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Drywall Types

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Drywall Types

Here s another great tip from BobVila.com. U.S. Gypsum developed a way to sandwich plaster between two paper faces and make wallboard as early as World War I, but the manpower shortage of World War II is what really made it catch on. Before drywall, builders nailed lengths of wood, called lath, to the studs and then applied several coats of plaster to that for a smooth finish. As many of us with old houses can attest, lath and plaster walls can last a long time but they re hard to deal with if you re having rewiring, insulation and plumbing needs. Drywall comes in various thicknesses. For interior walls, one-half-inch works fine but won t stand up to heavy abuse. Five-eighth-inch is required for fire hazard walls like garages and basement entries. Standard paper-faced drywall is grey and comes in 4x8 or 4x12 sheets, designed to make it easy to cover from stud to stud with minimal cutting. But even cutting is made easy. Most drywall scores and snaps with a simple utility knife. Holes can be cut by hand with a short keyhole saw or a small rotary tool. Special fiberglass-faced drywall was recently introduced to help prevent mold problems that can develop when traditional paper-faced drywall gets wet. This new product finishes just like paper-faced drywall with tape and joint compound. Behind tile, in bathrooms and in other wet areas, it s important to use cement board. This denser product is waterproof and faced with fiberglass mesh that won t degrade or mold when it gets wet. In the past, some builders used a product called green board in bathrooms, but time has shown that this product is not a good substitute for cement board. Find out more at BobVila.com: the ultimate home improvement web site! 2008 BobVila.com

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Blown-In Insulation in the Plaster Walls

Bob again meets up with insulation contractor Joe Sheridan in the main house where the Cocoon insulation in being blown into the original plaster walls. To accomplish this, Joe's crew has drilled holes every 16 inches so that they are into every stud cavity. They drill one high and one low to acheive the proper density. First they apply it to the bottom and fill till it's solid in there - about 30 seconds on a bottom cavity. The installer can tell when it's filled from the pressure of the hose. The product will start backing into the hose. With experience you can hear it. Thge goal is to create maximum density in the cavities - leaving no air pockets. When the insulation process is complete a plasterer will have to come in and patch each hole individually.

Blue Board Plaster Walls

Bob joins Bob Fragakis, a plastering contractor. Bob, along with his helpers Joe and Larry, will be installing blue board and then applying a plaster skim coat over the blue board. Blue board is used as its paper makes a ready surface for plaster adhesion. Fragakis� helpers show how to install the twelve-foot sheets to the ceiling and walls. He then explains the tools and materials used to smooth the plaster, deal with joints and corners, and prevent future cracks.

Preparing the Finish Plaster Coat

It's time for the finish coat on the new plaster walls. Gary Annino explains how the plasterer creates a gauge of slaked lime and water. The gauge acts like a swimming pool into which water is poured and plaster is sprinkled and left to sit. After about ten minutes, the reaction is complete and the gauge is ready to be mixed into a lime plaster. This lime-plaster finish coat will be applied in a thin coat then polished up with a final application until it shines like marble. During this last pass and polish with a trowel, the plasterer keeps a spray bottle handy, constantly spraying the plaster so the trowel will glide over the surface and polish it smooth. Overall, the finish coat is about 1/8 inch thick. Bob then looks at the ceiling where wire lath is used to repair the holes and allow them to rebuild the plaster. The entire ceiling will receive a skim coat of lime plaster when the rough coats are done.

Installing a QuietZone Solserene Fabric Sound Absorbing Ceiling

Bob talks to Ken Lanoie of Owens Corning about adding sound attenuating insulation to the nursery. Lanoie describes the QuietZone Solserene Ceiling Fabric System used in the project. A Solserene ceiling is made up of three components, with high-density fiberglass boards to absorb sound installed in a track system that holds them in place. The boards are then covered with fabric. Lanoie reviews the installation process of the boards, followed by the fabric covering. After the boards are put in place, fabric is stretched over it and tucked behind the track, which has teeth to grab the fabric and secure it. QuietZone Solserene comes with a tacking knife to assist in the process. The system helps reduce the echo effect of noise in rooms with hardwood or stone floors, plaster walls, and other hard surfaces. The fabric is pulled so tight it looks like a normal plaster ceiling and can follow and architectural configuration, including angles, dormers, and rounded edges. It costs about six dollars per square foot.