How is drywall attached to studs

Create a personalised ads profile. Select personalised ads. Apply market research to generate audience insights. Measure content performance. Develop and improve products. List of Partners vendors. Project Overview. Featured Video. Materials Drywall screws. Locate the Studs The ends of drywall panels will always fall over studs but is it also important that the panels also be anchored to studs through the center of the panels the "field".

Tip If you do a lot of drywall work, you may want to invest in a specialty drywall screw gun. Show Full Article. Your Privacy Rights. To change or withdraw your consent choices for TheSpruce. At any time, you can update your settings through the "EU Privacy" link at the bottom of any page. These choices will be signaled globally to our partners and will not affect browsing data. We and our partners process data to: Actively scan device characteristics for identification.

Cover the box with another panel, and attach it as in Step 3; do not drive screws any closer to the box than 24 inches. From the mark on the last installed panel, measure out onto the new panel the same number of inches recorded previously, and mark the spot with an X. Plunge the bit of a rotary cut-out tool into the center of the X. Move the tool outward until the bit strikes the inside of the junction box, then withdraw it and plunge it back into the panel next to the outside of the box.

Hold the bit against the box and move the tool counterclockwise around its perimeter. Once the cutout is finished, drive the remaining screws into the panel.

Cover the wall Photo by David Carmack Mark all the stud locations on the adjoining ceiling panels. Use a tape measure to ensure the first panel's end will land in the center of a stud; if it won't, cut the panel as in Step 2.

With a helper, hold the panel against the studs so that one edge butts against the ceiling panel and one end fits snugly against the abutting wall. Following the stud marks on the ceiling, drive a line of five screws through the drywall and into each stud. As in Step 3, start screwing into a stud close to the middle of the panel and work outward.

Continue hanging panels along the top of the wall, right over any window and door openings. The excess will be trimmed later. Make sure no seams line up with a door or window corner. Don't fasten panels to the framing around the openings yet. Trim around doors and windows Photo by David Carmack Install the next row of panels as in Step 4, butting the edges tightly together.

As on the ceiling, offset the end joints from those in the previous row by at least 4 feet. Cut out the switch and outlet boxes following the same procedure as with the ceiling boxes in Step 3: Mark the box locations before covering them with drywall, taking care not to drive any screws closer to each box than 24 inches.

Cut holes for the boxes with a rotary cut-off tool, then drive any remaining screws. With a cut-out tool or drywall saw, trim any ends and edges that project into window or doorway openings flush with the face of the innermost studs.

Then screw the panel to the framing. Make inside and outside corners Photo by David Carmack At inside corners, simply butt the end of one panel against the face of the panel on the adjoining wall. For outside corners, install the first panel so its end is flush with the studs on the adjoining wall. Overlap this exposed end with the panel on the adjoining wall, so that the corner is completely encased in drywall.

With blueboard, the panel ends do not overlap at outside corners; their ends land flush with the corner of the stud. This void will be filled later with plaster. Cover outside corners with a metal corner bead, cut to the height of the wall. Do the same on the adjoining wall. How to keep studs in line Illustration by Gregory Nemec Drywall contractor Paul Landry assumes that carpenters frame walls so they are flat and straight. But he knows from experience that in the six to eight weeks between the time the framers finish and the drywallers start, studs can move, twist, and bow.

If he locates a wayward stud on an interior wall, Landry quickly brings it back into line with a saw and a shingle. For information on cutting drywall, see How to Cut Drywall. On ceilings, use drywall screws to fasten drywall panels perpendicular to joists. Using a screw gun or drill driver to attach panels is easiest, particularly for ceilings. Most codes call for spacing fasteners every 8 inches along panel ends, edges, and intermediate supports.

Before installing drywall panels, mark wall-stud locations on the floor and ceiling so you can find their locations easily after the panels are in place. HomeTips Tip: Take photographs of walls before installing drywall so you can easily locate pipes and wires after walls are covered. If you nail the panels, use a drywall hammer to dimple the drywall surface with the final blow on each nailhead.