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I recently wanted something similar to this for drywalling. I'm a DIY homeowner renovating my basement and adding an office. There were a lot of rules regardi

I recently wanted something similar to this for drywalling. I'm a DIY homeowner renovating my basement and adding an office. There were a lot of rules regarding where/how to use floating corners, what screw lengths/diameters to use, where to place the screws, etc. It was really hard to keep them straight, and in some areas I used way more screws than is ideal. The issue was further complicated by inconsistent advice from the Gypsum Association (the main trade group, AFAICT) and various contractors who post advice on Youtube, diy.stackexchange.com, etc. I really wished for a website that let me enter the shape and framing details of my room, and have it show me an optimal plan for the shape / placement of drywall pieces, and the attachment method.

tomohawk 7y ago
I've found many pros have quite a bit of disagreement over these kinds of details, and that this varies quite a bit by region as well - often for good reason. For example, the framing style, climate, and available materials in one region many dictate a different way of doing things than in another. Many sheetrockers join sheets on studs or joists, but that puts the edge onto the structure, and increases the likelihood that the joint will fail, particularly in the ceiling. It's actually better to join the sheets between structural members with a plywood or osb spline that floats with the wall. This moves the joint off of the structural member and also makes for a flatter (if not flat) joint. Really high end sheetrockers will put up 2 sheets of drywall. The first is glued and screwed onto the structure. The 2nd is glued and screwed to the first layer. The screws are then removed from the outer layer when the glue sets. This makes getting a pop impossible, and makes the soundproofing a lot better.
- wyclif 7y ago
  Really high end sheetrockers will put up 2 sheets of drywall That is the way I used to do it years ago back when I was hanging sheetrock as a summer job while I was at university. My boss at the time used to tell me that it's what should be done in high-end construction; the reason they don't elsewhere is to cut corners on the budget.
- DoofusOfDeath 7y ago
  > It's actually better to join the sheets between structural members with a plywood or osb spline that floats with the wall. This moves the joint off of the structural member and also makes for a flatter (if not flat) joint. When I was doing my research before starting to hang drywall, I had difficulty determining a few things about the various techniques being advocated: - Is the technique required for what I'd consider "normal" quality results? I.e., when I walk into most houses I just don't notice anything about the drywalling. I was shooting for that level of quality. - How well would the technique stand up over time, given the particulars about my climate, house age, framing style, etc.? I saw lots of confident statements about how the longevity / reliability of various techniques, but not much evidence that people had actually verified these statements empirically. (I.e., I saw few statements of the form "I've used technique X in over 200 houses in Georgia, and after 10 years I've only been made aware of problems with 3 of the jobs."

tomohawk 7y ago

I've found many pros have quite a bit of disagreement over these kinds of details, and that this varies quite a bit by region as well - often for good reason. For example, the framing style, climate, and available materials in one region many dictate a different way of doing things than in another. Many sheetrockers join sheets on studs or joists, but that puts the edge onto the structure, and increases the likelihood that the joint will fail, particularly in the ceiling. It's actually better to join the sheets between structural members with a plywood or osb spline that floats with the wall. This moves the joint off of the structural member and also makes for a flatter (if not flat) joint. Really high end sheetrockers will put up 2 sheets of drywall. The first is glued and screwed onto the structure. The 2nd is glued and screwed to the first layer. The screws are then removed from the outer layer when the glue sets. This makes getting a pop impossible, and makes the soundproofing a lot better.

wyclif 7y ago
Really high end sheetrockers will put up 2 sheets of drywall That is the way I used to do it years ago back when I was hanging sheetrock as a summer job while I was at university. My boss at the time used to tell me that it's what should be done in high-end construction; the reason they don't elsewhere is to cut corners on the budget.
DoofusOfDeath 7y ago
> It's actually better to join the sheets between structural members with a plywood or osb spline that floats with the wall. This moves the joint off of the structural member and also makes for a flatter (if not flat) joint. When I was doing my research before starting to hang drywall, I had difficulty determining a few things about the various techniques being advocated: - Is the technique required for what I'd consider "normal" quality results? I.e., when I walk into most houses I just don't notice anything about the drywalling. I was shooting for that level of quality. - How well would the technique stand up over time, given the particulars about my climate, house age, framing style, etc.? I saw lots of confident statements about how the longevity / reliability of various techniques, but not much evidence that people had actually verified these statements empirically. (I.e., I saw few statements of the form "I've used technique X in over 200 houses in Georgia, and after 10 years I've only been made aware of problems with 3 of the jobs."