Wood paneling comes in a few different configurations. You can install wide, tall sheets that stand vertically against the wall, but some people prefer the more classic look of horizontal planks that are stacked from the floor up. The planks are designed with tongue and groove edges to fit tightly together. This process is good for both regular walls and cedar-covered closet walls.
Instructions
1. Find each stud in the wall, using your electronic studfinder. Identify the location of each by drawing a vertical line from floor to ceiling with your level and pencil.
2. Use the level and pencil to mark a horizontal line across the bottom of the wall, at the level of the height of a board plus half an inch. So if your boards are 12 inches high, the line should be 12 1/2 inches off the floor, and span the length of the wall.
3. Measure the length of the wall. Cut your first piece of plank paneling to that length minus half an inch, using your miter saw. The saw should be set at 90 degrees to cut the piece straight across.
4. Hold the board to the wall, positioned so the tongue side is facing up and lined up under the horizontal line. This should leave a half-inch space under the board. You should have a quarter inch of "play" on either end.
5. Secure the plank with your finish nail gun, putting nails along the top and bottom of the piece at each point where it crosses a stud.
6. Measure and cut the next piece. Sit it on top of the previous plank, locking together the tongue and . Shoot nails through the top edge of the board, one per stud, so the nail heads will be hidden by the next board.
7. Continue cutting and hanging each new plank above the previous one, nailing them through the edges. Length-cut the top plank to fit along the ceiling, leaving half an inch of space there as you did at the floor. Install floor and ceiling trim to cover the spaces.
Tags: half inch, floor ceiling, from floor, groove edges, horizontal line