I’m doing a rehab on rental, which is an old house in a not so very good part of town. Many years ago cheap sheet paneling was used on the walls and for good reason the old lath plaster is in rough shape well beyond repair. The correct repair would be to strip all the walls, ceiling and hang drywall. However since it will continue to be used as a rental (that will very likely be abused) this option is too costly for what is needed.
Right now the only option is to use a similar cheap paneling, but I would much rather install a more updated look.
Can anybody suggest a comparable inexpensive alternative?
Replies
The only real cheap alternative is to paint what you got. Paneling is paneling.
__________________________________________
Remodeling Contractor just outside the Glass City.
Ideas?
1. Cover the walls with lining paper and then paint.
2. Fiberglass matt and skim coat. Can't remember the trade name of this product.
3. Texture paint.
4. Drywall over the plaster.
5. Selective plaster removal and replacement where needed.
6. New panneling.
7. Paint the old panneling.
8. Patch and paint.
9. wallpaper.
10. Mirror tile!
I`d go with the mirror tile.....sounds "classy"!J. D. Reynolds
Home Improvements
"DO IT RIGHT, DO IT ONCE"
Renters canbe rough on property - try gunnite!
LOLExcellence is its own reward!
Scott,
I think you already answered your own question.
"The correct repair would be to strip all the walls, ceiling and hang drywall."
Use 5/8" drywall to assist in the durability dept. Perhaps use a paneling of sorts as a wainscotting on lower portion of walls that will take majority of abuse. Add insulation while you are at it which will save $ down the line on heating and cooling. Doing a proper job now will only increase the future resale value regardless of the neighborhood. People are more apt to take pride in their home when given a home to be proud of. A "cheap fix" is rarely the inexpensive way to go if you end up doing it over and over.
Best of luck!
J. D. Reynolds
Home Improvements
"DO IT RIGHT, DO IT ONCE"
Wow, Les - poetic, too. A very good post. We all are from very different backgrounds but I think you've nailed a common thread.
Do it right or don't do it at all.
Thanks. Greg.
Thanks for the input guys.
I would certainly feel much better if the house could be completely gutted and re-dry walled and it would certainly satisfy my perfectionist nature. But that is why I'm having a struggle within between quality and cost, and why I posted the question in the first place. This would probably be the last job I did for this customer if I suggested gutting the lath. The house was condemned when he bought it a few weeks ago so ANY remodeling is going to be a major improvement.
Scott R.
house was CONDEMNED?
Now we've got a new thread!
Why was it comdemned? Could be there's so much worng there is no way to fix it without stripping. And if the owner wants to do it on the cheap but something is still wrong, guess who takes it on the chin? Have you ever stood in front of the target at the firing range? Spooky feeling, ain't it? That's where you may be standing on this one.
Excellence is its own reward!
ya scot- could you elaborate with the details on the building being condemned. And being bought just a few weeks ago means you're in there as the man to do it. What is the owners desire for the building? How far into it with a dollar is he expecting to go? These questions mean alot on the direction of the helpful hints you can receive here.
Several years ago this is a house that had been converted to three units, one unit down stairs two up. I'm not quite sure how the house had been condemned in the first place but I'm going to suspect it's when the city conducts inspections of rental units.
The first step in removing a property from the condemned list is having the building deptartment do what they call a "team" inspection. At a designated time an inspector from every area, building, electrical, HVAC and plumbing, show up at once and go over the property, about a week later a report is sent detailing the deficiencies. A vast majority of the fixes related to the fact that it was a three unit. The owner decided from the very onset that he wanted it converted back to a single-family unit, which eliminates a ton of issues the building dept has with the property. In other words the house would have not been condemned if it were a single unit.
Taking all the issues of egress, fire walls, inadequate plumbing etc. etc. off the list, only leaves us with minor issues to take care of. However we are making plenty of other changes such as removing unnecessary walls, turning a small bath into a walk in closet, moving the kitchen into a more suitable area and putting all the electrical into one panel and meter.
The owner expects to spend about 20k on the remodel, which is going to be tight because I've already talked him into many fixes, he never planned on.
Scott R.
Edited 4/27/2002 10:04:30 AM ET by Scott R.