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Design Dilemma Remodeling Paint

Stain or Paint Tongue and Groove Ceiling

5 years ago

We have installed a pine tongue and groove ceiling in our greatroom. Our idea was to paint it white to match the trim, but once we saw how pretty the wood was, it seems so wrong to cover it up! Should we stain it? The beams would stay white...thoughts on this??

Our floor will be a wood-look tile called Castor from Arizona Tile.

Featured Answer

lynartist

5 years ago

It would have been easier to paint or stain it before you put it up! I would leave it as is now.

Comments (14)

tatts
5 years ago
You can't paint it now.

A: You need to paint all sides so that it doesn't warp with humidity, and it's too late for that now. You also can't put a clear finish on it for the same reason.

B: As the wood shrinks and swells, the unpainted tongues will show and look bad, depending on the season.

If you like the wood, why do you want to stain it?
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Once: You'll either have too much going on with a visually busy floor, visually busy ceiling that's cut up with visually busy beams or you'll have a compete disconnect between your floor color and ceiling color. Or both. Probably both. Twice: you are introducing too many elements that you (or your husband) like individually but that don't relate well to each other. It's going to overwhelm the senses and feel disjointed. Seems the third time was the charm: You are stuck in the unfortunate spot of selecting things that appeal to you individually, but that do not at all work well together. You need some big picture help. Your cabinets are installed. That is your basis for everything else. In the pictures they do not look like the color from the mfg website that you showed but that's not surprising. Regardless, they are lovely. Your counter choice is beautiful but look here.... do you see what's happening? These are pictures on monitors where colors are never true, not real life but this is the beginning of trouble. and not inexpensive I can fix it with a coat of paint trouble. That stone is costly - are you obligated to it? Wait for your designer next week. I'd recommend totally stepping away from this and stop trying to come up with *the thing* that's going to tie this all together. Hopefully the only thing that's a done deal is the cabinets and if anything else is pending, stop it while you can.
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I’m in the strong do not paint camp! The ceilings are so much a part of the house design. I do agree that I wouldn’t choose heavy or dark furniture & I would have large colorful area rugs. The lighting looks very yellow in the pictures & my preference is daylight color & dimmer switches all around. The two big square lights - what is all the trim around the edges of them? Looks like trees or something. I might change those out for something lighter in feel but I'd need to see a better view of them. They might be great - just can't see in picture.
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PRO
JAN MOYER
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
Depends your floor tone. Wood look can be many things. I wouldn't sweat the paint issue that much, honestly. : ) Rather charming with a bit of wood escaping through . Forget stain. Pine almost always disappoints, with major blotchiness
Marci
5 years ago
FWIW- I've have the same dilemma happening at my house right now. Right down to the fact that my contractor also installed it unfinished. He obviously thought painting it after was fine.

It really does look so pretty! But I've decided to paint mine because of how it interacts with my wood floors. In my case my floors are so similar it looks like I meant it to match and it doesn't. I think if your floors are a white grey, or super dark you could be fine. Your beams and arch are very pretty!
Sarah Murphy
Original Author
5 years ago
Thank you for the feedback!! The floors are a warm brown. Not dark and not gray. So if we left it as is, it would look bad!! Our contractor knew we wanted to paint it, so i wonder why he would have installed it before?? Marci, I would love to see photos when it’s done!
Sylvia Gordon
5 years ago
Oil stain?
PRO
Carolina Kitchen & Bath
5 years ago
I like the look now and wouldn't stain it, the problem with leaving it would be the way it coordinated with the wood floor. That said, I'd either leave it and change the floor color or make the contractor paint it. One question: Did the T&G sit in the house for two weeks with heat/AC running to acclimate it to the temp/humidity? If not, it's going to shrink or swell (probably shrink) when the house is closed up and heated/cooled. If you paint, you want to paint AFTER THAT. Otherwise, you'll have lines of unpainted pine showing through. The house will be near finished and the contractor will say "You really don't notice it from down here" and won't address the issue.
Izzy Mn
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
You could do a white stain. I would test it out first. I've had a bad experience using oil based clear coat, it yellows really badly. Water based I found out later doesn't yellow.
Sarah Murphy
Original Author
5 years ago
A white stain could be very pretty. Thank you! That way it won’t clash with our floors. Unfortunately, we can’t let it sit for two weeks with air conditioning because we don’t have that installed. We are waiting on some doors to be installed as well. We lost this home to a total loss fire so the rebuilding process might be a bit different than usual!
cat_ky
5 years ago
I would leave it the way it is. Its very pretty. Darken your floors a bit.
jalarse
5 years ago
I did pine ceiling in bedroom with a blue gray stain before installing it. Did the pine ceiling in kitchen with a white pickling stain.
houssaon
5 years ago
Like the white pickle look of the kitchen space jalarse posted.
Mike Spence
3 years ago
Hi Sarah, I wanted to ask you what you decided on? How did it turn out? Have a picture? Asking because I just had pine tongue and groove installed on my outdoor patio ceiling but it wasn’t painted. Considering a white stain, paint, or possibly a darker stain.
Sheila Hohmann
last year
I'd love to see photos, as well. We are remodeling our kitchen and plan to put a v-groove on the ceiling. Was initially thinking I would paint it, but I'm liking the white stain idea now. Our floors will be oak - natural. Any thoughts on that....I'd welcome them

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