# Any ideas on shop wall covering



## TakeDeadAim (Dec 5, 2019)

I built my shop several years ago, a "pole building" 32x55 that is split into a garage section and my shop area.  When it was built I had the contractor insulate the walls and ceiling heavily and install white steel siding in the shop area walls and ceiling.  I was contemplating having an office/clean area in which I could have some bench space for clean work and an area for my computer.  

I had some health issues at the time the building was completed and struggled just to get the electric in and machines up and running so I did not put up the walls for the office/clean area.  I have become fully disabled and find myself doing only smaller projects and have started doing hand metal engraving.  To have a design area and keep my microscope and engraving tools clean I am really wanting that cleaner area. This would also allow me to keep that area a bit warmer without running the gas bill up as high as keeping the whole shop at a temp comfortable for more sedentary work.

I have a friend who is willing to build the divider walls for me if I will man the cut-off saw and have all the material here for him.  It will just be two walls with one door but I want to insulate and put a covering on both sides of the wall.  I looked at prices for decent (sanded) plywood but it's pretty expensive.   I am looking for some lower-priced alternatives but would like something on the office side that looks nice.  On the shop side Id like to be able to screw things right to the wall and maybe put up a french cleat system for tool storage.  I would appreciate anyone sharing ideas, things that worked and didn't work in their shop.


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## Canus (Dec 5, 2019)

OSB on the shop side and inexpensive paneling on the office side.


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## aliva (Dec 5, 2019)

I agree OSB cheap works well as long it doesn't get wet. You could also use non vented  aluminum soffit. I used soffit for the ceiling of my outdoor room. Zero maintenance..


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## TakeDeadAim (Dec 5, 2019)

If it gets wet where on the inside I have bigger problems.  Ive not used it but I assume it would take primer and paint OK


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## ThinWoodsman (Dec 5, 2019)

I used 7/32 birch underlayment. Looks nice after a coat of poly, costs fifteen bucks a 4x8 sheet, and you can hang lightweight stuff on it no problem.


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## whitmore (Dec 5, 2019)

TakeDeadAim said:


> ... an office/clean area in which I could have some bench space for clean work and an area for my computer.
> ...a design area and keep my microscope and engraving tools clean.
> 
> two walls with one door but I want to insulate and put a covering on both sides of the wall.  I looked at prices for decent (sanded) plywood but it's pretty expensive.



Sill plate on the bottom, 2x4 studs (93-inch) on 16" centers, and
sheetrock 4' x 8', will be up to fire-code.   Staple-in insulation batts will add to
that, and a prehung door; no one mass-produces an inexpensive
'insulated' door, but a simple exterior door will block the breezes.

To support  french-cleat hangers, notch the studs at appropriate heights
by 3/4", and inset  1x6 boards (screwed and liquid-nails glued).
That gives you a good target for nails or screws (for extra credit,
consider a notched 2x6 board).   The cleats, then, would be 
screwed down THROUGH the sheetrock, into solid wood.

Don't cut those notches until the wall is squared, the inset board
won't let you straighten a parallelogram wall to a rectangle.

The only hard part is the ceiling, if the current shop doesn't match that 'standard'
eight-foot height.   Ceiling can hang from those wooden I-beam composite
members (lumber yard can suggest options for your span), and they
only need to go on 24" centers; don't forget 'cribbing', before
applying a rake-in or batt insulation and capping with (?) thin OSB.
I'd consider both rock-wool and cellulose insulation options there.

For best-build practice, you'd want to put in wall sockets at not-too-low
height, especially near that computer station, too.   The alternative
is surface-mounted boxes, and EMT metal tubing, if you are comfortable
handling a hacksaw and hickey.   Your insurer would appreciate
an inspection  by an electrician, one would suppose.   Maybe
a building permit, too.

Frame, wire, insulate, face with sheetrock (there's tricks for cutting
apertures for the electric sockets and light switches), lift/place/fix
the ceiling structure, install the prehung door, and ceiling light fixtures,
insulate the ceiling, then trim and paint all around.   Sounds like a
week's work, or month of weekends.   A skilled work crew could
do most of it in a day.


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## Ulma Doctor (Dec 5, 2019)

my walls are covered in oil spatters, swarf, sweat, and my tears


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## bhigdog (Dec 5, 2019)

I/2" wall board (sheet rock) taped joints and painted white. Cheap, quick and easy peasy. OSB soaks up paint like a sponge and takes multiple coats to look "painted". The semi textured surface also holds dirt and dust. Not so good for a clean room. ..................Bob


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## TakeDeadAim (Dec 5, 2019)

Thanks for the help guys,  I found a local yard that has some of the 7/32" sanded plywood on sale and I will use that inside the office area and go with the OSB on the outside of the walls, I do believe I will paint it to help maintain the clean look I have with the white steel siding on the other walls and ceiling.  I'll be framing 16" on center so there should be plenty of support for the cleat system.  All the wiring is in conduit and I will continue that.  I don't like running wire through the walls in basements and shops.  As an example, It will be easy for me to move one outlet box to allow me to make the clean area 10' and one of the two-way switches that control the shop lights too outside the door going from the new area into the shop.  Had I done that wiring inside the walls that would have been a much larger project.


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## TakeDeadAim (Dec 5, 2019)

bhigdog said:


> I/2" wall board (sheet rock) taped joints and painted white. Cheap, quick and easy peasy. OSB soaks up paint like a sponge and takes multiple coats to look "painted". The semi textured surface also holds dirt and dust. Not so good for a clean room. ..................Bob




I agree with you there Bob. The OSB will be on the shop side of the walls and not in the clean area; I will use "1/4 sanded plywood there and apply some semi-gloss poly.,  I've got a bunch of Zinser primer and a 5gal bucket of semi-gloss white from the days of owning rental property, that should give it a decent look.   I absolutely hate doing sheetrock. With multiple back surgeries in my past dealing with that heavy stuff then all that sanding and taping.  I can set up the paint sprayer and have that wall done in a day.


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## whitmore (Dec 5, 2019)

TakeDeadAim said:


> ...in the clean area; I will use "1/4 sanded plywood there and apply some semi-gloss poly.,  I've got a bunch of Zinser primer and a 5gal bucket of semi-gloss white


[and OSB facing the shop area}

Consider a fire-retardant paint, OSB-side especially.   Vertical surfaces of non-fire-retardant material are potentially a fire hazard, 
and your addition to the building might not have the same (?'one-hour') rating of the exterior construction (which is a regulatory no-no).
Sanded plywood isn't intended as wall covering, might not have ANY fire rating.   The OSB used as building sheathing
could be rated, but a shop-side fire might get scary before the office occupant notices.


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## TakeDeadAim (Dec 5, 2019)

whitmore said:


> [and OSB facing the shop area}
> 
> Consider a fire-retardant paint, OSB-side especially.   Vertical surfaces of non-fire-retardant material are potentially a fire hazard,
> and your addition to the building might not have the same (?'one-hour') rating of the exterior construction (which is a regulatory no-no).
> ...


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## MrWhoopee (Dec 5, 2019)

I did the inside of my "clean" shop (where the lathe and mill live) with OSB and painted it white. It didn't take that much paint and I like the way it looks, sort of like one of those fancy exterior stucco jobs. I like being able to just drive screws into it wherever I want to hang something. Not worried about fire rating, the building is wood exterior clad in vinyl. I live 80 miles north of Paradise, the fire will come from the outside and no drywall will save me. And I HATE drywall!


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## whitmore (Dec 6, 2019)

TakeDeadAim said:


> If plywood is not intended as a wall covering then why can it be purchased in dozens of colors and finishes at home centers all over the country?



Have you looked for the brand on the back of the 'plywood'?   There's grades for 30-minute and 90-minute 'fire rated' as well
as a 'fire retardant' type.   If there's no construction-code requirement, don't worry about it.

An uncle's restaurant, some decades ago, redid some walls with plywood paneling, then the inspector shut the business
down for a few days.  In addition to the brand, he wanted a certificate of compliance,
 tracking the batch number back to the factory.


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## projectnut (Dec 6, 2019)

This option is a bit expensive, but it has worked well in our garage.  When I insulated the doors I covered the insulation with 1/16" thick plastic paneling.  I also used the paneling in areas where the machine tools were originally positioned to keep crud and cutting oil off the walls.









						1/16 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft. Plastic Panel 63003
					

The 1/16 in. x 4 ft. x 8 ft. Plastic-Panel features a cracked ice surface texture. This-Panel is resistant to rot for durability. This Panel is great for commercial bathroom applications.



					www.homedepot.com
				




I used this stuff over the drywall.  It's been in place over 30 years and is still bright and shiny.  We used it in the production rooms of the food manufacturer I worked for.  It can be cleaned with soap and water, and even caustic chemicals.

Having said that I moved the machine tools to the basement shop about 20 years ago.  The garage was just too expensive to heat in the winter months and the machines started taking up so much space I had to park my truck outside.  After a couple seasons of scraping windows and trying to find the truck in a snow drift I moved all the machines downstairs and put the truck back in the garage.

From time to time I still clean oil and crud from projects off the garage walls.  Now days the garage acts as a staging and cleaning area for machines before they go into the shop.  The walls in the basement shop are bare poured concrete.  However almost none of it is exposed to oil or swarf.  All except the tiniest areas are covered by shelving or work benches.  Very little if anything ever makes it to the walls.  The minimum machine distance is probably 6' from any wall and they are positioned so the majority of the swarf  goes away from the walls.


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## Stonebriar (Dec 6, 2019)

TakeDeadAim said:


> If it gets wet where on the inside I have bigger problems.  Ive not used it but I assume it would take primer and paint OK


The OSB in my last shop took paint, but some of the chips of wood fall off after painting due to the wetness of the paint.


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## TakeDeadAim (Dec 6, 2019)

Where my machine tools are positioned I have the metal siding behind them and it too is very easy to wipe down with a light mix of Simple Green and water.  I read about the OSB "sheading" some chips when painted with latex paint.  I am fortunate to have the Zinser oil-based primer on hand and my hope is that using that under the latex finish will keep that from happening.  (Fingers and toes crossed)

The Plywood is 30-minute fire rating marked according to the product listing and will be nailed to a 2x4 wall with fiberglass insulation.  This is fully an interior wall and the building adequately separated from my house.  Treated plate and studs 16 on center even though 24 would be allowed.  The building really is classified the same as a detached garage or accessory structure.  I have multiple fire extinguishers, (twice the size and number) recommended for even a commercial building.  The last thing I want is to be in a fire or lose my shop to one.  I have smoke detectors (house and shop) that are linked to my phone in the event I'm not around.    I do appreciate the concern.

I had a basement shop years ago.  My current house has a stairway that is a real challenge to get up and down much less move tools in and out of.  The floor looks like it was finished with a roto-tiller and was then painted.  I had the floor looked at by several years ago and no one wanted to try and repair it and the cost to replace it and install an exterior stairway was more than adding the shop to the detached garage that needed replacement anyway.

Im looking forward to having a clean space to do design, work on bench projects and continue to pursue metal engraving.  I'm not much for being still but man the chronic low back and leg pain, combined with rheumatoid arthritis are kicking my backside.  Its difficult to not be able to do things you used to do.  Any kind of lifting and prolonged standing are just out of the realm of what I can do so adjusting my activity is the only way to keep sane and get some enjoyment out of the days where I am able to do things.  Hopefully, my friend can get the framing up for me in the next few weeks.

I appreciate the help and recommendations.


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## randyjaco (Dec 6, 2019)

To whatever interior wall covering you decide, add white pegboard everywhere you can. It allows you to hang whatever you want on the walls.
Randy


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## epanzella (Dec 6, 2019)

I cover my walls with cutting oil.


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## Mitch Alsup (Dec 6, 2019)

epanzella said:


> I cover my walls with cutting oil.



I do to. but not intentionally.


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## epanzella (Dec 7, 2019)

Mitch Alsup said:


> I do to. but not intentionally.


me neither


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## BGHansen (Dec 7, 2019)

My shop is in 32' of a 40' x 56' barn.  I framed 2x4 walls on 2' center that fit between the poles which are on 8' centers.  Then stapled in 6" thick fiberglass batts 22 1/2" (or whatever the standard size is).  Finished wall is 7/16" OSB.  If you go with wood panels, don't do what I did and use an air nailer to secure them.  Sure wish I'd have screwed them down for easier access just in case.  Slopped on white primer paint to finish it off and brighten the room.

My ceiling is white pole barn steel.  At the time, 16' x 3' sheets were $25, so $50 to cover 3' of the 32' width.  Cost $650 in steel plus a bunch of drywall screws to secure it.  I used suspended ceiling "L" pieces on the side walls to support the ends.  To hang it (had no help for the job), I made a 1-by cleat that was screwed to the wall with a hinged frame made from 16' lengths of 16-gauge galvanized angle that was on the edges of my steel panels to protect the edges during shipping.  Hinged the angle at the cleat, ran a cross board like a railroad tie at the other end.  Then hinged a 2x4x9 1/2' to the cross piece.  

To set the steel, I set the frame cross-piece on the top of a step ladder, dumped a piece of steel on top, then lifted it up into rough place and slid the wall end on top of the suspended ceiling angle.  My problem was all of my equipment was in place and I didn't want to move it around to free the floor under the ceiling to set the panels in place.  The steel cost at least double what drywall would have run, but it was already painted and went up very quickly.  Not the easiest thing to cut holes in for electrical boxes; I drill a hole through the steel at the edge of a truss bottom, then mark the box corners from below.  Drill holes in the corners, make three cuts with a saber saw and fold the tab up to the truss and screw it down.

Other reason for steel as a ceiling in my case was the roof trusses are on 2' center.  Was worried about the drywall weight pulling itself through screws with the 2' span and 12" of insulation on top.

Bruce


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## Latinrascalrg1 (Dec 7, 2019)

Ulma Doctor said:


> my walls are covered in oil spatters, swarf, sweat, and my tears


What no blood? Or is that considered part of the Oil Splatter???


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## ACHiPo (Dec 8, 2019)

Ulma Doctor said:


> my walls are covered in oil spatters, swarf, sweat, and my tears


No blood?

Edit:  D'oh Latin beat me to it!


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