Have you thought about using plywood for walls? If not, why?

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I've had many homes but my home now with its plywood walls (including bathrooms) is my favourite and my artwork has never looked better.  I will never live in a home with boring white walls again.

I really like the look.  Many Frank Lloyd Wright homes used plywood and no drywall.  They feel very warm, cozy and inviting to me.
I would like to see a video of the process or cutting, fitting, finishing and installing plywood for walls and ceilings.

Really appreciated this video. We moved into a house with a freshly remodeled basement and it's all white/drywall walls. I desperately need some color and miss those 1970's rec rooms that I grew up in, so looking for the best option to get that look in my space. This was all so thoughtful and helpful, and you really gave a lot of great information in a short amount of time. So...thank you!

Price, fire rating.  That is it.  That is why drywall took over.

I love my 1959 maple paneled basement walls. I want to keep the look with the rest of the space as I finish it. Thanks for the video.

FYI. Plywood that has a "good side" is called ACX plywood

Great vid! We bought a house with an unfinished downstairs (walk-out), and I split it into two rooms for my teen kids using plywood for the walls and ceilings. I just hate working with drywall and love the look of wood. Went with birch, finished with osmo, and just left the fasteners exposed. Couldn't be happier with the decision. A video like this is much needed to encourage others because there is so little info out there.  Subbed!

I'm so glad YouTube recommended this! It's exactly what I need to finish a very large accent wall in my house.  Thank you for the education!

I love this look and have watched this video multiple times while thinking through my own projects. It's never going to overtake drywall in the mainstream, but for custom projects it is worth serious consideration.

I have done plywood walls on various projects, including my entire garage and a kitchen wall.  The problem I found is plywood is much more likely to move as it swells and shrinks to humidity and temperature changes..  I don't really like the gap you get between plywood wood panels... and the solution you had for your own walls does not actually  seem like something I would go for.  I also don't like how you have to deal with securing the plywood to the walls..  I probably go with just screwing it to the wall, if only because I want it removable and easy to repair if I am going to the trouble of putting this up as a alterative to drywall.

I would say using plywood to do wall surfaces is much more high skill than drywall, since mudding so much more forgiving to do then cutting plywood to fit into place. You absolutely need tools that can do perfect repeat cuts for plywood walls to work.  It also just as hard to do plywood on your own as it is to do Drywall.  the only easier thing is sawdust suck just a little bit less than drywall and mud.

The only reason I want to keep messing with plywood as a wall finish is the opportunity to make an easy to refurbish house for electronics and plumbing.. I seem like every 10 years there is an advancement in communication tech, and power technology that be nice to retrograde into your home.. And doing things like servicing water pipes would also be a beautiful improvement on home design. I really love the idea I could just unscrew a panel from my wall to service things in the wall, or make home improvements like adding a cat 7 internet cable if they ever actually make such a thing.

I would recommend lapboard with a overlapping system if you desire a wood finish on your wall...  this seems more forgiving of an idea since you got some self-locking to help level your wood over the wall but also can use nearly invisible brand nails to speed up construction and hide your fastening.  This is what I did on the outside wall for my garage, and it's held up surprising well outside.

Also, you can get back your fire protection for your house just putting lapboard over nearly unfinished drywall and don't need to remove it if you're looking to remodel.  You still need good tools though for lapboards.. it will want to put its self up wrong if you pay attention to how you're putting it up.. But it's far easier to make it look nice then an entire sheet of 4x8.. Especially if just you're doing the work yourself.

I would love to have that. Having lived with wallpaper my whole life it would be so refreshing to have "Real" walls.

I've definitely thought about it, but cost is the problem.  Drywall and paint is just orders of magnitude cheaper, and that matters on a budget

Drywall is about 10 bucks a sheet.
If you can get a sheet of cherry or oak plywood for less than a hundred you're doing pretty good.

I panelled a garden room studio in plywood/mdf recently and painted it bright white, looks great, just like plasterboard but can hang artworks etc with ease

I used meranti plywood panels on a downstairs studio room , using brass fixings, and left  shadow gaps at each joint. Each panel was routed and cut into smaller sections to make them a feature. And the shadow gap was paired white (black felt heavy). It turned out stunning.

I installed it because there had been 2 floods over the previous 8 years, and I wanted to be able to remove the panelling so I could access the insulation and either dry or replace it easily.

I sealed both sides of the panels in case it does flood.

It's installed in a 1960s house, so it sits the rest of the design, and looks great

The fragility of plasterboard is a selling point for my family. We have an inherited low blood pressure issue that causes us to faint very easily. When there is a collision between a person's head and a wall, I really like a wall that crumbles. Plasterboard isn't aggressively resilient like concrete, nor does it shatter dangerously like glass. It's pretty near perfect for the job.
Unfortunately we also really like our fur babies, and in our next house we want dogs as well as cats. And timber panelling on the lower part of the wall is just better when you have dogs rubbing against the surface. We need a scrub-clean finish, and plasterboard just can't match how various different finishes developed for timber floors perform.
Timber isn't as forgiving as plasterboard, but it is at least more forgiving than concrete or glass. It's a reasonable compromise.

I sliced 3/4 curly maple into 3/8 (minus the kerf) inch thick strips that were 1 1/2 inches wide, and pin nailed and glued them (with 3/4 inch gaps) onto 3/8 inch thick birch 4 X 8 foot sheets serving as backer board.  Turned out to be stunning;, the light dances off them as you move through the room.  A fair bit of work, but absolutely gorgeous.

You hit all the best points. I’ve wondered the same things quite often.

doing it in the workshop. when my husband gets a load of that he will let me loose on the family home. =)