • Janet Pizaro Janet Pizaro on Jan 01, 2018


    White wash or paint it a lighter color

  • Amy Pontius Amy Pontius on Jan 01, 2018

    PPaint it. You can even do striping if you tape the paneling lines.


  • Rae Rae on Jan 01, 2018

    I have painted all my outdated paneling in my basement and never regretted it for a minute!

  • One option is to remove and replace either sheet rock and paint. Or you can just paint the existing paneling. Good lighting is key if there are not a lot of windows or natural light.


    http://www.diynetwork.com/how-to/skills-and-know-how/painting/how-to-paint-over-paneling


    https://www.thespruce.com/paint-wood-paneling-2213358


    See if the above links help you out.

  • LittleLady LittleLady on Jan 01, 2018

    Paint it! :-) Use Kilz for the first coat and have at it.

  • Lifestyles Homes Lifestyles Homes on Jan 01, 2018

    My experience with painted paneling is that it showed every scuff in my high traffic area, so I was constantly cleaning the scuffs off - wood grain is more "forgiving".

    Depending on whether the "dark" is the primary issue, or the "ridges" typically found in old paneling, or whatever is your criteria - semi transparent or opaque wood stains come in a huge selection of colors (use TSP to clean it first) or one could caulk the ridges and put thick "liner" wall paper over it.

  • DesertRose DesertRose on Jan 01, 2018

    We bought an older home that was all paneling so we painted it! First we caulked the cracks between each panel (about every 4 ft.) Then we used aroma free Kilz primer. Then we painted whatever color we wanted on it! You can add chair round chair level, or a border at the top with stencil or wall paper border to really make it look nice. We even sponge painted with 3 hues of the same color in some rooms to match the new drapes I made for each room. It lighted up the whole house painting over that paneling!

  • B. Enne B. Enne on Jan 02, 2018

    I painted mine off-white 20 years ago, and it still looks fine. It has lightened a bit, but evenly. We only noticed when we had a door removed, and had to paint the new wall. i removed a piece of trim and had it colour-matched. I do not regret it at all. I had a couple of small chips near a door--2 minutes to fix. It is a high traffic area, with extremes of hot and cold. It was meant to be temporary for a couple of years, while we decided what to do. I wll be painting some small areas next summer just for a colour change.

    My mentality is paint first then decide. The change may really surprise you.