ADDING A SHIPLAP ACCENT WALL

Prior to the Coronavirus outbreak, I had signed up to take a woodworking course so I could learn how to hang this shiplap accent wall and to do other projects around the house. I had planned to have someone with the right equipment come over and help me install the shiplap boards. Plans changed after the stay-at-home orders went into effect.Thankfully, my husband had some prior experience with these kinds of DIY home projects. My husband and I were able to borrow a couple of saws and an air compressor for this project.

Next, we purchased a finish nail gun and nails for this project. Given the current state of the economy and our county’s stay-at-home order, we decided to go ahead and install the shiplap ourselves. We realized that we were capable of doing this DIY home project together after watching a few YouTube videos.

Continue reading below and I will walk you through the steps you need to follow to install your own shiplap wall in no time! 

STEPS FOR INSTALLING A SHIPLAP WALL

Measure Your Space

First, you will need to measure the wall’s height and width after you decide where you want to install a shiplap wall. This will allow you to figure out how much shiplap you need to order. They actually have a shiplap coverage calculator to determine how much shiplap you need for your project on the UFP-Edge website. To allow for mistakes in cutting boards and oversight in measurements, it is recommended that you order an additional 10% more than you need.Prepare the space.

Once you have your shiplap, it’s important that you let the shiplap sit for at least 48 hours in the space it is going to be installed. This allows the wood to acclimate properly to the humidity and moisture in the space. During this time, you should clean out the space to give yourself ample working room to install the shiplap panels. I also recommend wiping down the walls and baseboards so that you have a clean surface to work on. Finally, you will want to remove any wall plates and outlet covers from the wall. Next, you will want to make sure you have all the proper tools and materials to install the shiplap.

Tools & Materials You Will Need to Easily Install a Shiplap Accent Wall:

• Prepainted Shiplap Panels from UFP-Edge
• 2-inch, 18 Ga. Straight Strip Brad Nails
• Pneumatic 18 Ga. Finish Nailer
• Air Compressor
• Extension Cord
• Adhesive Glue
• Sandpaper
• Caulk
• Ladder
• Measuring Tape
• Hammer
• Stud Finder
• Pencil
• 48-inch beam level (recommended)
• Vertical Chalk Line Marker
• Jig Saw
• Circular Saw

Mark The Studs On The WallYou will want to mark and identify any studs in the wall before you hang any shiplap. The easiest way to find the studs is with a stud finder. Mark the studs on the walls with a pencil (most studs are placed 16 to 24 inches apart). After you identify the studs, you can use a beam level OR a vertical chalk line to mark the studs along the walls. This will make it easier to know where to nail in the shiplap on the wall.

Horizontal and Vertical Shiplap Installation Instructions from UFP-Edge

It’s Time To Start Cutting & Hanging The Shiplap Panels

Next, we set up our saws and work station in the garage to get started on our DIY accent wall. We measured each board and cut the boards in the garage. You will want to keep your saw station set up, though, to make any additional cuts. We discovered discrepancies in our wall width and a few boards had to be trimmed down as we were installing each panel.To begin, we started at the top of the wall and worked our way down for our horizontal shiplap wall. You can also start from the bottom, which makes it easier to ensure straight lines. For our first board, we used adhesive glue to make sure it stuck securely to the wall. Next we used the nail gun and air compressor to fully secure the panel to the wall.

A Finished DIY Shiplap Bathroom Wall

I was amazed at how quickly the wall came together once we started hanging the panels! Each shiplap panel securely fits into the last panel, making this nickel gap shiplap so easy to install. Instead of having to use spacers in between each panel, the boards overlap and create an 1/8-inch nickel gap space between the boards.UFP-Edge Nickel gap shiplap features identical rabbeted edges on each side of the board.The rabbeted edges allow the boards to overlap with a 1/8 inch nickel gap space between board edges.We finished hanging the shiplap panels in less than two hours!

If I can tackle a project like this, so can you! I’ve never felt so inspired to be capable of tackling these kinds of projects, even though we are stuck at home right now and limited with what we can do financially for projects. Be sure to visit my blog to see more home and garden projects. Thank you to all of you who encouraged me and helped me believe I could do this project!  

Timelapse showing the installation of our DIY Shiplap Wall