We see beadboard wall paneling everywhere in new and old homes, anywhere a wall needs some punch, or as a design interest instead of ordinary flat wallboard. Years ago, beadboard was milled wood used as a coverup to add a surface to a porch ceiling or to surround a room with wainscoting. Today, it adds warmth and appeal to a room as well as protect the wall surface. The paneling has long, continuous vertical grooves and raised beads spaced every inch or so.
You’ll find beadboard sold in lumber yards and home centers, usually made of medium density fiberboard called MDF. It’s a combination of wood fiber and resin melded under pressure. The panels are ready-to-paint panels in two sizes: 4 feet high and 8 feet wide and for wainscoting, and 4 feet wide by 8 feet high to cover a wall.
A carpenter will charge $1,379 to install 4-foot-by-8-foot sheets of beadboard paneling in a 12-foot-by-15-foot room with an 8-foot ceiling and a single door and window. That includes labor and approximately 330 square feet of material. You can buy the paneling and materials for $625 and do the job yourself, pocketing a 55% saving.
The material includes the paneling, furring strips, adhesive and finishing nails. You’ll also need ceiling, baseboard and door and window trim. For power tools you need a jigsaw, circular saw and finishing sander. An electronic stud finder is handy when installing the furring strips.
Prepare the room by removing all wall decorations, ceiling and base moldings, and electrical outlet and switch plate covers. Begin by fastening the furring strips to the walls, and then measure and cut the panels to fit around door and window trim and the electrical openings. Then nail the panels to the furring strips and install ceiling and base molding to trim out the job.
To find more DIY project costs and to post comments and questions, visit www.diyornot.com.
Pro Cost — DIY Cost — Pro time — DIY Time — DIY Savings — Percent Saved
$1,379 — $625 — 18.7 — 23.5 — $754 — 55%
