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I was planning on doing this project exactly as the blog author stated she did it. The project is a paneled wall that looks like the following image.

enter image description here

It looks like Lowe's stopped carrying the EverTrue panel product used by the blog author and I can't find it anywhere. Does anyone know a similar product that would take stain like this?

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    Hi @Chris, I have edited your Question to be a bit more explicit as to what you're asking without having to rely solely on the external link. This way it has more "staying power" should the source website become defunct.
    – grfrazee
    Aug 11, 2015 at 16:23

2 Answers 2

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As far as I can tell this is standard pine/softwood V-groove, tongue-and-groove flooring. This or something quite similar should be widely available where flooring material is sold.

exactly as the blog author stated she did it

Once you find your suitable equivalent product I would suggest a few minor deviations from the process described.

The first is to do with stability.

Normally you want to let wood get used to the conditions in which it will be installed prior to use, a process called acclimation, and professional floor crews will try to have the flooring material delivered to the installation site a couple of weeks or longer prior to laying the floor. I would suggest that after you bring the product into the house you open up the ends of the packaging (to allow air easier access to the wood) and then wait at minimum five or six days before you use it, but a fortnight or longer won't hurt.

The second is to do with the staining.

The material is pine or another similar softwood and they are notorious for not staining evenly, giving a blotchy/uneven appearance if the stain is applied directly to them without preparation. This blotching is clearly visible in all the post-stain photos at the link.

The way to solve this problem is to partially seal the wood, a process that used to be called sizing. Commonly these days this is accomplished with a commercial product called "pre-stain conditioner", but I don't recommend you buy one of these. Instead, use diluted varnish or shellac, which does the job as well or better than the commercial product and for a fraction of the cost. In addition to reducing or eliminating blotching, sizing the wood will also even out how the pine takes the stain so that there isn't such a characteristic 'stripy' end result:
Sized/unsized stain result 1 Sized/unsized stain result 2

Source for the second pic here on The Family Handyman site, with much more useful detail.

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  • Would this be flooring or wall paneling? Seems like this product at Lowe's is similar, and it's a wall paneling product.
    – grfrazee
    Aug 11, 2015 at 14:07
  • @grfrazee, I'm not sure it matters: same product could be sold for either purpose, just with a different name on the box (e.g. like linseed oil/flaxseed oil depending on whether you buy in the feed store or at a grocery). But what you linked to sure looks like exactly the right thing.
    – Graphus
    Aug 11, 2015 at 14:23
  • @grfrazee Yeah that is the exact product but the Lowes site indicates that it can't be picked up at any store (at least in the northeast by me) and isn't available for delivery.
    – Chris
    Aug 11, 2015 at 14:38
  • @Chris, I'd be surprised if they didn't carry a regular pine tongue-and-groove planking in their lumber section, thought I haven't been in a Lowe's in a while. I'm fairly certain I saw some on my last trip to Menard's and Home Depot.
    – grfrazee
    Aug 11, 2015 at 15:45
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I don't know your total woodworking skill and toolset, so I might be taking a bit of a leap with this Answer.

The wall paneling you link to is EverTrue tongue-and-groove paneling. This has a generic profile, a sample of which I've pasted below (source: Vermont Lumber)

enter image description here

This is actually quite simple to make yourself out of regular pine boards, if you have the right tools and skillset (not to mention the patience to do this for a couple hundred linear feet of board). I will list two options below for your consideration.

Table Saw Method

Using a table saw, one would stand the board on edge to trim out the groove (on the left side of the image above). Then, one would lay the plank flat and run it though the blade (in a couple of passes) to create the tongue on the right side. Then, tilting the blade of the table saw, one trims off the chamfers on both sides of the board to match the profile (or not, depending on your personal preference).

Hand Plane Method

The next method assumes that you have, or have access to, a set of wooden match planes (also known as tongue-and-groove planes)

enter image description here
(source: WoodworkingTalk.com)

or a plane similar to a Stanley #48 or #49.

enter image description here
(source: Patented-Antiques.com)

You could even make use of a plow plane for this task, though it would be a bit trickier than the above two planes. You would use these to make the tongue and groove in the board, then create the chamfer using a block plane or a rabbet plane.

For finishing, @Graphus's answer above covers everything that I could possibly discuss, so I'll direct you there.

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  • Though that is beyond the scope of this project for myself this is awesome information for future reference.
    – Chris
    Aug 11, 2015 at 17:24
  • @Chris, I kind of figured, but thought someone might find it interesting/useful.
    – grfrazee
    Aug 11, 2015 at 17:34

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