I have to paint a dozen sheets of osb

[Roger Feeley]

We are putting up a three car garage and I’m doing the interior wall covering. My daughter wants paint and I want osb. So…what’s the best way to paint osb? I think it will take about 15 sheets. I want to paint the sheets before hanging so I can put the paint on a bit thicker.

so, roll? Brush?

what sort of primer?

[Jared Sankovich]

Airless sprayer, or a roller if you don't have one. I'd be inclined to spray after it's up personally.

[Cameron Wood]

Paint it after it's up. Add another coat if you want it thicker. Painting the sheets flat would be a PIA and would still probably need another coat after cuts, fasteners, and scuffs.

[John Kananis]

Another vote for an airless sprayer. Thin paint with 10% water. You can rent these if you don't have one. I like the titan brand.

Edit: worked with my step-dad when I was young - he was a painter. I sprayed 12 apartments in a single day with an airless sprayer. They're super quick, just need someone feeding paint and keep going.

[Richard Coers]

Rent an airless. You can stick the feed tube into a 5 gallon bucket and not touch the paint again. Where you paint it and how you handle it while drying is based on what kind of room you have to work in.

[Kyle Stiefel]

I finished my garage with OSB per preference. I like the look of the OSB painted texture vs plywood or sheetrock in a garage application. I rolled mine prior to install with a decent Sherwin Williams paint, kind of a silver/gray color as I personally am not a fan white. I actually hand rolled all the exterior boards as well prior to install. I used left over outside siding and ripped it to go over the seams and made molding around the doors and windows with it as well. I am pleased with the outcome.

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[Roger Feeley]

What paint?

[David M Peters]

For my shop we painted around 630 square feet of CDX plywood with a couple of rollers. It took about four gallons of paint, Sherwin Williams "CHB" cheap stuff that the drywall guys left behind. Rollers worked well enough and we didn't have to worry about protecting against overspray. Rolled on after installation. I think rolling on beforehand would be a mistake as the paint would likely get marred up by handling and cutting.

[Bob Vavricka]

I pre-painted the OSB I put up in my shop. I put a coat of oil based primer on (KILZ) the coated with the latex paint. I liked the results. I needed a small piece to finish the job and just coated it with the latex paint. The latex paint only panel seemed to lift some of the thinner pieces and wasn't nearly as smooth as the oil based primer sheets. Not sure if this is typical, just my experience. I did put it on with a roller and it worked fine.

[Jamie Buxton]

If you pre-paint all those sheets, you have to find space for all of to them hang out while they are drying. Painting after installation solves that problem for free.

[Jim Becker]

I agree with Jamie...paint them after they are up. Much easier for the reason he stated. And use an airless. Rent one or buy one. (The Harbor Freight unit is actually quite nice...I used it for the shop interior walls and am soon to list it for someone else locally to enjoy it going forward...and get back most of my original cost)

[Mel Fulks]

But ,you don’t want to put on too much paint . Cuz, if you do …no one will believe it’s “genuine OSB” .

[Rich Engelhardt]

Lay them out in the yard and roll on Kilz2 water based primer.
Don't worry about any primer that gets on the grass - it will grow out in a week or so.
If it really bothers you, just pick up a roll of paper 35" X 140 foot - runs about $14.

When the primer is dry in a couple of hours, go over it with whatever finish coat you want to use.

If you have an airless, you can use that to apply both primer and finish instead of rolling it.

When you install them, all you'll have to do is touch up.


If you desire to invest in an airless sprayer - I recommend you get a Graco. It's only a few dollars more than a "disposable".
I made the mistake of buying a lower end airless (Wagner). It worked fine the first two times I used it. The third time I dragged it out, got everything ready and plugged it in - it just sat there making a humming noise and looking stupid. Having worked on these things at one point in my life, I knew that humming sound was fatal.
Which isn't really a problem - except - there are no parts available to fix it.

Graco on the other hand - once you have the hose & gun, you can either rebuild what you have or upgrade to a refurbished one that's better.
Or - simply go with a refurb Project - they seem to go for about $200 in Ebay.

[Mike Wilkins]

I used OSB on my shop walls, attaching with 1" drywall screws. I painted after installation with primer and then paint. The paint covered most unevenness (is that a word) and the screw heads.