painting over paneling

[cg. New here]

I own a 1979 Manufactured home. It's VERY DARK. Where ever the sun could come in we have covered porches.
The paneling is Dark. Any basic suggestions before we bite the bullet and start to paint over this paneling?
I don't really care if the lines in the paneling show thru if it looks kinda white-washed....
thanks for any advice ,
Cg new here

[Mary]

I suggest a very good primer, like Zinnser, and then a very good quality paint on top of it.

I just painted over the dark brown doors we had (1974 home). Someone before us (thankfully) had painted all the walls white, but several dark brown doors remained.

I used one coat of Zinnser 123 primer (water-based) and then a very good quality paint (semi-gloss) from Lowe's in off-white. I needed only one coat of each and the doors look lovely! I imagine your walls would be just as nice with one coat of each.

Good luck.

[Jackie]

If you don't particularly care for the lines, you could fill the cracks with joint compound, then sand once dry to make a level surface with the paneling itself. Another option is to fill the cracks with joint compound and also put joint compound over the paneling itself, creating an "old world" look. (You're going to want to paint over this.) There is also textured wallpaper which is quite heavy and should cover the lines, which you could find in most paint and home improvement stores. It comes in plain white with assorted embossed patterns and is made to be painted over.

[David Oxhandler]

Take a look in our book store at the video Painting and Texturing Paneled Walls from Aberdeen Repair. By following the steps in this 20 minute video, your paneled walls will look darn near like textured sheetrock. Works on both wood paneling and vinyl-covered paneling or sheetrock. The process can be completed without having to rent any sprayers or other tools. If you can paint, you can very easily do the steps in this video.