The Wall - How to Install Wood Slats on a Wall (Season 1, Episode 6)

Do .

Hello , beautiful people .

My name is Zach and welcome to this episode of the wall .

Now , a lot of people look behind me and they see a simple wall , but you and I , we see something different .

We see a blank canvas and today we're going to make that blank canvas a work of art .

So something that's been blowing up , my social media lately is the slat wood wall .

So it's really nice on its own .

But you know that we're a little bit extra .

So I want to take it up to the next level .

And the last time I was at Lowe's , I saw this really cool concrete style panel and I figured that that would be the perfect thing to take this wall up to the next level .

So is the concrete style panel that I found and this is the pine that I'm gonna be using .

And I feel like the best way to make this kind of pop and bring that real industrial look out is by throwing some black behind the slat woods .

And I feel like that's really going to bring out that New York City loft condo vibe or Mississauga type of vibe Saga City .

Am I right baby .

So , the first thing we're gonna do is make sure that the wall is nice , clean , flat and flush .

That is a nice clean flat wall .

The second thing we're gonna do is mark out our studs so that when we fix our panels to the wall , we're sure that we're gonna have a really nice long lasting job .

So the layout is where we get to be really creative .

So some people want to use this as a centerpiece to throw their TV on maybe as a headboard or we can even get wild and go on a diagonal .

But what I want to do is pretty simple and symmetrical .

So I'm gonna be doing four ft right down the center with the concrete style panels on either side .

So to achieve that , what I'm gonna do is mark out the center of my wall with a tape measure and a pencil .

And then I'm gonna be using my good friend the laser level to make sure that I have really nice , crispy lines .

So now I set up the laser level on the line that I marked out so that I'm sure that I'm gonna be painting enough to get that really nice cool black .

Look behind the slat wood .

I'm gonna mark it off with a little piece of tape on the top and bottom of the wall .

Now I'm gonna go do the same thing on the other side easy is that now it's time to unleash our inner artist and get painting .

Now before getting started , I was sure to put a little bit of painter's tape on the top molding and along the floor so that I'm not getting any paint anywhere I'm not supposed to .

All right .

So now that I'm just about done painting , I'm gonna take off my tape so that I don't have any little white spots once I'm done to paint .

So I'm realizing as I pull this tape off , I don't have any reference points anymore for exactly where my wood was supposed to go .

But on the plus side , at least I'm 100% sure that I painted in the right zone .

So as good .

So what I'm gonna do to compensate for that is remeasure my center and remark my left line where I'm gonna be starting from so that everything looks perfect .

All right .

So now that my paint is drying up , I've decided to come back to the workshop to start working on my wood slats .

So safety first , we're gonna get our glasses on .

We're gonna make sure that we have our push stick because we don't want our hands going past the edge of the table .

Saw , I've already got my guide set up at 2.5 inches .

So we're ready to rip .

We're , we're ready to rip as soon as I figure out how to turn on the table So , so I decided to go with 2.5 inch slots with about an inch space in between .

But if you want to go with something a little bit smaller or a little bit bigger , that's where you're allowed to get creative .

I recommend taking a stroll to Lowe's .

There's plenty of options there in Pine , in MD F , you can find everything under the sun .

All right .

So now that I've got all my wood slots cut , I'm going to take a few important steps to really protect the wood and make sure that it stays looking amazing for a long time .

So , the first thing I'm gonna do is sand it down .

That's going to open up the pores of the wood and allow me to stain it .

So to stay in it , I'm gonna use this Golden Oak color for Min Wax .

I think it's gonna look super awesome against the black .

And then I'm gonna hit it with the Helmsman varnish and once that's dry , I'm gonna give it just a very light sanding so that the top coat of varnish can stick on to it and then we're ready to go .

Hm .

All right .

So now the paint is dry , the var is dry .

I was able to find my center again .

I marked out my starting line to make sure that I'm exactly where I want to be .

And now I'm going to set up my laser level to make sure that that first piece is absolutely 100% perfect .

Now , because all of these pieces end up falling between the studs , we're gonna throw a little bit of adhesive on the back to make sure that we get a really strong bond .

That first piece is gonna dictate how all the other pieces line up a little pro tip that I want to share with you guys is cutting a template or a jig .

That's the exact size of the space that you want between each slot .

That way you're gonna be able to ensure that every piece is super evenly spaced and you're gonna have a really nice finish product .

Let's get to it .

Tata I'm going to be measuring out an outlet that I have on my wall so that I can cut a hole for it with my oscillating tool .

Now , before you touch anything electrical , make sure that your breaker is off and that there's no power because safety is super important .

So when I take my measure , I'm going to start from the slat wall and then I'm going to measure to either side of the plug and I'm going to do the same .

When I come from the floor up , I'm going to measure the bottom and the top of the plug .

All right .

So now I'm going to mark off those measures that I took and I'm going to make sure that I'm marking them off in the same direction that I took the measures , which is also going to be the same direction that I'm placing the panel on the wall .

I'm going to use my speed square to make sure that I get a really nice cut and we're ready to cut .

Another trick that I want to share with you guys is to make sure that the screws line up exactly with the box behind the wall .

We're going to cut two small triangles into the middle of the top and bottom side of the box .

So once your cut is completed , that's exactly how you want it to look .

Now , let's get this bad boy on the wall .

So now I'm ready to take the plug out and when I put this panel on , I'm gonna be gluing the back side of it and then tacking it in making sure that I'm trying to get as many studs that I marched before as I can .

Now that my plug is reinstalled , nice and tight .

I can put the finishing plate back on .

That looks amazing .

I'm starting to get excited about this wall .

Now , it's gonna be the exact same process for all of the other panels .

We're gonna glue them and then tack them into the stunts .

Wow , this is really turning into something special guys .

The last thing that we need to do is measure the last two pieces on the top that we have to install .

So depending on how your wall layout is , you might have to measure the height .

You might have to measure the length .

All right , I've got my first measure .

I'm gonna make sure that it lines up exactly the same on the other side .

All right .

So the last cut of the day I'm stoked .

Now that the panels are cut , I'm going to install them the same way that I did the others .

Wow .

It looks so amazing in here guys .

I honestly can't even believe that we're in the same room anymore .

And we did this together .

I would say the most important part of this project is make sure that you have all of your measures lined up before you get started .

You'll save yourself a lot of headaches down the road .

If you do the prep , work up front .

What I really love about this project is the nice contrast between the concrete versus the natural wood .

I just can't get over how gorgeous it is .

If you guys like this video , I encourage you to share it with a friend .

Let me know in the comments , what you like the most about the video .

Give us a like , thank you so much for joining me and I'll see you next time .