# What to use on shop walls & ceiling



## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

My shop is 30 x 40. It's studded and insulated with faced fiberglass. The next step is to put something on the walls and ceiling and paint it white. I have been around and around with different thoughts. Pegboard, white pegboard, plywood, drywall, OSB, hardboard, MDF, you name it, I have thought about it. I have finally tentatively decided. LOL. My last thing before I finalize my decision is to run it by this forum. First, the ceiling is the underside of the roof. It's high, angled, and has collar ties I will need to work around. So, my thoughts for the ceiling are 1/4" plywood (Luann). It is $6.16 a sheet. I will need 30 sheets. It is light, easy to cut, easy to handle, cheap, and it won't have to hold anything but paint. My thoughts for the walls is 7/16" OSB. It is $4.97 a sheet. I will need 35 sheets. My 2 concerns with OSB are 1.) How well does it paint? I am not concerned about perfection, I only want to brighten the shop's lighting. and 2.) How well will it hold nails etc. if I want to hang something between studs? My thoughts are that if I have a problem hanging things, I will use a bracket of some kind instead of simply a nail. Also, I will put pegboard up, firred away from the walls for clearance, after I get the OSB up. So, go ahead you guys, beat me up, pat me on the back, make suggestions, whatever. Thanks.


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## woodnthings (Jan 24, 2009)

*After doing the math*

This occured to me for the walls ....for every dollar you increase the price per sheet you add $35, not a whole lot. So what can you do at $7.00 per sheet, or $70.00 more for the walls. What about $10,00 per sheet? Just asking and trying to put things in perspective. 35 sheets at $10.00 per is $350.00 In the big picture of life and the future maybe that's not a lot of money to spend. I donno? I'd be looking at 3/8th rough sawn or smooth or 1/2" good one side plywood or 1/2" drywall if you are any good at the mud and tape scene. I just don't fill all the nail holes so I can easily find a stud to hang things from. Or 1/4" Luan all around and don't hang anything from it. The possibilties are many. Also what's your climate like? You might want to visqueen the whole area and dehumidify it. It also prevents air infiltration if you're trying to heat itin cold climates. Also what's the electrical format? In the walls or surface wiring in conduit? Good Luck.:thumbsup: bill


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## Mike Gager (Jan 11, 2009)

i went with 7/16 osb on my walls and ceiling. i would use scews instead of nails if you need to hang something other wise it should be fine

i didnt paint the osb i put up, i just left it bare for a more "industrial" look :laughing: i have lots of light in my shop so it really wasnt that big of a deal and the osb was tons brighter then the bare studs that were there before

oh yeah one other thing, osb has 2 sides, a smooth side and a rough side. i didnt notice til i was on my 5th ceiling sheet that i had been installing them rough side out:blink:


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## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

Bill, That's a good point about cost and how to calculate it. Problem is, I can't do much until I get to $20 a sheet for 3/8 one side good plywood. That would mean $700 vs. $175. True, in the whole scheme of things, I might be happier. Then again, the $525 I save will help me rebuild my Craftsman 6" metal lathe. And, in 10 years, will I be happier with the plywood? I dunno. Maybe, maybe not. And Mike, yes, I know one side is smooth and one is rough. Thanks for reminding me though. I hate it when you get 1/2 done with a job and realize you should have doen it different. They make one side rough for roofs so you don't slide off during construction.


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## HFC Homes (May 5, 2009)

You can get some insulated osb with a type of aluminum foil on one side...it really brightens up a room.


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

If I was doing a new shop, a lot of the walls would be 
pegboard. Pre-painted at Lowes, $16 a sheet. Most
likely find unfinished cheaper.

Four feet of ply topped with four feet of peg!


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## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

Since I don't quite know how my shop will be set up yet, I don't know where I want the pegboard. I could do as you say and simply put it everywhere starting at 4' and up, but I then thought that I may want a solid wall in places where I didn't need pegboard. So, that's why I thought I'd run OSB everywhere, then once I get my shop set up, I would put pegboard just where I needed it. Make sense? I dunno. Maybe I should just back up 15 yards and punt.


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## Geoguy (Feb 22, 2008)

I used OSB. It holds nails and screws well. I painted mine. A few chips tried to swell a little when water based latex paint was applied but it's no big deal. I have some photos in my albums, although, they don't specifically show close-ups of the walls. I chose OSB for the cost and durability.


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## TS3660 (Mar 4, 2008)

Hey Geoguy, I looked at your pictures, and although this has nothing to do with OSB, the stack of wood you have drying in your attic must be incredibly heavy. Aren't you concerned about your joists breaking?


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## Julian the woodnut (Nov 5, 2008)

If you plan on heating the shop, then in no way would I sheat the walls with pegboard. You must sheet the walls with either 7/16 osb, or 1/2" drywall first, then fir out the pegboard with 1x2's. You want as tight of a seal from the outside as possible.


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## toolman Steve (Jun 11, 2009)

My shop is 20x30 , were I live we have to build strick codes .
I chose 5/8 osb on walls &1/2 osb on the ceiling . I painted everything 
light gray semi gloss it worked out well. ialso used screws and "S" hooks 
instead of peg board . This may or may not work for your shop. 


Steve​


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## Lilty (Dec 20, 2006)

I think I would go with 1/2" drywall on the ceiling and 1/2" OSB on the walls.

Lilty


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## Rich Aldrich (Apr 26, 2008)

I am in a similar situation only my case is a 20 x 24 addition to my 20 x 28 shop. First, I live where it is too cold, so I have to put R19 in the walls and R38 in the ceiling. My shop is built pole building style, so I have to fill in walls with studs for sheeting.

The existing shop is all drywall. I am happy with it, but I have been considering tongue and groove pine, shiplap, or OSB for the walls of the addition. I would like to hang things where I want, not where I have to due to stud positions. Anyway, I will have to check out the plywood/pegboard panels - sounds interesting.

I posted this on familywoodworking where one of the guys said if you do put up OSB and paint it, put kilz on first. It covers better?

I have a while before I absolutely have to decide.


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## Kenbo (Sep 16, 2008)

Although my shop is smaller than yours, I used 7/16" OSB. I also painted it with a white semi-gloss latex to brighten up the room. It takes the paint okay. Several coats to fully cover it. In some areas, there was a little yellowing from the adheisive in the OSB I'm guessing. I don't know if you can see what it looks like painted, but there are pictures on my user profile. 
Ken


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## Abbott (May 5, 2009)

OSB works fine for walls. It holds nails/screws for hanging items and brackets. It is easy to skim it with drywall mud, give it a quick sanding with a pole sander, prime it with KILZ or ZAP (Wal Mart's brand, works fine) and paint it.

I sometimes cut 3" strips of OSB and screw them to the walls with 1 1/4" gold construction screws, then run screws or hooks in thru the strips to hang tool, cord or hose hooks. I have used 7/16" OSB for the walls on 2 shops now with no regrets.


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## BHOFM (Oct 14, 2008)

Julian the woodnut said:


> If you plan on heating the shop, then in no way would I sheat the walls with pegboard. You must sheet the walls with either 7/16 osb, or 1/2" drywall first, then fir out the pegboard with 1x2's. You want as tight of a seal from the outside as possible.


There is some difference in heating a shop in Illinois 
and South Carolina. :brows::brows::brows:

Four inches of pink glass and a vapor barrier covered
with pegboard will be more than enough. 

In the summer, more interest in keeping the heat
out!


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## gstuartw (Jun 3, 2012)

I'm about to cover my walls up. The ceiling is going to be rocked but I have decided to go with OSB painted white. I originally was going to to a mosaic of different size pieces, 2x4, 2x8, 4x4, 4x8 etc and stain each piece (by size) in varying shades of stain then varnish. But so many posts on lots of the forums all come down to painting it white for better lighting. I've got a 20x30 building and will have 10 fluorescent fixtures to blow things out. Even then the difference between white walls and stained will be most appreciated by these 52 year old eyeballs.

On the financial side…wow! OSB for just under $5.00 a sheet? Amazing that in just 4 1/2 years the price has gone up $3.00!

One last thing. My exterior was sheathed with ZIP sheathing. It's like sheathing with the Tyvek already applied. The building is pretty tight but I wonder if there is a significant difference between drywall and OSB when considering their contribution to the energy efficiency?


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## Rob Brown (Jul 7, 2009)

*wall covering*

what do your fire codes say? Mine say 5/8 drywall for the ceiling and walls attached to the house. A detached building will surely be different, and probably less strict, but fire code should be a big consideration. What will be in the shop besides woodworking equipment?


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## GeorgeC (Jul 30, 2008)

For the walls I would definitely go with pegboard or something equivalent. Many years ago I built a 2,000 ft sq addition to my store that was going to house my horse tack area and lawn and garden area. I bought quality, finish grade, decorative peg board. I then went into the main store and totally redid the interior to match.

I recently had an addition to my garage built. Again I went with peg board. The garage is insulated walls and ceiling. I put the peg board diretly on the studs with nothing behind it. I heat and cool the garage as it is both for my cars and workshop. You can put OSB or plywood behind the peg board, but in my opinion it is a waste of time and money. Now if you were in real cold country it may be another story. Ft Mill SC does not get that cold.

For the ceiling in both instances I went with just a standard dry wall material.

George


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## Al B Thayer (Dec 10, 2011)

You got to respect the fire code and go with the drywall on the ceiling. It will seal easier and then you can insulate above. 

Al

Nails only hold themselves.


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## J Thomas (Aug 14, 2012)

I'd go with the OSB.. You can add pegboard as needed later. 
Also look into "french cleats" for hanging things.. they allow you to move stuff around without dealing with fasteners. 
My shop is unpainted 7/16 osb with a bunch of florescent over head lighting plus a few hundred watt clamp on lights for special cases. 
Here's a video from member A_Sailor on his french cleat system.
..Jon..


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## TomC (Oct 27, 2008)

I installed 1/2 Sheetrock on the ceiling and painted it white. I used 7/16" OSB on the walls. It is not painted. I put the OSB up with screws so I can take it down if I need to get back in the walls for wiring or other work. The OSB holds nails and screws well for hanging items. As someone else had mentioned if your shop is attached to your house I would check the local building code. I am in NC and if my shop was attached to my house I would have had to use Sheetrock.
Tom


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## Tom Clark NM (Jun 21, 2008)

I went with 7/16 OSB on the new shop I built in 2012. Original plan was to go with some cheap white paneling. Old age got me there! The cheap paneling today is $20 and seems like junk 1/8" thick and about as strong as paper.
For paint I just used Kilz latex primer rolled on. It's inexpensive and covers quite well - in two coats. After the first coat I wondered what I was doing. After the second coat it was great. The walls have a bit of texture to them, but it is hardly noticeable. If you are like me, you will hang so much 'stuff' on the walls that not much will show up anyway. The white really brightens up the shop.


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## rrich (Jun 24, 2009)

Bud,
For the sake of fire safety there is but one answer. 

Sheetrock a.k.a Wallboard

Not only is it safer from a fire perspective the Sheetrock is also cheaper. 

The taping process is easy after the first 8 or 10 feet. I would suggest using the fiberglass self stick tape and then cover with mud. 

Finally, paint the walls and ceiling with the glossiest and brightest white paint that you can find. You would not believe the difference that the gloss white makes when lighting the shop.

Now is a good time to install "Pot" lighting. You can use LED bulbs which won't burn out in your grand kids lifetime and will give sufficient light which is probably better than fluorescent tubes.


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## frankp (Oct 29, 2007)

Bud, I'd dare say drywall will also be better from a heating/cooling perspective since it is heavier than the other options you've listed and mass makes a big difference for heat transfer. I'd personally just do it that way and probably wouldn't even worry about taping the seams unless you feel it's absolutely necessary. It's a shop, after all, not a living space. But then again, not taping would affect the energy efficiency somewhat as well.


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