Is installing drywall really that hard? It seems to me that it's pretty simple. Measure the walls, buy the drywall, and instal.. I know there's fine print there, ( cut out holes for outlets and windows.. blah blah) but really.. it's not that hard is it?
I'm only asking because I want to redo a few rooms in my house. It's an old house, and it's old 'latice and mortar' walls.. and I would like to update it with current drywall. I want to do it myself because it doesn't look that difficult.. but I could be mistaken, lots of things look easier than they really are.
2006-10-04 04:37:04 · 6 answers · asked by Imani 5 in Home & Garden ➔ Do It Yourself (DIY)
Sheetrock is heavy. It is hard to put it in place and hold it in place while you nail it, especially on the ceiling. You have to be careful not to bang and crumple the edges and corners. You also have to know how to locate the studs to hammer the nails into and hammer just right without making deep dents. If you measure for a socket, switch, light fixture in the middle of a sheet and you are just a half inch off, the sheet is ruined. Of course, the damage you cause while putting it up can be repaired but, you have to know how to do that too without having the repair work show.
Sheetrockers are some of the hardest working people in the world with slightly different muscular development and physical and mental skills that are developed over time. It's not that easy.
2006-10-04 04:58:32 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Go for it!
I also have an old lath and plaster house that I have been re-doing room by room.
I recommend that you hang the sheetrock and hire someone to tape it out. I use sheetrock tapers that moonlight. I pay about $250 for a 10X10 room class 4 smooth finish.
A couple of things to consider:
First, the nominal thickness of your lath and plaster is 3/4". Most areas require 5/8" sheetrock on the ceilings and allow 1/2" on the walls. This means you need to fir out the walls so the door and window jambs will be flush to the walls. Change the electrical boxes in the ceiling. Since the electrical is likely knob and tube, it's also a good time to upgrade the wiring with grounded circuits. You can keep the knob and tube, or replace the whole thing with romex. Also, the National Electric Code prohibits burying knob and tube wiring in insulation. Since you'll have the room down to the studs, you have the opportunity to upgrade the wiring, and insulate the walls and ceilings which will provide greater safety, and lower your energy usage. Use metal electrical boxes which make the location and trimming around the boxes much easier.
Your local tool rental store should have a sheet rock hanging machine. The manual one makes lifting the sheetrock a breeze.
Also, invest in a sheetrock screwdriver. This will set the screws with a perfect dimple without damaging the paper face.
If you decide to tape the walls yourself, practice first to make sure it's something you really want to commit to.
j
2006-10-04 12:11:34 · answer #2 · answered by odu83 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It's not that difficult to do, but does require some strength to hoist and hold the panels in place to attach to the walls. So you may need to invite some friends over to help you out. Remember to use your sheets in whole pieces as much as possible, and the edges on one side have a slight bevel to give you room for the joint tape. This side should be to the outside (room side) of wall. Also, when you do have to cut a piece, try to arrange so the cut side is into a corner (again because of the tape thing).
There is a lot of work in taping and floating the joints after you get the drywall up. You can hire this out if you run out of steam after installing the walls.
2006-10-04 16:15:47 · answer #3 · answered by Jeffrey S 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The actual hanging part is not that hard....The hardest part of that is doing the ceiling...which you can rent lifts to help out with that....
Taping and mudding the joints is the hard part....it takes some practice to get the joints to look right....I would do the hanging yourself and the pay someone to do the joints....then you know it will look good....it shouldn't cost more that a couple hunderd buck to tape and mud one room...good luck
2006-10-04 12:27:46 · answer #4 · answered by yetti 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I've hung drywall for fifteen years and its easy its getting the seams mudded and sanded correctly but you will catch on if you have a friend thats done it before ask them to get you started and good luck.
2006-10-04 11:40:37 · answer #5 · answered by Just me 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Hanging the sheet rock is not the hard part. It's the taping and texture, that's the part that makes one pull their hair out! You could hang it yourself then have someone tape for you, I bet it's pretty cheap
2006-10-04 11:41:56 · answer #6 · answered by skhoury28nails 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋