Goodmorning. I just bought a house, built in 1940, that has exposed beams in the living and dining rooms with masonite panels between the beams. In the living room the panels were installed with the textured side facing out. My wife and I would prefer to have smooth panels, so I was thinking about using a very light coat of spackling or joint compound over the panels before priming and painting. Will this work well? Is there any special prep I need to do to the painted walls? Will it crumble off when we hammer in a picture hanger? Any advise would be great.
thanks,
ben

 

A better alternative is to cover with 1/4 inch drywall.

 

Thanks for the quick response. That might be an option, but I think that would bring the panels flush with the wood rather than being slightly recessed as it is now. (I'll have to take another look when I go over tonight to do some other painting as we won't actually take posession untill Friday). Can you get thinner drywall? maybe 1/8"?
ben