Strange Paneling


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Old 07-20-14, 11:43 AM
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Strange Paneling

I am in escrow to buy a house from the 20s. Apparently it was "renovated" in the 50s and the plaster walls were taken down to be replaced with paneling. It is not normal paneling; it is more like thin fiberboard (see picture of the hole in the wall)? It is so thin in the ceiling that a sharp pocket knife slid right through one of the grooves. I really don't want to move in with this stuff on my walls and ceiling. I also don't want to spend a fortune because we plan to tear the house down in 5 years and build our own. Any suggestions on how to make this livable?
 
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Old 07-20-14, 01:08 PM
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Welcome to the forums! So that is paneling on the walls and not cmu? It looks like masonite board, which is cheap at best. Tearing it out and replacing it with sheetrock may be your best, cheapest way out. The ceiling, however, may be a different story. Depending on how long it has been up there, could contain asbestos. I would have it checked professionally before I made a cloud of dust taking it down. The ceiling, likewise could be sheetrock and the walls follow.
 
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Old 07-20-14, 01:40 PM
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Whether this contains asbestos is something you need to know before you buy it, as it could easily be thousands of dollars to deal with it.
 
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Old 07-20-14, 02:45 PM
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I agree! Those would be a good candidate to have tested. Could go either way. If nothing else, for peace of mind.
 
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Old 07-20-14, 06:09 PM
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Thanks for the replies. We are having the whole house tested for asbestos and lead. We are sure we will find some things but hoping they will be manageable. I found a few ways to try to avoid taking it all down and putting up new drywall like putting new paneling over it or 1/4 inch drywall but that seems to come with it's own issues too. Tear down and put up new seems like the only way to go.
 
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Old 07-20-14, 07:10 PM
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Yes, going over it just delays the inevitable.
 
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Old 07-21-14, 03:34 AM
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.... also tearing it out allows you to update electrical and insulation or any other changes you might want to make.
 
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Old 07-21-14, 07:33 AM
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We are hoping to make as few changes as possible because we want to bulldoze the house in 3-5 years. We will probably keep one wall so it is a remodel but other than that it is coming down. There is nothing about it that is really worth saving.
 
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Old 07-21-14, 02:05 PM
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In that case, I consider laminating it with either more paneling or 1/4" drywall.
 
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Old 07-22-14, 07:06 AM
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If you're tearing down, I'd be looking for the cheapest work-around and I would be leaning toward skim coating with joint compound.
 
 

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