I had MDF beadboard in our powder room and would not recommend it unless you use real wood beadboard. The way our pedelstal sink was set up, when someone washed their hands, water would drip off the back side and onto the beadboard. Because it was not real wood, it started to bubble and peel. And, yes, it was painted with a good high gloss paint. Just something to think about.

I'm using stained beadboard behind my cooktop. No pictures yet as we are still under construction.

We have 3 wide horizontal bead board wainscot and we are going to do two for sink side backsplash. Painted to match cabs.

My backsplash is part wood and part tile. It's not beadboard; it's paneling that "matches" the log walls. But it may give you an idea.

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My friend did beadboard backsplash in his old house. It looked great, used real wood and painted it white. They used semigloss paint, and it wiped clean very easily. Unless you are planning to throw entire pots of water at your backsplash, I don't see a problem with wood. MDF wouldn't work because even the least bit of moisture causes it to warp, but real wood that is properly painted can easily withstand a normal person's cooking and cleaning mess.

Personally I think the beadboard looks a LOT nicer than drywall. I also don't like those 4" backsplashes attached to countertops, so I'd go with just a counter and the beadboard, no other backsplash. Just my personal opinion of course.

We had it in our old kitchen -- real individual boards painted. I loved the look and had no problem with water/heat/food splatters. We redid kitchen in 2001 and moved in 2006 - so did live with it happily over time.

We went all the way down to the counter with the beadboard and caulked between soapstone counters. I also don't like the 4" - feel like it breaks up the visual line -- but that is just a personal preference -- lots of people do like it.

We put in a beadboard backsplash. It's been up for about 2 1/2 years and it's worn well. DH used boards from the local lumber yard--I don't think it was true beadboard, they were about 4" wide and came in 6' lengths (or maybe it was 8'?) and were real wood. A common problem with the beadboard is gapping of paint with the expansion/and shrinkage of the wood at the joints. DH primed the boards on both sides to give them a better seal. We also didn't use the boards behind the range or sinks. I like the look of a thin backsplash extending up from the counter--I think it gives a dry sink feel : ) It all depends on the look you're after.

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Thank you for all the reply's and the pictures! Zelmar - your kitchen colors look similar to what we are going with, the hardwood floor/darker countertop. is your cabinet hardware black? do you have any more pictures of it? we are looking to go with a cup pull/knob combo. Thanks! and if anyone else has more picures, please share!

teambaxter, Here's the link to our knob and cup pull from Crown Point. I can't remember what the hardware looked like when it first arrived but it has pretty much darkened to a dark gray with a slight brassy sheen in spots (which is what I wanted.)

I just posted a bunch of pictures of our kitchen--some of the pictures show the hardware a bit better (and more backsplash.)

I am posting the very first picture of my just finished kitchen here. I did a beadboard backsplash, painted with white semi-gloss. I love it.
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There is a white vinyl beadboard that you can buy at HD. I'm putting it in my guest bath.

have any of you installed the beadboard after the 4inch backsplash was already put in? Did you caulk at the meeting point? Our counters are going in tomorrow, and obviously we have not decided on what we are going to do yet/still need to paint, etc...Thanks!

Oh boy, adding a pic again. Here goes:

holy cow, it worked!!

We put our counters and stone backsplash in first, painted the sheetrock and lived with it that way for about 6 months before putting in the beadboard. It works well to have the beadboard butt into the backsplash. I don't believe DH put any caulk where they meet.

Look in the Finished Kitchen Blog categories under Beadboard and you will see many examples. I pasted the link below.

Here is a link that might be useful: Finished Kitchen Blog . Category- Beadboard

@borngrace what color caulk did you use between soapstone and beadboard? Thanks!

Dvdwife, this thread is 10 years old. Doubtful you will get a response.

I have a friend who did this in her summer house and we're all just waiting for the first water problems. She has a lot of children and grandchildren and that kitchen gets hard use. She's had it 2 summers, so far so good, and it looks very pretty, but it would make me very nervous.