Renovating Your Basement

Medina’s new Soft Wall Systems is leading a construction revolution with their durable, mold resistant, and nearly acoustically perfect wall panels. Now you can check out this remarkable drywall alternative first hand in the company’s brand new showroom—before installing it in your own basement.

By: Mimi Vanderhaven
Date: 08/05/2007
For the first few hundred millennia, our ancestors relied on cave rock to serve as the interior walls of their homes. And on these walls, ancient artists painted scenes of great animal hunts and other important rituals. Later, as we learned to domesticate animals, we built our walls of straw, mud and, well, dung.

Finally, someone figured out that plaster was easier to apply (and less smelly). In fact, spreading it on wooden lathe was the method of choice all the way up until the post-World War II era, when cheap, easier-to-install paper backed drywall became the norm in an explosive suburban housing boom.

Of course, when today’s drywall becomes damp—particularly in your basement—the paper backing quite literally becomes food for mold and mildew, creating an environment so dangerous and smelly that you’ll wish your walls were made of dung.

But today, a new Medina company is revolutionizing home construction and remodeling with a brand new product called Soft Wall Systems, which features a one-inch, six-pound fiberglass panel wrapped in a wide selection of fabrics in almost 500 different colors, including gorgeous micro-suedes.

The new wall systems are selling so well that company co-founders John Rodeman and Roger Kassouf recently completed a new manufacturing facility on Route 18, which also includes executive offices and a showroom, all featuring Soft Wall Systems.

There’s even an onsite home theater to demonstrate what Soft Walls can do acoustically.

“Typical drywall absorbs 10% of sound and returns 90% to the environment,” John explains. “That’s why a large room in the average home can have such terrible distortion. But our Soft Wall panels are 85% acoustically perfect. That’s ideal for home theaters and even home offices where you don’t want to be distracted.”

John adds that an inexpensive surround sound system in a room built with his Soft Wall panels can perform as well as an expensive, high-end sound system in a room built with traditional drywall.

Most homeowners who choose Soft Wall Systems don’t even have an in-home theater.

They just want an awesome basement.

Soft Wall panels are not only mold resistant (reducing allergies and a host of respiratory problems) they provide an insulation factor of R-11 and are completely removable, so you can access your grade wall and any electrical and plumbing systems. “You can remove a panel in minutes,” John assures, “and replace it just as quickly.”

The fabric covering the fiberglass panels is a cutting edge, finely woven polyester material made from recycled pop bottles, so they’re durable, stain resistant and environmentally friendly. And the micro-suede fabric looks and feels like genuine suede. “Many homeowners spend a fortune in drywall and painting techniques to achieve the look of faux suede,” John explains. “Yet for the same investment you can have a wall system that is soft, warm and luxurious—just like suede.”

But what about “poofiness?”

“No, they’re not poofy,” John laughs. “These panels are soft, but they are firm, solid and sturdy. And there are no cheap plastic strips hiding the seams. Our seams are perfect. We don’t hide them.”

Soft Wall Systems panels are so beautiful and affordable that a homeowner who recently visited the new Medina showroom broke down in tears when she saw the rooms—because she had just installed drywall. “It was so sad,” John recalls. “I think she suddenly realized that instead of the traditional basement she built, she could have had the basement of her dreams—for the same investment. And it was overwhelming.”

So how can these gorgeous, durable, low maintenance, and virtually acoustically perfect panels cost no more than a typical basement remodeled with drywall?

The answer is in the installation.

“Our panels are more expensive than a sheet of drywall,” John explains. “There’s no question about that. But the money you save in installation time offsets the cost of materials. In other words, Soft Wall Systems can be installed easily, quickly and cleanly with very low labor costs.”

If you’ve ever installed drywall, then you know this tedious process: Nail up the drywall. Apply the tape and mud. Let dry for days. Sand. Apply more mud. Let dry for more days. Sand again. Prime. Let dry. Paint. Let dry.

The process can take over a week and at the same time your furniture becomes covered in dust from all that sanding.

In addition, Soft Wall Systems panels are manufactured right here in Medina from materials made in the United States.

The best way to discover if Soft Wall Systems panels are right for your home or office remodeling project is to visit the new showroom. Stop by any time or visit a special Open House for Mimi readers this Saturday, August 11, from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. There you can enjoy refreshments while you explore various styles, colors and installation methods. And John, Roger and their team will be there to answer all the questions you may have.

Of course, Route 18 is undergoing major construction so be
sure to watch for the signs. You may also call 216-642-0077 to schedule a free in-home estimate.

It’s so easy, darling, a caveman could do it.

The Soft Wall Systems showroom is located at 1484 Medina Road (Route 18) in Suite 116 of Clover Point Commerce Center on the south side of Route 18 by Mower M.D. The phone number is 216-642-0077.

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