Hi, I want to attach panels and wood edges to a solid brick wall to create a Wainscoting effect behind my bed as a bed head. Can I liquid nail the panels straight onto the brick or do I have to fix battens?
Hi @Mummamaker,
You might like to start by having a look at https://www.bunnings.com.au/diy-advice/home-improvement/walls/how-to-install-diy-wainscoting , which gives a good example of the process, although it is on a timber framed wall. These 12 feature walls with wainscoting can also provide guidance and inspiration for your own project.
There are a few ways you could approach this depending on how solidly you want the wainscoting attached. Adhesive alone will work, provided the brick surface is clean, sound and reasonably flat, but the glue can lose its holding power over time. If you wanted to simply use adhesive, make sure you give the wall a good clean, then use a good number of Liquid Nails to stick the MDF to the wall.
Now while this should be fine for lighter weight materials, if you wanted to be extremely confident it will not move or weaken over time, I’d use a combination of screws, trim nails and construction adhesive.
My suggestion would be to screw and glue a slightly thicker MDF sheet directly to the brick wall, which will give you a flat, secure backing. You can then glue the wainscoting pieces to the MDF and secure them to the MDF with trim nails.
You can use 12mm MDF and attach it to the wall using https://www.bunnings.com.au/buildex-8g-x-30mm-gold-passivated-plasterboard-screws-100-pack_p0920080 and https://www.bunnings.com.au/ramset-6-x-25mm-red-wall-plugs-100-bag_p2260654 alongside your Liquid Nails. Then, if you plan carefully, you can simply install the mouldings over the screws to conceal them, using Liquid Nails and brad nails to fix the mouldings in place.
You can then fill any nail holes with filler and seal the seams with No More Gaps before painting.
Let me know what you think and if you have further questions, please don't hesitate to ask.
Jacob
