How to Hang Drywall Like a Pro

Go that sheetrock up fast

Introduction

Installing drywall is not rocket science, merely it will go faster and look better if yous larn the fundamentals earlier you lot kickoff (instead of after you're washed).

Tools Required

Materials Required

  • 1-1/4-in. drywall screws
  • 1-5/8-in. drywall screws
  • ii ten 2 (for optional crutch)
  • Drywall
  • Drywall nails

Drywall is one of the easiest-to-use and cheapest structure materials in the world. Fifty-fifty a serious fault will brand y'all chuckle, knowing you've wasted little time and probably less than 5 bucks. And the money you relieve treatment the task yourself will come in handy when furnishing that new room.

Hanging "rock" (brusque for "sheetrock") doesn't require a lot of finesse, but it is heavy piece of work. Simply if you are in reasonably skilful physical condition, don't be afraid to tackle one, ii or even three rooms on your own. It'south sometimes hard to interest a pro in hanging simply a room or ii, or even become on the schedule. Besides, defining and covering the walls with a finished cloth can be satisfying.

This how to install drywall article volition demonstrate the basics of hanging drywall. If you practise a expert job of hanging drywall, the drywall can exist taped and finished smoothly and easily. "Taping" refers to the process of filling fastener holes, applying joint tape and three layers of taping compound to seams and corners, and then sanding. (Read more nigh drywall taping hither.) Poor drywall hanging techniques make it difficult for even a seasoned taper to deliver a flat, uncracked surface that'south gratis of nail pops and ready for paint. Nosotros'll show y'all the techniques and tools the pros use to get the drywall job done fast and in a way that makes taping as painless as possible.

Video: How to Tape and Mud Drywall

ⓘ

Project pace-past-step (15)

Stride i

Fasten Backers at Corners

  • Fasten forest backing wherever drywall ends have no support inside 4 inches.
    • Note: Make sure to check corners and ceiling/wall joints.

Stride 2

Measure Carefully

  • Mensurate from the terminate of the ceiling to the middle of a joist and cut the sheet to length.
    • Pro tip: End cuts should split framing members. Gaps at ends and splices should exist less than 1/4 inch.
  • Mark fastening guidelines every 16 inches from the end of the sheet with a drywall square.
  • Cut overall lengths 1/four inch shorter for easier plumbing equipment.

Selecting Drywall

Most drywalling calls for iii basic types and thicknesses of material:

  • One-half-inch for framing spans of 16 inches or less.
  • V-eighths-inch for spans up to 24 inches on ceilings. The 5/8-inch drywall is also called Type X or burn-resistant. Information technology is used in areas where a firewall is required, such equally between a firm and an attached garage. Consult your local building official for installation specifics.
  • Half-inch drywall that's water-resistant for humid areas such every bit baths (humid, non wet). This cloth is non acceptable for ceilings or areas such equally tiled shower enclosures. Mold-resistant drywall is also sold for areas like basements where mold might be a business concern.

Door and window jambs and electric outlets are ordinarily set upwards for ane/2-inch drywall, so check to confirm. Three-eighths-inch and one/iv-inch are available as well just are rarely used except on curved wall surfaces or areas where thinner rock is required. For case, if you lot're patching old plaster walls, 3/8-inch may be the only thickness that will match the depth of the plaster.

Drywall usually comes in either 4x8 or 4x12 sizes. If you alive in an area large enough to support a commercial supplier, it'll offer more variety than an average lumberyard. It may have 9-, 10- and fourteen-human foot lengths, 54-inch widths for 9-pes. ceilings and odd things like flexible drywall for curved surfaces. Drywall lengths don't radically bear on overall material toll. If you think you can handle 12-pes. sheets (and if they'll fit through the stairwells), they're the style to become. You'll take far less waste and fewer seams to tape. Keep in heed that a 4x8 sheet weighs 55 lbs. and a 12-footer almost 82 lbs.

Step 3

Score the Drywall

  • Mensurate the length needed and score the paper face with a utility knife, using a drywall square every bit a straightedge.

Step 4

Snap the Drywall

  • Snap the sheet, fold information technology open and cutting through the newspaper on the behind.

Footstep 5

Smooth the Edges

  • Smooth rough edges on cut ends with a Surform tool to ensure tight joints.

Using a Drywall Lift

Drywall is heavy stuff, so consider saving your back by renting a drywall lift for a day. A elevator is fantastic if y'all're shorthanded or installing 12-foot sheets. It disassembles easily, weighs about 75 lbs. and volition fit in a minivan or small pickup. A elevator makes information technology possible to hang rock solo, merely it's withal nice to accept a helper for loading the rock onto the lift. A lift tilts from vertical to horizontal. Wheels let you to roll it upwardly to the drywall stack, load a sheet onto the rack, scroll it dorsum into position and crank the sheet up into place. Although a lift can also be used for wall placement, its stiff suit is ceilings.

Stride 6

Tack the Canvass in Place

  • Hoist the ceiling sheets overhead and tack them into identify using a "crutch" made of 2x2s to back up the lion'due south share of the weight.
  • Prenail and position the sheet, tacking it to the joists.

Step 7

Measure out the Upper Sheet

  • Mensurate the distance from a wall corner to the center of a framing fellow member, also recording distances for cutouts and door and window openings.
    • Pro tip: Avoid placing joints over doors and window corners, where they may fissure.

Step viii

Cut the Openings

  • Cut window and door notches from a single sail by sawing sides with a drywall saw.
    • Pro tip: A keyhole saw is slower, only it is an acceptable substitute for long cuts.

Step ix

Terminate the Cut

  • Score the third side of the notch with a utility knife.
  • Snap the department loose and consummate the cut from the backside.
    • Pro tip: For quick rip cuts, drag your utility knife behind the T-foursquare as you slide it forth the top (nestle the blade of the pocketknife confronting the ruler part of the square).

Step x

Hang the Summit Sheet of Drywall

  • Elevator the top wall canvass, belongings it tight against the ceiling, and tack it into place with nails.
    • Pro tip: This sheet should exist pushed tight confronting the ceiling before fastening. Never break joints at the edge of a window or door. These seams will somewhen crack, and the buildup of taping materials will make installing casing difficult.
    • Pro tip: Don't forget to mark fastener guidelines before lifting.

Footstep 11

Measure Cutouts

  • Measure electrical box cutouts from all four sides.
  • Check all layout measurements twice earlier cut!

Footstep 12

Mark and Cut the Drywall

  • Transfer measurements to the drywall.
  • Cut the outlet box openings with a keyhole saw.
    • Pro tip: Take special care in planning and sawing cutouts for electrical boxes because if you miss, that oversized outlet hole is a bear to fix. Fixing a poorly cut or overcut hole is tricky, and the repair will never await quite right.

Spiral Cutout Saw

Although nosotros don't bear witness one in use hither, pros at present utilize spiral saws to cut openings for outlets, lights and fifty-fifty doors and windows. The basic idea is easy: Just mark the gauge centre of the outlet or lite, hang the sheet of drywall, and then poke the thin spiral scrap through the centre mark and follow the border of the fixture all the manner around. For door and window openings, hang the sheet across the opening and and so follow the framing with the screw bit—no measuring required, and you get a perfect cut every time. Of form, it takes a picayune practice to get the hang of the tool, it kicks up a lot of dust, and the basic tool costs $lxx to $100, but if you're doing more one room it may be worth the investment. For more than information, run into How to Apply a Spiral Saw on Drywall

Step 13

Lever Bottom Drywall Sheet into Place

  • Hoist the bottom sheet with a foot lift or flat bar and tack it into place.
  • If an opening needs small-scale adjustments, shave the edges with your utility pocketknife.

Footstep xiv

Terminate Fastening with Screws

  • Screw ceiling and walls with a spiral gun.
    • Pro tip: Apply five fasteners per framing member, one in each tapered edge and three more than spaced evenly every 12 inches. Slightly bending screws on the ends of sheets, where there is only iii/4 inch of wood left to catch screws. If y'all run them in besides close to the end, the drywall core volition suspension and they won't concord well.
  • Set screws and nails slightly below the surface of the newspaper, existence careful non to break through into the gypsum core.
  • To hide the fasteners, position them close to openings around windows and doors then the trim will encompass them.
    • Pro tip: Utilise 1-1/four inch fasteners for 1/2-inch stone and 1-5/8 inch fasteners for 5/8-inch stone. Longer screws and nails are more prone to nail pops. Utilize as few nails as possible and just to tack up the sheets until you tin can go the screws in.

Be sure to drive screws properly when hanging drywall to avoid problems later.

Footstep 15

Bank check for Protruding Screws

  • After installing all the drywall, drag a putty pocketknife over every single fastener.
    • Note: If yous hear a click, you've establish a rogue fastener that needs to be set. Do not apply your hammer to set a protruding screwhead — this may break the screw, creating a bigger hole to patch, and volition cause a boom pop in the time to come.
  • When you notice a protruding screwhead, screw it in a little more with a screwdriver or a cordless drill.
  • Remove any fasteners that missed the framing member.

More Drywall Hanging Tips From the Pros

  • Don't try to save a couple of bucks by using scraps of drywall when you should be using a full sheet. The time and attempt spent taping actress joints is rarely worth the money saved.
  • Ever join tapered edges to tapered edges.
  • Stagger seams with each row of stone.
  • Recollect alee to brand taping equally piece of cake as possible. Remove cleaved corners and loose chunks of rock, and cut out any blisters. These will all be filled in later with a fast-setting joint compound.
  • Never employ tapered edges for exterior corners where corner bead goes. The thinner edge of the drywall makes it hard to properly fill the beaded edge with taping compound.
  • Every bit your last chore, run a putty knife over all screwheads and set up all fasteners below the surface. Since you put them in, it'due south your chore (not the taper'southward) to make certain they're properly gear up. Tapers go very upset when they have to spend one-half of their beginning 24-hour interval on the job repairing improperly set up fasteners. And the taper might be y'all.