PSA: I was putting up drywall wrong for years and didn't know it

I was hanging a new ceiling in my garage and my brother came over to help. He watched me for about five minutes, then just said, 'Why are you putting so many screws in it?' I had been putting a screw every 8 inches along every stud, because that's what I thought you were supposed to do. Turns out, for a ceiling, code is more like every 12 inches. I had been using almost double the screws on every single sheet for the past three projects. No wonder my forearms were always killing me and a 4x8 sheet felt like it took forever. I was just adding extra work and weight for no reason at all. Has anyone else had a basic building code fact slip by them for way too long?

3 comments

3 Comments

phoenix_grant23d ago

Wait you were putting a screw every EIGHT inches? Lmao no wonder your arms hurt, that's wild.

smith.elliot23d ago

Drywall screws cost money too, man.

-1

karen_carter23d ago

Yeah, I used to space them way too close. Switched to 12 inches on the edges and 16 in the field. Holds just fine and cuts your screw count by a third. Saved a ton on screws and my wrist stopped cramping up.