Priming & Painting Drywall

Today, Sunday, we will be finishing up the painting on the main floor of the Cottage.

This is a picture I took last week of the drywall during the priming work. The walls and ceiling have been primed but the corners were still yet to be primed.

It was a bit of a pain in the butt to do the plastering and priming as I had the materials for the kitchen and bathroom in the middle of the floor. Unfortunately I had to take early delivery of these materials, and because it is winder I could not temporarily place them out in the gazebo.

Coming Up:
Tomorrow, Monday, I should have pictures of the walls with paint...

Related Posts:

Cottage on the Edge: Snow, Snow, and more Snow - Dec 18, 2008
Priming Drywall: Why You need to do it - Dec 18, 2008

;-)

Drywall Taping & Plastering is Complete

This past Sunday I was up to the Cottage to review progress. The taping and plastering was complete.

I was a great job!

Here is a picture of the finished product - this is in the larger bedroom in the basement.

In this picture you can see that the drywall was installed horizontally. This may seem counterintuitive given that the drywall is 8-foot long and the ceilings here are 8-foot but this creates the best look, strongest bond, and the least amount of plastering.

The sanding process makes one heck of a lot of dust as you can see in the picture - on the floor and the shorty step ladder in the foreground.

It was great to see the finishing of the inside coming to an end!

Next step is priming the drywall.

Coming Up:
In the tomorrow's post I'll share the finished drywall after priming...

Related Posts:

Types and Sizes of Drywall - Nov 18, 2008

Why use 54-inch Drywall for High Ceilings - Dec 01, 2008

Cottage on the Edge: Drywall Tip: Greenboard for the Windows - Nov 30, 2008

;-)

Priming Drywall: Why You need to do it

As I mentioned in the last post, the drywall was completed last week and over the weekend the drywall was primed.

A latex primer for drywall is a must. Primers seal the surface to equalize paint absorption, and minimize surface texture variations.

Not a Sealer: Some people confuse drywall primers with sealers. It's important to differentiate between the two. Sealers do just the opposite of what primers do. With a high resin content and low pigment content, sealers create a barrier resistant to paint.

Preventing Yellowing: You shouldn't let drywall sit too long unpainted after it's been taped and sanded, particularly if it's surface will have any direct sunlight falling on it for any time. Drywall facing paper can fade or yellow, and it may cause a slight bleeding-through and show a noticeable streaking effect. If facing paper has yellowed at all, you should seal the drywall with a top-quality latex stain-resistant paint prior to putting on the primer coat.

Priming gypsum board drywall must be done; there's no getting around it. So, in a nutshell, buy the highest quality primer you can afford - either latex or oil/alkyd - and apply it to your drywall well before painting. Not only will it look better, you'll have lower, long-term maintenance costs by not having to repaint sooner than if you bit the bullet and primed.

Related Links:
Painting new Drywall
Choosing a drywall Primer
Drywall Painting, Sanding and Priming

;-)

Snow, Snow, and more Snow

I was up to the Cottage this weekend to check in on my drywall contractor. He had been delayed because of a snowstorm last week so I needed to gauge where he was at.

He was in the middle of priming the drywall, as the taping and plastering was all complete. If you look closely in the window you can see his son paining with a roller in the master bedroom.

I was impressed, Darrel, my drywall contractor, had almost his entire family involved in the priming: wife and two sons. While they were no way complete it was clear they had done this before - I was assured of a professional job.

As you can see there is literally piles of snow up at the cottage - there is almost three feet of snow on the roof.

Coming Up:
In the next few posts I will show some of the drywall work

Related Posts:

Cottage on the Edge: Drywall Tip: Greenboard for the Windows - Nov 30, 2008

Why use 54-inch Drywall for High Ceilings - Dec 01, 2008

ywall is installed - Well Almost - Nov 17, 2008

Types and Sizes of Drywall - Nov 18, 2008

;-)

Finished Drywall... Not Quite

In looks finished in this picture - the drywall - but it isn't!

If you look closely you will see it has not been taped and plastered yet.

But it still looks nice - much different from the framed walls look.

Still I have been waiting for two weeks now for the contractor to finish the taping, plastering and priming of the drywall. First we had to wait because he had a job he still working on, and so it is this week that it is getting done.

Still... there was a delay! A snowstorm on Tuesday and Wednesday meant that there was a further two days of delay.

The impact is that I will not be painting this week but will only be able to get to it next weekend.


Coming Up:
On Monday I promise to show the finished product!

Related Posts:

Cottage on the Edge: Why use 54-inch Drywall for High Ceilings - Dec 01, 2008

Cottage on the Edge: Drywall Tip: Greenboard for the Windows - Nov 30, 2008

Types and Sizes of Drywall - Nov 18, 2008

Drywall Installation: First Stage is complete! 26 Nov 2008

;-)

Why use 54-inch Drywall for High Ceilings

Nine-foot ceiling are great!

They make rooms, even smaller ones seem much bigger. However there is a price to pay for that luxury, and that is in the drywall you need.

Standard drywall board is 48 inches in width, and while it can be applied vertically using 10-foot lengths the standard method is to apply drywall horizontally. Fortunately there is 54-inch wide drywall.

The two pictures in this post illustrate the issue dramatically.

We used greenboard drywall in the bathroom. Greenboard is only manufactured in 48-inch widths. The result is that there needs to be an approximately 1-foot strip of dray wall inserted in the middle of the wall. This means more seams and hence more taping and plastering.

However, when using the 54-inch width drywall only one seam is created.

Coming Up:
This week the drywall contractor is completing the taping and plastering so next week I should have pictures of the finished result for you.

Related Posts:

Green Drywall... Huh? - Nov 16, 2008

Types and Sizes of Drywall - Nov 18, 2008

;-)

Drywall Tip: Greenboard for the Windows

One of the last few cleanup tasks I had on my list last weekend was to complete the finishing around the window in the basement.

It has been my experience that these windows are subject to dampness. We use the greenboard drywall in bathroom to combat this problem, so I thought why not use it in this application as well.

In the picture you can see how I used the greenboard in the trim around the window.

I am very happy with the result!

Related Posts:

Green Drywall... Huh? - Nov 16, 2008

Cottage on the Edge: Framing Windows - No need to rush the view - Jun 24, 2008

;-)

Construction Heating in the Winter

I just have to tell you how amazed I am with the construction /contractor heater I purchased at Princess Auto.

This little electric heater may be small but it punches a big punch when it comes to making heat! It is under a foot square, but is able to heat the entire cottage. The heater is of course a 220-volt heater, so we needed to connect it to the dryer outlet.

I keep the heater set at about 3/4 on the thermostat and it has kept the cottage at a very comfortable temperature for the past week.

Why the Heater?
Well it is approaching winter here an it is nice to work in the warmth - but the big reason is that we are about to have the drywall taped and plastered, and that can not be done in the cold.

Coming Up:
Over the month of December, yes December, we are hoping to complete the drywall, install the electrical fixtures, the laminate floor, kitchen, and bathroom.

Related Posts:

Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter -Oct 27, 2008

;-)

Drywall Installation: First Stage is complete!

We we up on the weekend to pay the drywall contractor for the first stage of his work - the installation of the drywall board.

It was a great feeling and a sense of another milestone passing - that is having the drywall installed. Even though it was not yet finished - no taping or plastering yet - we got a a first real sense of what the interior of the cottage would look and feel like.

It the picture is my lovely wife, and work crew member, Lucie. As you can see the drywall is up but the waste is still piled higher and deeper...

Coming Up:
I have been playing around with he video function on my camera, so I hope to have a video of the cottage in an upcoming post.

Related Posts:

A Drywall - Plumbing Catch-22 -Nov 19, 2008

Types and Sizes of Drywall -Nov 18, 2008

Drywall is installed - Well Almost -Nov 17, 2008

Green Drywall... Huh? -Nov 16, 2008

Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter - Oct 27, 2008
Cottage on the Edge: Stairs make the Cottage feel more Complete - Sep 29, 2008

;-)

Disabled-Persons Modifications

My Mother had a stroke, and hence, has difficult maneuvering around a toilet like many disabled persons.

Knowing that I would be installing a assisting bar on the wall beside the toilet, I installed extra wood supports between the wall studs. Now when I come to install the bar I will be assured there is plenty of support to screw into.

In the picture, just below and above the wire, I installed a 2x10 block in the two stud spaces beside the toilet.

This is only one of several modification for the disabled I will be adding to the construction considerations. The key is to think through the disabled person's needs and build in the necessary modifications during the construction. It is often more difficult, sometime imposable to may the changes afterwards.

In this case installing the supports before the drywall makes the a lot easier, and eliminates the guess work of where the studs are later.

Related Posts:

;-)

Installing a Dryer Vent - Thinking Ahead

We will have a clothes dryer - eventually.

So it was necessary to think ahead and install the vent, as we wished to drywall the ceiling in the laundry room. It was a relatively easy task, given the ceiling and joist space were still open. Doing it later would have surely been a nightmare.

Not sure what the dryer nor what vent opening would be I opted for an nice large 5-inch vent pipe. If the exhaust from the dryer is smaller I can always get an reducer pipe.

Related Posts:

;-)

3 Tips for Creating Ceiling Bulkheads

I have to say I am rather proud of my ceiling bulkhead in the basement ceiling.

Because the main waste pipe runs the whole length of the cottage, it gets quite low at one end. That is because a minimum 1/4-inch drop per each 1-foot of run is required to achieve the right slope of the waste pipe. Over 20 feet of run means a drop of five inches . Given that the waste pipe is already almost 5 inches in diameter, the bulkhead needs to be over 10 inches at the low end.

This means that the bulkhead would be below the height of one of the bedroom doors. Fortunately I was able to slope the bulkhead and hence avoid installing an extra short door.

A few tips:

1) Place your Wires and Pipes away from danger
The bulkhead is used to hide the pipes and wires, but it also hides their location. In the future you will not know where they are. Place your pipes and wires at lease 1.5 inches from the walls and bottom of the bulkhead to keep them from penetrating nails and screws.

2) Protect the wires and plumbing
Sometimes it is just not possible to place the wires and pipes out of nails reach. When that is the case use strategically placed steel plates to protect them. These plates stop nails from penetrating into wires and pipes.

3) Install Access Panels
Make sure to install access panels so that you can get at sensitive areas in the future. Panels should be placed anywhere where:

• You might need to drain a pipe to prepare for winter
• There is a valve, water gas or otherwise.

Related Posts:

;-)

A Drywall - Plumbing Catch-22

I have a bit of a catch-22 problem...

I can't drywall the bulkhead under the bathroom, or specifically the tub, until I connect the tub, because I need access to connect up the exposed supply lines.

I can't install the exposed supply lines to the tub, until the drywall is complete in the bathroom so that I can install the floor covering.

What we can agreed to do is precut the piece for the opening in the bulkhead which I can install myself latter.

I still will have to install a access hatch for future winterizing access, however while big enough for doing the winterization, it will be way too small to do the plumbing connections.

Types and Sizes of Drywall

We used two types of drywall, two different thicknesses and over four different sixes of drywall in our Cottage.

Types of Drywall
We used mostly the normal type of drywall throughout the Cottage but used a moisture resistant drywall in both bathrooms. Called Greenboard, this drywall contains an oil-based additive in the green colored paper covering that provides moisture resistance. It is commonly used in washrooms and other areas expected to experience elevated levels of humidity.

There is also a form of cement-based drywall that is also used in bathrooms - mostly where shower enclosures are being tiled. Called cement backerboard, which is more water-resistant than greenboard, for use in showers or sauna rooms, and as a base for ceramic tile. We are using a pre-manufactured shower enclosure so the concrete drywall board is not required.

Thickness of Drywall
The standard, most used thickness of drywall is one-half (1/2) inch. All of the drywall in the Cottage is 1/2-inch except for the ceiling in the main floor.

The ceiling joists in the main floor ceiling are on 24-inch centers, hence, a thicker drywall is required to prevent the sagging of the drywall under the weight of the insulation and assisted by any moisture.

The alternate means to drywall ceilings is to use a 3-inch strapping on 16-inch centers on which the normal 1/2-inch thickness can be used. Truth be told, if I was to do it again, I would likely take this approach.

Width of Drywall
The standard width of a sheet of drywall is 48 inches. This is the width we used everywhere except on the walls in the main floor.

The wall height of the mail floor is nine feet, hence, the normal width of drywall would mean a one-foot piece of drywall would have to be used. The industry has solved this problem by creating a drywall version that is 54-inches wide.

Length of Drywall
The holy grail of drywall is to create a few a seams or joints as possible. Hence if you can use a piece of drywall that spans the entire length of a wall then there are no joins mid-wall. For his reason drywall comes in 8-foot, 10-foot and 12-foot lenghts, and we used all three lengths in the Cottage.

Hanging Drywall
Generally drywall is hung horizontally. This appears to create the fewest joints and creates joints that are not a visible to the eye. In the picture above the drywall is hung horizontally while it is vertical in the picture to the right.

Links to How to Guides:
How to Install and Finish Gypsum Panels
Drywall: Pro Tips for Hanging and Finishing
Drywall How To Manual
Housebuilders Drywall 01
YOUR ONLINE DRYWALL MANUAL

Related Posts:
Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter

;-)

Drywall is installed - Well Almost

When we arrived this past weekend, about two-thirds of the drywall board had been installed.

In terms of progress, all of the drywall in the basement was completed and all of the ceiling on the main floor. Left to complete is the majority of the walls on the main floor.

It was a mental milestone - seeing the drywall it -- as previously we were seeing a wide open space. Even with the walls framed you still just don't get the feeling of rooms yet...

Here you see the doors leading to the two bedrooms in the basement.

Next:
In the next post we will discuss the different types of drywall and there various merits.

Related Posts:

;-)

Green Drywall... Huh?

Yes! The drywall board in the bathroom is green.

This is a special type of drywall board which is mildew- and mold- resistant. It isn't that much more expensive and I can't think of a better way to ensure that the bathroom doesn't become a source of illness.

This is particularly important for cottages and many different guests means different styles of bathroom use. While you might always put the exhaust fan on, perhaps not everyone remembers. Moisture means mildew and other nasties.

BTW: The picture shows the wall finish over the plumbing, the copper stub-out, that was illustrated in an earlier post. (see Avoiding Freezing Pipes: Part 1 )

Related Posts:
Avoiding Frozen Pipes: Part 2 (of 2)
Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter
Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter
;-)

Heating Tip for Drywalling in the Fall & Winter

Drywalling and cold just don't work well together!

Not only does the drywall mud not dry well - it is more likely to freeze - it is downright unpleasant to work in the cold.

...and it is starting to get nippy now in Western Québec!

So I had the electrician install two temporary 240 volt outlets, one in the basement and one on the main floor, so that we could power a construction grade hydro heater.

It was actually an easy thing for him to do since he just connected off the stove outlet in the kitchen (seen in the picture) and connected a second in the basement off the dryer outlet.

Now if we could only get Hydro Québec to get in to connect us up to the grid...