Around my walls and on the ceiling I attached luan board over the concrete walls and open ceiling in the basement. I have little to no experience in carpentry but I’m learning as I go. In some spots where the luan board meets there are noticable gaps. Most of them are where the ceiling and walls meet. I’m looking for a way to cover or fill these gaps so I can paint it white. So far I’ve thought of trying wallpaper border, wall liner, or styrene sheets. The styrene sheets seem like they would hold up best and I can probably get them already white. If I were to use styrene how thick or thin should I go and what would be the best way to attack it? Also I have a duct for the AC and heat that I would like to cover and paint. Is this safe and what should I use to cover it?
Go talk to the guys at Home Depot. They say they know everything, maybe they can help. As a guy in the construction trade, I would tell you what is best over this forum but you would really need to see it hands on to really undersand it.
You could use white acrylic latex caulking, finishing compound for wallboard joints (AKA “mud”), tape and mud, or simply wood putty. In all cases, some careful fine sanding will result in a seamless appearance, any of which can then be primed and painted.
What you need is called Cove Base moulding – it is made in various sizes and either wood or plastic. Go to any home improvement store such as Home Depot or Lowe’s and look in the Trim and Moulding section. It can be fastened with Liquid Nails.
If you want a smooth finnish, tape & spackle is the answer, but the luan is your problem. 1. Luan is not smooth - it has an open grain that a thick paint may cover. 2. spackle & tape is made for drywall that has beveled edges on 2 sides that are made for the thickness of the tape & spackle, so your joints will be a little “proud” of the luan, which can be compensated for by making your jounts wider with each layer (spackle requires 3 or 4 applications) ending up with a 10 to 12" wide joint. 3. a siliconized caulk may be your best solution, covered with thick paint such as Drylok. Your best choice would have been drywall (sheetrock) on furring strips to start with. After 40+ years as a carpenter I retired for a year & then went to work for Home Depot - sadly today, their hiring practices are thinning out the “old guys” and replacing us with 18 year old kids with VERYLITTLEKNOWLEDGE of the building trades. Good luck with your project.
Yet they get a young guy like me (21) who actually knows what they are talking about and only offer them a night stocking position. In a brand new store…[banghead]
Well as an answer to your problem, I have seen people use tape to cover the seam and thne paint over it. although this was in a theatrical application. We used a special Tape called Gaffer’s tape. It is like Duct Tape but has a cloth backing and is much stronger. so If you are planning on putting sometihng infront of it to where it won’t be too conspicous that may be an option for ya.
Aaahh, Gaffers tape! A gaffer’s fix anything now tool. It’s like Army Green tape, but available in 4 colors, but mainly black and grey and super strong. It costs about twice you’re regular duct tape, but will give 10 times the value in performance and adaptabilty. If you have a theatrical supply or rental store in your area, they’ll be happy to sell you a roll or more. You might find other useful stuff there as well - a good cheap source for “T” pins in bulk.
Don’t you know? Gaff tape is like the force. It has a light side, and a dark side and it holds the universe together.
Alas you are right, it is really expensive. About $15 a roll. I can’t begin to add up the cost of the tape that I have used in my past days as a Theater Techie. The cloth is really good in an application like this because it just takes the paint and holds it, where as Duct will flake off. So many a set I have seen with the facking taped together and painted over…
Cove moulding would work. I would not tape and mud the gap as most lauan is not water resistant. There is a special wall paper like material that will bridge small gaps well. It was originally made to put over the grooves paneling when folks were updating old rec rooms from the '70’s. Go to a wall paper store and you will find it. It usually is not at Home Depote or Lowes. Once on you can paint or paper over it.