I’d rip it out. Painting over it is a cheap n easy fix but since ur going to all the trouble of freshing up the other rooms, may as well do it right for this one. The painted paneling thing really just looks cheap IMO. Good luck. :)

If it were the cheap 4x8 sheets, I would say rip it out. However, yours appears to be quality wood, and it looks nice painted, so I would just leave it and repaint. It is a lot of work to replace with sheetrock. All the trim has to be removed, and some will most likely break in the process and have to be replaced. It will compliment the more rustic look you are going for. When you repaint, since you think the sage looks dull, look for a clearer color that doesnt have the muddy look the paint that is on there now has.

I would keep it. I'm not too sure why boring drywall is better than a nice wood textured wall.

I can't tell by the picture, but maybe beefing up the window trim would also help

If you don't need to do insulation, you could just drywall over the paneling instead of ripping it out. That will save some labor and whatever costs you would incur to dispose of the paneling.

As someone who previously had painted over 1970s paneling in her family room, I'd vote to remove it. It's not terrible, but I don't think it's a positive attribute in the room. If you have the budget to replace with drywall, I think the room will look better. I like that you're keeping the beams. I think they do add character in a good way.

I suspect that this is thin 4 x 8 sheets of paneling. The rebates between the 'boards' don't look deep enough for it to be solid wood. That and there is no cracked paint lines that would indicate it being solid boards. If this was solid individual boards, the wall would have more depth and interest.

Easiest way to determine is to remove an outlet or switch cover to get a peek. If it is paneling, there is a good chance that there is already drywall behind the paneling.

If it is 4 x 8 panels, AFAIC, there is no dilemma. I would rip it out in a heartbeat. Looking at the pictures (as opposed to being able to see it in real life), it's not adding any positive character. Does look dated and cheap.

I would update the room by removing the paneling and drywalling it.

Our ranch house was built in the '70s also, and we had this same style of paneling in our family room. It had already been painted when we moved in, and we finally removed it last year. SUCH an improvement! Our intention was to drywall then paint, but once we removed the paneling, the walls underneath were already drywalled and in perfect condition, so we only had to paint. Maybe you'll get lucky too!

I would back off a test panel to see wt is under it. My guess is that it has at of drywall already under there, and it might already be taped. It depends of the local building codes. Often a non-flammable base of drywall was required, and taping rouge taping may have been done too. Even if you are so lucky, the woodwork will have to be adjusted to the new ,lesser thickness of the wall.

Years ago I pulled off such paneling in my house and was delighted to find the wall had been dry walled and completely finish taped. They had not used glue, so the painting of the wall was very little effort.

here is a picture? any idea what this black wall is?

I would keep it! It works very well with the overhead beams!

Whatever you decide with the paneling, when you hang your new art...HANG IT LOWER. Center of art at eye level (which varies depending if you're standing or sitting down) and 5 - 8" above any furniture that's beneath it.

Another option might be to do your own horizontal shiplap over the top of the paneling. I'm doing that now in my kitchen to cover the backsplash and several walls that are damaged beyond repair. You could do a natural wood to tie it with the beams. I think it would be rustic and serve as a great accent wall.

The original owner may have painted the wall black first so that any gaps in the paneling would be less obvious. It at least means there is some kind of wall back there.

Yes, what David said about black paint was a fairly common trick when installing that type of paneling.

I started to take off my panelling and there is drywall behind the panelling. Yeah. Just saved myself $1300. Thank you all for the feedback.

So happy for you! We had lower paneling in our kitchen which we took down. It was nailed and glued in some areas. 1 wall had drywall behind it the others were plaster. It was a job repairing the plaster and scraping off the glued areas. Then we had to have everything retextured but were so happy with the results!

Oh that is great !

we did it. good thing because we found mold on the wall from on old leak so we are going to remove and sheet rock. here it is. will keep you updated once it's done

Good choice and so nice to have found the problem too.

If your going to do something, do it right the first time. I bet your glad you took it down instead of doing the cheap way out and painting it. Most of that fiberboard paneling was put up in the first place in the 70s as a cheap easy wall, or to cover up a wall that should of been fixed in the first place.

so glad we took it down. This was an addition built in 1978, so panelling was in style. this was on the wall left by the owners...kinda cool

Yes, you will have to remove the trim, if the paneling is under the trim. Be very careful removing it,, so you dont break it, and do it little by little, putting the trim back in place as you go. I am glad you found sheetrock. I wasnt that lucky at our last house. Paneling was on the studs, and wasnt even a wood type, had paper type wood look on it, in living room. It was horrible. In this house, though, I did luck out in the living room. No paneling, but, someone had put a fake fireplace in there that took up 7 ft of wall space. It was all stone and had electric logs. At the end of it, they put a 10 ft long built in. When I tore all that out, (which wasnt all that easy), I was thrilled to find that all I had to do was fill in a few nail holes, sand, and primer and repaint. Walls and ceiling were both painted previously. I now have room for furniture too. LOL

Much, much better. Yes, it took more time and work, but it was done the right way.

Wow, such an improvement! Looks so clean and fresh. Nice work!!

Thanks for coming back to update!

thank you. Next week is the floors. I am still contemplating painting the fireplace but will live with for awhile before I make decision

that's shoreline BM in family room. here is my dining room which is Coventry gray and living room shoreline. interesting how shoreline looks different in family room vs living. forgive the mess everything in middle of room and still cleaning dust

Looks great! By the way, I love that Lynn and Russ signed the wall prior to paneling over it—and on Valentine’s Day, no less! I wonder if they’re still together...

:)

How funny that you were able to track him down, 40 years later! I guess you must've known the last name of the previous owners, and he was their son? Too funny!

Looks terrific! The hardwork was so worth the end result.

4 x 8 sheet paneling was so on trend in the 1960's and 1970's. I've seen many a beautiful old home just decimated of charm as people ripped out what was considered "dated" moldings and installed paneling with clamshell molding. UGH! Now we say, what were they thinking? I wonder if Luxury Vinyl Tile and Plank flooring is the 4 x 8 sheet paneling our time.

@gailtmiller67 I think you're right. A much better prediction.

It looks great. Nice job!

It looks very nice. A lot more updated. Nice job.

excited to share color of new floor weathered oak without the finish. getting 4 coats of satin bona HD tomorrow and Thursday. coming along.

had to pick that Color so it blends with my kitchen floor