Applying Tongue and Groove in an Ancient Home

Experienced DIYers, let alone professionals, would probably wince throughout this post. So, be warned! (Queue eerie music).

The main reason why I’m sharing this, in spite of my embarrassment at my substandard efforts, is that I’ve been dealing with ancient walls. The plaster was missing in some areas and, even when there was plaster there, it was completely uneven.

This is my very haphazard approach to solving these problems. I don’t know whether it will be any help at all; but if you’re dealing with these issues please read on (obviously I’m not an expert, take this advice at your own risk).

Adding Batons

I’d started to put batons of wood across the area where I’d remove the staircase and plain stone had been exposed. My father had spoken to me about the need to ensure that there was no give between the slats as it is going to be a seating area. As, inevitably, chairs would quickly be moved back and banged against the walls and could result in unsupported areas creating a hollow for the boards to bend into and break. So I intended to add as many horizontal lengths of strips as I could to overcome this problem.

Deciding the height

I didn’t want to cut any of the lengths of T&G if I could, so I took into account the protruding step of the cupboard on the left hand of the chimney breast when I planned how to use the wood. I placed a tongue and groove length on the step and drew a horizontal line where the top baton would be glue against the wall based on this height. When I continued the work after the step I used a thick piece of wood, the width of the step, to rest the tongue and groove on. Then on the other side I knew to rest the T&G boards in the same way to know where the top horizontal baton needed to be.

The right hand side with brick exposed

Due to a good deal of the wall having exposed brick there was a big difference between the cemented half and the brick levels. I worked out that I could add some horizontal lengths so they rested on the already existed ones glued to the cement once the glue had dried. This staggered approach worked to an extent, but I needed to fill behind the length with plaster/acrylic when it was firmly glued in place.

I knew I’d have to think about a solution for the gaps further up the walls, as the staircase meant a diagonal line of more and more exposed brick. I thought I’d start on the other side of the fireplace whilst I thought this through.

The left hand ‘easy’ side

At first glance the left hand side of the chimney breast went like a dream. I glued on three batons; at the top, in the middle and at the bottom. After all there would be no banging furniture this side, so no extra strips were needed (you can guess what’s coming can’t you).

With the horizontal pieces glued in place and set I started to apply the tongue and groove in vertical lengths. The first one I glued on and then banged in some nails for good measure. But then I decided to avoid the messy glue and just nailed the next piece in place.

Each time I added a piece I slipped it in place and then rested the spirit level on its edge to make sure it was straight. Then I would nail in the middle section, the top and then the bottom. As I said earlier I had started in the corner next to the cupboard which has a step protruding from it as it’s going to house the fridge. As I reached the little knob I’d put on this step it was clear that the thickness of the baton and the T&G all but made the detail disappear. However I just cut a hole and used acrylic filler to disguise the difference.

Without the step in my way I used the thick piece of wood to rest the T&G plank whilst I slipped into its predecessor and made sure it was level with the top of the other planks. I again made sure it was vertical before nailing it in place. I cut a hole for the plug socket. I’ll go into more detail with that in a later post – primarily because I can’t finish the plug socket areas until I’ve added the skirting boards. I can’t add the skirting board until I’ve done the floor, so….it’s all a little way off.

As I got to the side of the stone chimney breast it’s unevenness made it difficult to fit the plank in tight. So I cut it vertically down so that it was sufficiently tight, then I used acrylic to make the difference between it and the wall. It doesn’t look great with the close up photo, but I really like the way it forms to the wall in real life.

On the other side where the tongue and groove didn’t quite fit the cupboard I added a quarter round, gluing it in place. I was really excited about how easy it was and painted it in chalk paint straight away. Two coats and I was happy, thinking I’d seal it with a coat of water proof varnish later. However the picture below is after a week or so later and you can see cracks appear in the paint as the boards have moved and settled in place. So I’ll be bearing that in mind as I continue the finish.

Noticing the 1st problem

As I returned to the other half of the chimney breast I noticed the back of one of the labels of the tongue and groove board packets. On it it showed the method of application; horizontal strips with 40 cms between. So what I was doing for the second half was on track, but the side I’d just completed didn’t have so many batons!!!

I banged it and there was a hollow sound and I could feel it give slightly. I don’t think it’s a complete disaster as this will only have a fridge near it, there’s no reason for anyone to lean against it or things like that. But I wasn’t going to make that mistake again.

Back to the right hand side

Returning to the right side I plastered above the top, horizontal baton, trying to smooth the gap between the current plaster and bare stone.

As I said previously on the lower half of the wall, where the exposed stone was about half way, I had glued lengths of wood so there was a staggered overlap. This positioned them, but the half of the batons over the exposed stone didn’t touch anything. When the glue had dried on the other half of the batons I had applied thick acrylic behind each baton and let that dry thoroughly over the weekend.

How was I going to add batons further up? I tried everything. Drilling into cement seams to hold them in place, but this resulted in uneven and twisted batons against the stones. I added narrower batons to the ones I was using to make them sufficiently thick and then tried to glue them to the wall; but it’s uneven texture meant that this didn’t work either.
In the end I marked on the wall where the baton needed to go, then kept adding plaster to the wall in strips so that it was level along the length with the cemented portion. Then when the plaster was dry I glued batons in place.

I didn’t touch it for the weekend as I wanted to make sure everything was set. Then I applied tongue and groove in exactly the same manner as before – and it worked!!!

The only problem was that the upper baton came off, probably due to the unevenness of that particular plaster strip, but I managed to apply another baton, albeit a little above where I wanted it to be. More on that later.

The adjacent wall

Now things are going to get even trickier!
You can see below where I’ve finished the first set of T&G and the batons poking out from the T&G in the corner. They cover about 2/3s of the wall, so that should protect the planks from jolting and banging. I started to work on the adjacent wall, putting the top baton so that it was in line with its counterpart.

In all honesty I only use the spirit level on the top one as it’s not as necessary for the rest, they’re just there to add strength.

You’ll see I have one vertical baton against the edge of the inset window. This is glued onto the wooden side – more on this later. You can see though that I’ve put numerous lengths all the way down. However under the window sill you can see a big hole in the wall. I’m only intending to pad this out with insulation wadding – it’s one of the reasons I chose to T&G this corner. However there is a massive difference between the wall where the stair was and under the window sill.

I used a similar solution to the adjacent wall. Narrower batons were used under the windowsill where the wall was solid. Then, to create a bridge over the gap I added horizontal lengths to ones I’d already glued in place. You can see that it results in the second half standing proud of the wall.

Tongue and Groove on the Adjacent Wall

I then started to tongue and groove the corner area whilst the glue dried on the new batons. If you see below I cut a narrow length of T&G and put it in the corner, but it didn’t quite fit. I added to that later.

I stopped here to add a shelf, made from wood salvaged from the removed staircase, and encase the window area. But I’ll do another post on that.

When I continued I’d added one more length before the window and then I started T&G the most difficult area – under the window with the loose batons.

Under the Window

I cut the first length to go under the rustic window sill, cutting off the overhang that’s there to slot a top and bottom piece together to make it a snugger fit. The final length before the window had fractionally covered the loose area and I’d successfully installed that.
This next piece was trickier.

I nailed into the upper two batons, but when it came to the lower part there was no resistance in order to nail into it of course. The length of the T&G started to split towards the bottom as I tried to do it anyway!
My solution was to add some builders glue to the back of the T&G, making sure I got none in the crease where the next piece needed to slide into, and use two clamps to hold it against the baton and to stop it splitting further. I had to practise patience and leave it there overnight to dry.

Finishing under the window

Having secured boards to the area that covered the hollowed, insulation packed area successfully I needed to continue the T&G along the row. As the lowest baton didn’t run in line against the wall, due to the uneven nature of the wall itself, I started by putting strong glue behind this bottom baton.
Then I positioned a new piece of T&G and nailed it down its length on the secured batons. I continued all along until I nearly reached the radiator. Then I pushed something heavy against the lower section, to force the bottom half as close to the wall as possible, and allowed the glue to connect the remaining baton to the wall.

The next day I nailed the ends of these T&G pieces to the secured baton.

You can see in the image below that I’d taken a final length of T&G and cut a section out of it to end this section.

Preparing for L shaped wood

I intend to use a shutter window treatment and know that I need to have substantial L shaped wood corners, but they can’t be fitted straight away as I’m going to use them to mark out where my hinges will be screwed.

As there will be a heavy weight on these pieces of wood I need to make sure I have substantial support behind the area they’ll go around. So I glued and nailed extra pieces of wood into the gaps. It ended up looking like this…

…but if I hadn’t been going to use something this heavy I’d have just gone ahead with the L shaped corners.

I’ll be adding another post on the shutters and attaching the L shaped wood later.

Adding Trim

I had bought a trim of 4 cms width as I wanted to give myself a bit of leeway with the uneven T&G of the right wall. I basically cut to size, glued the area, then put it in place holding it until it was fully secure with clamps.

You’ll see that I added another length of wood to the left side so that the trim had something to be secured too.

You’ll also see that I cut out a little section of the wood to fit around that uneven end. I’m intending to fill it with acrylic later.

Here’s the right hand chimney breast with the trim and also the 1/4 round I applied to smooth the transition between the two walls.

It’s clear I’ve just used strong glue to add that. Super simple!

Here’s the next side with its trim, also waiting for acrylic.

There’s still the ceiling to finish off, smoothing put gaps with acrylic and painting, but I just want to focus this post on applying the T&G to these uneven walls. Those further updates and one with the painted T&G will be posted soon.