Is using "corkboard" as walls/ceilings in a home a good idea??

[debden]

Has anyone ever seen a home where the walls/ceilings were made of corkboard??


http://www.balfourrealty.com/homeDetail.asp?AD_ID=224#real-estate

Is it better than drywall or no different as far as durability goes?

 

[clarabelle]

I saw a house (a rather swanky one) where one wall of the laundry room was cork -but it was wallpapered over-with a thin non shiny type wall paper.
the mom of the house was going to use the entire wall as a bulletin board.

 

[debden]

I saw a house (a rather swanky one) where one wall of the laundry room was cork -but it was wallpapered over-with a thin non shiny type wall paper.
the mom of the house was going to use the entire wall as a bulletin board.

yeah I was thinking wall paper to cover it.I was told you can't "paint" corkboard.Does anyone know if that's true??

 

[LuvN~Travel]

When we were looking for a house 2.5 years ago, one of the houses we looked at had a room where at least 2 of the walls were corkboard. I think a son must have had a music thing going on in his room. However, it made us quickly decide we didn't want that house! It had been painted over and looked terrible. We didn't relish the thought of having to replace that with drywall. lol

Of course that the awful smoker smell also helped us make up our minds too.

Kim

 

[The Mystery Machine]

I would imagine that over time the cork will dry up and fall apart or swell and mold, depending on the environment. Cork is not very durable.

If it was used for a ceiling, I could see it constantly flaking on your head.

Drywall is superior to cork would be my uneducated guess.

 

[Spinning]

my parents friend had that put in her basement. It isn't really cork but more wood chips. At least it looks like that in teh photo. I think it was some type of cedar...this was maybe 35 years ago. They did it because it helped with moisture/dampness I think it absorbed the smell of the damp basement......I would need it all changed!

 

[debden]

Well I guess corkboard must be cheaper than drywall?Could that be the reason it was used on the walls/ceilings?
Just wondering.....that's all.

 

[Mkaz]

I just asked dh (contractor) about this. He said that it's not a good idea unless you put sheetrock behind it. He said that cork is not fire resistant.

 

[MsLeFever]

Those photos don't look like corkboard to me - they look like pressed wood or particle board - they just look unfinished!

 

[tzolkin]

Those photos don't look like corkboard to me - they look like pressed wood or particle board - they just look unfinished!

Yes, looks the same to me. That can't be cork on those walls.


They do make cork flooring, but it looks more like wood not like corkboard.

 

[debden]

Those photos don't look like corkboard to me - they look like pressed wood or particle board - they just look unfinished!

I've never heard of pressed wood or particle board.Is that something like dry wall?Is it used for walls/ceilings often?

Thanks everyone for responding.

 

[cajunmommy]

It looks like OSB - oriented strand board. I've seen it used here instead of plywood to "finish" out garages (both walls & ceiling), but never the interior of a room.

 

[NotUrsula]

I've never heard of pressed wood or particle board. Is that something like dry wall? Is it used for walls/ceilings often?

It's sometimes used for the interior of walls between rooms when a room has been added on; in that case the wall between the rooms is usually a sandwich of sheetrock//studs//particle board or plywood//studs//sheetrock. It is also often used as an underlayment on garage walls because it makes the wall strong for hanging things. Europeans call it MDF (medium density fiberboard). You really can't paint it, or even properly wallpaper over it -- it is so absorbent that it will show through.

This is nothing like dry wall/sheetrock, which is gypsum pressed between layers of water-resistant paper. These types of products are made of wood chips/fibers mixed with polymers and then pressed together under enormous pressure and high heat. They are quite strong, but also absorbent, so it is a bad idea to use them extensively anywhere where it is likely to be damp. (The best thing to use for wallboard in a damp area is cement board.)

What you are looking at is an unfinished room. If you want to bid on the house, either require the seller to finish it in drywall and prime it as a condition of the sale, or add in money to finish it yourself. (Note that the boxes of the electrical outlets and light switches have to be extended when you do this; otherwise they will be recessed in the walls.)

 

[debden]

It's sometimes used for the interior of walls between rooms when a room has been added on; in that case the wall between the rooms is usually a sandwich of sheetrock//studs//particle board or plywood//studs//sheetrock. It is also often used as an underlayment on garage walls because it makes the wall strong for hanging things. Europeans call it MDF (medium density fiberboard). You really can't paint it, or even properly wallpaper over it -- it is so absorbent that it will show through.

This is nothing like dry wall/sheetrock, which is gypsum pressed between layers of water-resistant paper. These types of products are made of wood chips/fibers mixed with polymers and then pressed together under enormous pressure and high heat. They are quite strong, but also absorbent, so it is a bad idea to use them extensively anywhere where it is likely to be damp. (The best thing to use for wallboard in a damp area is cement board.)

What you are looking at is an unfinished room. If you want to bid on the house, either require the seller to finish it in drywall and prime it as a condition of the sale, or add in money to finish it yourself. (Note that the boxes of the electrical outlets and light switches have to be extended when you do this; otherwise they will be recessed in the walls.)

Wow.Thank you for the information.I did not know what it was or if it was normally used for walls/ceilings.Now I know.

That's probably why the house is so low in price for that area.

Thanks to everyone for their replies!

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Oh wow! LOVE the outbuilding!

The exterior seems to be in need of refinishing/repainting/residing too.

That is definitely what is called locally (for Lake George) chipboard. It's as stated, an underlying foundation for the finished wall/sheetrock.

If the seller is not going to finish the walls, then get an estimate for the work (and the extreme inconvenience of having to have someone sheetrock and paint/paper your walls) and deduct that from your offering price.

Given the house's location, be sure you are fully informed with regard to the source of water for the house. Is it a well? Is the well drilled or hand dug? Is there a septic/cistern/etc.?

It could be that there is community water source, but usually not that far out.

Take care now and good luck with your house hunting!

 

[DVC~OKW~96]

Meant to add that the unfinished chipboard is highly absorbent and if exposed to moisture will buckle and begin to warp. It is also a soft material. I once dropped a sheet of plywood that I was installing overhead, onto a subflooring of chipboard and it punctured a hole in the chipboard (learned about subflooring materials the hard way ).

It's nearly impossible to clean, also. At any rate, all that to say...have walls installed!

 

[MushyMushy]

Yeah, I definitely wouldn't buy that unless they brought the price down enough to have those walls replaced or they did it themselves. That house has a lot of potential, but I wouldn't want the particle board up. You also want to find out what's behind the paneling. We once lived in a house that had paneling on an outside wall that was covering... nothing! No insulation, just nothing. That room was frigid in the winters.

 

[Obi-Wan Pinobi]

The pictures also look like OSB to me. Actually, OSB with a clear polyurethane to protect it would make an interesting paneling look, definitely rustic. Of course, I'm talking about it on drywall instead of in place of drywall. It's hard to tell for sure, but that looks like what they may have been going for here. Thing is, something like that would not have universal appeal, and if I were the seller I'd take it down or risk having to credit the buyer the cost of having it removed.

I've had people ask if we sell corkboard because they want to do a bulletin board on part of a wall. An entire wall might be good for a kid's room but be like what I said about the appeal of OSB.

 

[TinkerbEllnor]

OT: but that ADDRESS would turn me off! What the heck happened there for that name to stick??

 

[tw1nsmom]

Wow! That's a great price for that property! I highly doubt you'll get them to come down in price. There are empty lots in Lake George that go for more than that. It may not be lakefront, but you would be a 5 minute drive (or even a bike ride) to the beach. To put it in perspective, lakefront property goes for a million or more in that area.

You would be buying a major fixer upper. The walls in that room would be the least of your worries. I think you would need to go into that knowing it. As long as the foundation/drainage is good, I would snap that property up and work on renovating it. If you spent the next 5 years fixing it up you would ride out the real estate problems and make a major return on your investment.