# What Color Is Your Workshop?



## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Well..I'm refurbishing the walls of my woodworking studio/workshop, soon to be re-painted drywall with MDF beadboard on the lower walls, up to 42" high and a chair rail. 
I need to ask….*What colors should I paint everything?* As far as I know, this topic has never been discussed here before.
I mean, are there colors that promote productivity, ones that somehow give you a psychological lift, colors that simply impress people, or what? 
If you've had a good experience with re-coloring, please share it! I'm looking at some color chips now, and I can't see an advantage of one over another. I will also be re-coloring the floor, a battleship grey if the cans I have are still good. Thx!


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## JoeinGa (Nov 26, 2012)

Yellow and green are supposed to be "calming" colors, but whatever you do, make it as LIGHT a shade as possible. Even white or off-white. It'll make the whole place lighter


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## donwilwol (May 16, 2011)

it was covered not long go but I can't find it either. Almost everybody said white. Mine are poly'd ply.


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## littlecope (Oct 23, 2008)

White my Friend, White… the brighter the better!
Mine is brick and granite walls, the light just gets lost…


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## OggieOglethorpe (Aug 15, 2012)

Mine are raw concrete gray, with a little Owens Corning pink… ;^)


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## Finn (May 26, 2010)

gloss white walls and ceiling and raw plywood floor


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Thanks, guys!* Joe:* I'm trying to get away from the yellow wallpaper that was everywhere from the previous occupier. A solid yellow might work, but it might make me crave a* Subway *BMT…. 
*Don:* White would surely lower my light bill! I must have been on vacation when that thread was active…
*Mike:* I had a shop with granite/brick, with a ledge full of asbestos dust around the perimeter. Most of the time it bothered me enough to wear a mask continuously. How are things going in Concord? I miss the place, I spent a few years in Suncook/Allenstown.
*Barry:* Hmmm, pink and grey, very retro!! Good idea! *Jim:* is there an advantage to gloss white, as opposed to eggshell or satin, for example?


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## DIYaholic (Jan 28, 2011)

My shop has white walls, white ceiling and a grey floor. The light just bounces around the room.

I think the gloss will reflect more light, plus it doesn't hold onto the dust as well. That is just a thought and YMMV.

I also believe color selection could effect how finishes look, but that could also have to do with the color spectrum of your light bulbs.


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## longgone (May 5, 2009)

My shop has OSB colored walls…


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## Bobsboxes (Feb 8, 2011)

I also have grey concrete, the earlier article talked about us at 60 needing twice the light of the 40 year olds. My next big shop project is to paint the ceiling and walls white. I already have enough lights to operate by, but all of the light gets sucked up in the grey walls. As for the colors, I am not sure, but being able to see, would make me happy.


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## TheDane (May 15, 2008)

OSB with primer/sealer and 2 coats of glossy white enamel.


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## renners (Apr 9, 2010)

White walls and a grey painted floor resembling a Jackson Pollock. The white really does brighten the place up and makes it look bigger too.


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## JollyGreen67 (Nov 1, 2010)

Walls and ceiling are Navajo white, with color correct flurescense (?) bulbs. Just like daylight in there !


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## Dakkar (Feb 14, 2013)

In work areas, things like paint color are important. The color of the ceiling and, to some degree, the walls directly affects the perceived color and amount of light on your work. White offers the best and truest light you'll get. However, gloss paints on wall make hard reflections from lights and shiny surfaces. A flat white, while boring, is really the best paint for your eyes and for doing good quality work. If you want a bit of color, pin up a poster of a pretty girl.


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## NormG (Mar 5, 2010)

Cement floor and raw wood all other surfaces


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## Manitario (Jul 4, 2010)

plain white drywall upper and unfinished birch wood lower.


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## RonInOhio (Jul 23, 2010)

White , white, or white.


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## gfadvm (Jan 13, 2011)

High gloss white on my walls and ceiling. It really helps with the light and the gloss doesn't seem to" hold on" to dust like flat white does. I even did my benchtop with white formica and it was one of my best shop improvements: great visability, glue doesn't stick, and I use it to write on (pencil marks erase easily).


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## Bieser (Oct 30, 2012)

I did green on mine recently and have really been enjoying it.


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## Smitty_Cabinetshop (Mar 26, 2011)

I have a long wall of color like that green, Bieser. And it's not a bad color at all. Ceiling is white, three other walls off-white.


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## BigRedKnothead (Dec 21, 2012)

Mine is grey, but it will be white after this summer. I need the light!!!


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## PittsburghTim (Jan 16, 2012)

PK, I cannot tell from your home page if you are woodworking as a hobby or a living. I do it as a hobby and from that perspective, I would make sure you go with color or colors that make you comfortable. My garage workshop has pure white ceilings and the walls are an old fashioned cream/vanilla over dark green, with an 8" fire engine red stripe separating the two. The green and red colors are reminiscent of the old Texaco colors and the cream fits nicely. I have gloss white cabinets and plenty of flourescent lighting with the high-temp bulbs. They cost a bit more, but give you better light, not the cool white look.

I love the look and it makes me happy when I spend time there. The dark green, being on the lower half of the wall, does not have much, if any, impact on lighting at bench height. You can see it on my home page.

Pick colors that will enhance your time in the shop. White is fine for ceilings, but boring and sterile for every wall.

Good luck,

Tim


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## DouginVa (Mar 5, 2012)

Depends…...on the wood I'm working on at the time. If I'm using pine, it's light. Walnut, a little darker. Cherry or oak, somewhere in between. Sawdust comes in only a few colors to choose from.


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## Sylvain (Jul 23, 2011)

Here is a software to experiment with pictures of your shop:

https://www.ral-farben.de/app-icolours.html?&L=1

Otherwise I would agree with PittsburghTim

"Pick colors that will enhance your time in the shop. White is fine for ceilings, but boring and sterile for every wall."

Pure white gives the impression your are in a hospital.
I would personnally use "cream" for the ceiling.
Although I didn't experiment it, I have read somewhere that placing tubes vertically on the walls gives gives good results (window like lighting). But of course it must not be dazzling.


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## helluvawreck (Jul 21, 2010)

I think that white works best. It seems to spread the light and makes a small shop seem bigger. It also seems to keep you more cheerful.

helluvawreck aka Charles
http://woodworkingexpo.wordpress.com


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## bondogaposis (Dec 18, 2011)

Mine is white all the way. BTW when buying white paint you will be amazed at how many "colors" there are of white paint. It's mind boggling.


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## RussellAP (Feb 21, 2012)

This is an important topic if you do a lot of finishing. I have fluorescent lighting in several varieties to make sure I see my finishes clearly. The walls should be white though, they have to give off maximum light. Get eggshell and the whitest white you can get, You can throw in a color swipe of green and yellow and blue to soothe the atmosphere.


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## 33706 (Mar 5, 2008)

Thanks for all the great ideas, everyone! I've neglected to mention, my shop is two adjoining basement rooms, formerly two bedrooms. Plus most of my junkue and lumber stash elsewhere in the basement and garage. I like the theory of the compact workplace, I intend to corral all of my handtools on the walls in the perimeter around the bench and create one intensive workzone. Kinda like the new trend in kitchen design, where the workspace is compressed for greater efficiency, rather than the sprawling, rambling kitchens of the 70s-80s.
Along with this I intend to quit using my table saw as a workbench, and address a few other bad habits I have, like leaving out every tool I've used on the current project. Having tool storage at arm's length will help address this. I'm also inspired to get rid of the motley shop lights and replace them with surface-mount units. *Bieser:* Your shop pic is amazing, yes, that green color is a great choice! Kind of a seagrass green, I like it! And yes, you're the inspiration for better shop lighting. *Tim:* thanks for the Texaco motif idea! I'd tend to overdo it though, and make my shop look like an Italian restaurant. I am hoping to to do the upper/lower walls in contrasting colors, with the chair rail a third color to break them up. *gfadvm:* Yes, I'd like to do one benchtop in plastic laminate, I hear you on the glue-resistant surface! Well, back to the shop… I'd forgotten how tedious it is to strip old wallpaper, even with liquid prep. 
Thanks again for all the great ideas!


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## GT350 (Dec 22, 2012)

3 walls and ceiling are white and one wall is unfinished Douglas fir.


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## Bieser (Oct 30, 2012)

Poopiekat. Thanks for the compliment, I have decided to dedicate most of this year to it and getting it the way I want. The shop use to have white walls and I found it very boring. I would say if you want to do a color then do it. I think that no amount of white paint will make up for poor lighting. My .02


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## 280305 (Sep 28, 2008)

My walls and ceiling are painted "Colonial Barn-board"


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## ClintSearl (Dec 8, 2011)

I wanted mine a touch warmer than stark white and went with a tint called "Fine White" from Ben Moore.


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## john111 (Dec 18, 2012)

Mine is a awesome garage color raw wood! Very dark! So at 47 do I only need 45% more light


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## coachmancuso (Feb 10, 2013)

White walls and ceilings and cement floor


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## Ken90712 (Sep 2, 2009)

Sawdust, Great color LOL


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## 8iowa (Feb 7, 2008)

My "Workshop in the Woods" has semi-gloss white walls and ceiling.

I took Henry Ford's advice, "You can have your workshop any color you want as long as it's white". (At least I think he said something like this.)


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## BigYin (Oct 14, 2011)

White. Paint it white. Dark colour = dark workshop
Paint the ceiling & the walls above bench hight if white will help reflect all availabe light


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