I am planning on paneling a small entry hall with 1/4" oak veneer plywood paneling (up to a height of 4 or 5 ft). Since the area is small, I am just going to use the flat panelling with a chair rail on top and molding on bottom (no other rails or stiles).
Question is what should I do at the corners.
- Do I use butt joints or 45 degree miter joints?
- Any secrets for getting the corners tight (and staying tight)? (note since I will be staining, I can't just use caulk)
For inside corners, all you need is a butt joint. And here's a hint from my tile laying stepson: Determine which way people are looking into/walking through the room. Locate the open joint so it is perpendicular to that direction, so you have to turn your head to see it.
Given the realities of wood movement, the house shifting etc, I doubt that you will EVER have a joint that is dead tight, like furniture. I'd put a small (1/8") bevel on the edge. That way, any variation in the joint width will be masked. When you stain it, it WILL be darker (end grain) but it will hide any openness in the joint.
For outside corners, a miter joint isn't going to work. You have two paper thin pieces of wood veneer coming together at a point. Every fuzzy sweater that brushes it, is going to catch on the wood, and pull off pieces of the veneer. And there is NO WAY that you are going to be able to cut and install a tight miter joint 2-3' high in 1/4" plywood. Somehow, you need to design a corner with some solid wood in it, with the plywood butting up to it.
An old trick, and one that is amazingly effective _most of the time_, is to "burnish" the edge of an outside panel miter joint with the barrel of a screwdriver. Once a finish is applied, it makes the join invisible and smooth ... almost always. :)
But to be on the safe side, you're right about using a solid wood corner in the design, or corner trim.
blueman wrote in news: snipped-for-privacy@consult.pretender:
Helpful Hint: at the inside corner, paint/stain/sharpy marker the wall before you apply the paneling. When the wood shrinks/moves, you won't have a white joint showing but rather a dark seam that may not be seen at all.
At the outside corner solid wood would be far better than the plywood. the veneer is so thin these days that it will be only a short t ime before the corner damaged and then it is an OS corner molding for repairs.
Wed, Oct 31, 2007, 3:27am (EDT+4) snipped-for-privacy@nospam.com (blueman) doth query: Hmmm... excuse my ignorance but what do you mean by a "glue strip inside"?
OK - so just to be sure I understand, since this is an inside corner, you add a strip of finished wood (here Oak) to cover (and secure) the inside joint of the paneling - basically a stile? Or am I missing something.
Wed, Oct 31, 2007, 1:08pm (EDT+4) snipped-for-privacy@nospam.com (blueman) doth qery: OK - so just to be sure I understand, since this is an inside corner, you add a strip of finished wood (here Oak) to cover (and secure) the inside joint of the paneling - basically a stile?
HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here.
All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.