# new guy needs drywall advice



## ddavis14 (Jul 18, 2012)

Is there an easy way to calculate how much drywall i will need for a 4700 sq ft home? Just a rough 
Estimate will do. I'm thinking on buying an old 1900's brick home that has 4 levels. A basement, 1st and 2nd floors, and attic. It needs drywall in every room. The 4700 is just the first and second floor, basement and attic don't need any.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

For a house that size you would be nuts to try and do it on your own.
Make some calls to some rockers and have them tell you how much it's going to take.
There going to be able to do it far faster and have it come out better so your ready for painting and not spending weeks working on this.


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## ddavis14 (Jul 18, 2012)

Well call me crazy but i don't want to fork over the extra money when me and a buddy can do it. I was just wondering if there's a ole trick of some sort to get a rough estimate without measuring every room. Thanks for the reply.


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## joecaption (Nov 30, 2011)

Ever done a whole house before?
There just no way to guess at it. Measure and add at least 10% waste, that's the way people that do this for a living do it.
5/8 on the ceilings, 1/2" on the walls, green board or paperless in the bathrooms.
For a job that size buying a drywall lift to do the ceilings would make since then sell it on Craigs list.
Instead of a drywall gun I'd buy two Ryobi impact drill drivers. Not going to believe how handy that one tool will be later on.


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## mae-ling (Dec 9, 2011)

You can in some areas get 1/2" ceiling drywall.
And get a drywall gun it is made to properly push the drywall and set the screws.
Get some books, do a google and youtube search, you will learn lots.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8qSCklTJ0E&feature=player_detailpage


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## laorquidia (Jul 18, 2012)

This is how I'm estimating mine and I've never drywalled before and I'm new to the forum so take it with a grain of salt. (I was actually going to post about asking if I should try to drywall a ~2100 sqft house - husband and I - but I think the first post sort of answered that...) Anyways, the house we are buying is a rectangle shape (39x26 downstairs and 39x27 upstairs) and two stories. Anyways maybe someone can chime in if this is an ok method for estimating instead of measuring every nook and cranny. there is one hallway that runs in the middle of the upstairs, (39*6*8) (6 because 2 outer walls and the hallways get dry walled on both sides 8 is the ceiling height) + (27*8*8) (outer walls + 2 walls separating the rooms + the downstairs is just divided into 4 quadrants (39*4*4) +(26*4*8). for the ceilings just do the footprint 39*26*2. Can someone say if this is an ok method to estimate? should I actually measure each wall?


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## 7echo (Aug 24, 2008)

For the amount you two posters are talking about doing you might get a rep from the supply house to take a look and give you an estimate. You are going to get a better price from the supply house as well and they will deliver. 


If I were doing it myself I would try and be real meticulous with the measuring and end up 10% short or 30% over:whistling2:


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## LVDIY (Mar 28, 2011)

Most realtors that I've ever dealt with always do rough measurements of all the rooms of their properties. Use those to figure out how many sheets you need, or you can plug each room size into Home Depot's drywall calculator http://www.homedepot.com/webapp/wcs...53&cm_sp=8a2dfda9-bf1e-4ac2-ad96-90d3cea20878

Drywall is pretty easy and fast to hang if you have perfect walls and studs. My guess is that in an early 1900's house you'll be dealing with a lot of imperfections, and you could end up spending as much time shimming and preparing as you do actual hanging. I just got done drywalling a 220 sq ft room in what I think is a 1940ish building, and as a drywall newbie it took me 3 days to finish, working mostly alone. None of the studs were 16 oc, they all had more or less random spacing, and I had a lot of framing imperfections to deal with. I couldn't use a full sheet anywhere, and some sheets had to be cut on 3 sides to make up for out of square framing. That kind of stuff takes a lot of time. If you have a bunch of smaller rooms you could end up doing a lot of it. 

I'm not trying to discourage you, but just be prepared that this could be a lot of work depending on what your framing looks like under the existing finish. When you're done though, you'll be a pretty mean drywaller!


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## princelake (Feb 19, 2012)

it'd only take about a hour to walk to each room and figure it out. right on a piece of paper 8, 10, 12. then 8, 10, 12 for green board and make a tick for each sheet needed and you can also count the corner bead for each room the same way. and get your buddy to take a floor to. then when you order the board and the goons that deilver it can put the right amount of boards in each room for you.


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## coupe (Nov 25, 2011)

you'll have to figure out the square footage of drywall needed, is each floor 4700 square feet? that's9400 square feet on ceilings alone. then add footage of all walls to be done and double it, ( both sides) add all together and divide by 48 for 12 foot sheets? add 20% for mistakes/out of square rooms. and you should be in the right ball park for ordering drywall. don't forget nails/screws and glue!

good luck


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## chrisBC (Dec 28, 2010)

It would take you less time to go around with a pen, piece of paper and tape-measuring the board footage, than spend the time on here trying to figure out an easier way.

Try and get the longest boards you can to eliminate butt joints, they are harder to finish- especially if you haven't done much drywall work before.


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## Arey85 (Jan 3, 2010)

Take the square footage of the house and multiply by 3.7 This number should be close to the square footage of drywall you will need. Divide by the square footage of the sheets you want to use. Example 4700 sqft home will need 17,390 sqft of drywall which comes out to be 362 4 x 12 sheets. This is only for estimation. You will still need to measure the house before you order your drywall to figure out where you will use standups and 16' sheets. Figure a box of screws for every 150 sheets, a case of tape for every 200 sheets and a bucket of mud for every 10 sheets.


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## mae-ling (Dec 9, 2011)

Usefull 'ballpark' estimate.


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## Fix'n it (Mar 12, 2012)

just buy a bunch. then, when that is used up, go buy some more.


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## bjbatlanta (Jul 16, 2008)

Arey85 has the correct formula (I always multiply by 3.8) IF it's standard 8' ceilings. If there are vaults, trey ceilings, etc. multiply by 4. You'll need approx. 18,000 sq.ft. of board if you've got 8' ceilings. However, when you actually get ready to stock the house, go room by room and measure to get the lengths you need to minimize joints. A 13'-6" wall (or ceiling) would take 14' board. A 9'-8" wall would take 10' board. and so on. As stated above, buy from a drywall supply and delivery is included and the board is put in the house, not dropped in the driveway....


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## scottktmrider (Jul 1, 2012)

bjbatlanta said:


> Arey85 has the correct formula (I always multiply by 3.8) IF it's standard 8' ceilings. If there are vaults, trey ceilings, etc. multiply by 4. You'll need approx. 18,000 sq.ft. of board if you've got 8' ceilings. However, when you actually get ready to stock the house, go room by room and measure to get the lengths you need to minimize joints. A 13'-6" wall (or ceiling) would take 14' board. A 9'-8" wall would take 10' board. and so on. As stated above, buy from a drywall supply and delivery is included and the board is put in the house, not dropped in the driveway....


I have done this before on a basic ranch and come out real close.But dont forget the garage.


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## permillion (Aug 25, 2012)

*how many sq. ft are in one sheet of drywall*

ok i have a 144 sheets of drywall to hang, and i would like to know how many sq. ft. is in 129 sheets.if i had to charge per sheet what would be a good price for hanging


Arey85 said:


> Take the square footage of the house and multip
> ly by 3.7 This number should be close to the square footage of drywall you will need. Divide by the square footage of the sheets you want to use. Example 4700 sqft home will need 17,390 sqft of drywall which comes out to be 362 4 x 12 sheets. This is only for estimation. You will still need to measure the house before you order your drywall to figure out where you will use standups and 16' sheets. Figure a box of screws for every 150 sheets, a case of tape for every 200 sheets and a bucket of mud for every 10 sheets.


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## scottktmrider (Jul 1, 2012)

permillion said:


> ok i have a 144 sheets of drywall to hang, and i would like to know how many sq. ft. is in 129 sheets.if i had to charge per sheet what would be a good price for hanging


Usually you will go by board footage.Say you are using 12' board,129 sheets that would be 6192 bd ft.Than lets say they charge $.25 a bd ft that would be $1548.Thats just labor.

Where i live the taping will be about the same but the tapers supply the material.Some tapers will charge around a $1.00 extra per piece of corner bead.


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## LVDIY (Mar 28, 2011)

permillion said:


> ok i have a 144 sheets of drywall to hang, and i would like to know how many sq. ft. is in 129 sheets.if i had to charge per sheet what would be a good price for hanging


I'd say at least 2 cases of beer, assuming you're helping a friend out. 

If you are running a business, then only you know how long this job would take you, what your overhead is, your local market conditions and what your expected profit margins are.


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## stoner529 (Nov 12, 2010)

should take him about a month to do it himself with a friend. then he has to tape it! too. lol If he thinks he is good enough to do it himself, then let him. I love when people ask for a professionals advice and just completely ignore it. i would want at least 3-4 guys to do a house that big. I can't imagine that being simple 8 ft tall rooms in a house that is 360. there is always something wrong with a house that big.


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## scottktmrider (Jul 1, 2012)

stoner529 said:


> should take him about a month to do it himself with a friend. then he has to tape it! too. lol If he thinks he is good enough to do it himself, then let him. I love when people ask for a professionals advice and just completely ignore it. i would want at least 3-4 guys to do a house that big. I can't imagine that being simple 8 ft tall rooms in a house that is 360. there is always something wrong with a house that big.


I like when i give ho a bid to hang or tape drywall.They say thats way too much money i have a couple buddys i work with at the bank we could do that looks easy enough.Than about a week later i get a call to finish the job for him.Than i double the price for fixing thier mess they started and to teach them a lesson.


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## stoner529 (Nov 12, 2010)

scottktmrider said:


> I like when i give ho a bid to hang or tape drywall.They say thats way too much money i have a couple buddys i work with at the bank we could do that looks easy enough.Than about a week later i get a call to finish the job for him.Than i double the price for fixing thier mess they started and to teach them a lesson.


Well that's not nice...funny, but still...there is a reason for professionals in drywall


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## coupe (Nov 25, 2011)

Usually you will go by board footage.Say you are using 12' board,129 sheets that would be 6192 bd ft.Than lets say they charge $.25 a bd ft that would be $1548.That's just labor.

If you are running a business, then only you know how long this job would take you, what your overhead is, your local market conditions and what your expected profit margins are.

having been in the construction business, my entire working life. over 37 years in drywall alone, I can give you all an idea of how it works. first of all, contractors bid drywall by the square foot not board feet. contractors do not get their drywall from big box stores, they buy straight from the manufacturer. at a cost of $.18-$.24 per square foot. they don't buy 129 or 144 sheets at a time, they buy by the truck load. 3-5000 sheets a load or run. as they roll it out. the hangers, don't rally care if it's 12' or 8' sheets? as it takes about the same time to hang either. so a 12' sheet has 3 more studs t nail/screw? 30-45 seconds longer. they'll make that time up i closets/other areas using less nails/screws. the contractor bids Te job at $.28-$.34 per square foot. in turn, in my area, they'll pay hangers $7.50-$8.25 p er sheet to hang it. plus, maybe $1.00 per stick of corner bead. a team of 3 men who work together as a team. will hang that 129 sheets plus the bead in no more than 5-6 hours, and each man will walk away with $325.00-$350.00 apiece for the job. tapers/finishers are usually paid by the hour, $18.00-$20.00 per hour? not sure what the painter's union wages are? as I've been out of the business for 20 years. a good finisher will finish at least 2 houses a week. 28-30 hours per house. then a sander might go in to sand at $45-$50 per house or apartment?

many people, have the misconception that contractors work with a 10%-20% profit margin. in reality, it's only 2-4% profit.

that's it in a nutshell, from my perspective as a working foreman and in management of a fairly large drywall contractor with 3-400 employees.


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