Picture rails

Period features definitely add value to a property. It always make me sad to see original windows ripped out to be replaced by window frames of the wrong proportions. Double glazed windows that are replicas of the original can be bought although they do cost more but then you don’t devalue your property or destroy the character of your home. Keep your picture rails, they are sought after by many buyers.

Why would you need to remove it on the chimney breast? Surely the TV wouldn’t be mounted that high up?

Definitely keep them! We have a large old house which has all its period features. I wouldn't get rid of them if you paid me!

Good advice all round. I think I will paint them in the same colour as the wall. The only place I might remove it is on the chimney breast because I want to mount the TV on that area.

I agree with the idea of painting them the same colour as the wall. My DD has recently finish decorating her home and she has even included the skirting board and window frames the same colour. True it is the fashion now but when I was growing up my parents never used white paint, they tried to match a colour used in the wallpaper design. Looking on the web it seems white paint only came on the market in 1921.

In my family Edwardian house, I loved the picture rails in the ground floor rooms. Indeed, when I was decorating one of the bedrooms, I wanted to reduce the feel of the ceiling height and I actually put in 'false' picture rails and painted above those the white of the ceiling. This had the effect of definitely making the room look bigger.

They are usually, just tacked on to the walls, so pretty easy to take down. But I would think long and hard before doing this.

I have them in my lounge. Think they're classy. Love 'em.

Picture rails are brilliant for hanging shirts on as you iron them!

How old is your house? How high are your ceilings?
Makes a big difference when deciding to keep or not...my house is 1870s ...10ft high ceilings...without picture rails ours rooms would lose some soul

Coastpath

In my experience where the rails have been removed there is often a ghost of a mark where they were, an indentation or different level which you notice in lamplight or when the sun is slanting in.

Yes, I wish the previous occupiers hadn't removed some

In my experience where the rails have been removed there is often a ghost of a mark where they were, an indentation or different level which you notice in lamplight or when the sun is slanting in.

We had them in one of our houses, built in the early 1920s, they were so useful, no nails banged into walls to hang our pictures up and easy to move pictures around.

Depends on the age of the house. If your house was built when picture rails were standard and built in from new, very broadly, any property built before 1940 then leave them. Taking them out may affect the value of the property. In older properties, people now look for original features and mark those without them down.

If the picture rails were retrofit in a postWW2 property, then it might be a good idea. Builders stopped fitting picture rails when they reduced ceiling heights to make houses cheaper to build

Our last home was big Victorian semi and it sold quickly and well because it had all the original features. We never told anyone that they were all fairly new - the people who owned the house before us had 'modernised' the house by removing picture rails, coving, ceiling centres and some of the fireplaces. We put them all back in!

I removed mine, easy to lever off then fill the screw holes underneath. It does make the room look bigger.

Ilovecheese

If the picture rails are original you will reduce the value of your property if you remove them. Good suggestion to paint them the same colour as the walls.

My son was told his house had extra value because it was so original and they ate few and far between nowadays. It was built in the 1930’s and he and dil were only the third owners. It had beautiful wood floors, burr walnut doors downstairs and the original banisters and rails. The doors still had the 1930’s ‘sun ray’ door plates and knobs, the bathroom had the original sun ray toilet roll holder and in the kitchen the roller towel fixings were still in place.

It was a lovely home, which they’ve sadly outgrown!

I would love to have picture rails in my house! We have had to add cornices (very lightweight cheap ones) to "finish off" our rooms and give it a bit of interest. Picture rails give the room character. I agree with Sue Donim, keep the rails the same colour as the walls and it will make the ceiling look higher.

If the picture rails are original you will reduce the value of your property if you remove them. Good suggestion to paint them the same colour as the walls.

I have 2 rooms about the same size, one with and one without ans much prefer the one with

I wouldn’t remove them. That changes the proportions of the room and it can look weird. My son had them in some of the rooms in the house he’s just sold and those rooms looked much more ‘together’ than the one room without, which unfortunately was the sitting room.

You could always paint the walls all the same colour to the ceiling to make them recede a bit.