Thursday, June 18, 2015

Drywall In a Tiny House? Part I

The decision to use drywall for the walls in my tiny house was, and is, admittedly a controversial one.  This is because drywall (aka sheetrock, gypsum board, etc…) will crack if exposed to too much movement.  Tiny houses on wheels like mine are actually built to MOVE so……there’s that.  Drywall is also pretty heavy.

I, however, really want to use something for my walls that has a more modern aesthetic than the most-commonly-used tongue in groove pine, and also I want to use a material that will be unique when compared to most of the other tiny houses.

So, I did what any tech-savvy tiny house builder would do and I googled it.  I found a reference to a tiny house that used drywall and had NO cracking issues.  Who’d thunk?  They used a product that is used on skyscrapers because as they sway in the mile high winds (imagine that) they move a LOT. 

What’s the product?  Magic Corner!


Here’s the link to the article I found: 

I immediately contacted the maker, Trim Tex, and got ahold of their marketing guy and talked to him about my project.  He was helpful, pretty enthusiastic about supporting my project, and a few days later my “samples” arrived.

I have never hung drywall before.  And, I really didn’t want to.  As I understand it, it’s a dirty job that takes forEVER and takes a bit of practice to get JUST right.  I also don’t want to use texture on the walls so getting the seams perfect would be necessary since “texture” is just another way of saying “cover up all the drywall mud bumps I left behind.”

Magic Corner Supplies.
Four drywall quotes later I realized that I would rather learn how to to drywall than pay someone $1500+ to do it for me.  ($1500? Seriously?  It’s a tiny house!) My confidence and motivated was further boosted by my friend who had just completed the drywall in her kitchen and had the super-duper-cool drill-thingy I could use that was designed specifically for the task of drywalling.  She told me that she would come help and bring her tools and we set the date. 
Yes.  We can do this.  (I think)
Figuring out how MUCH drywall I would need, what kinds, and what lengths; was next on my “TO DO” list.  I headed off to see my good friends at Parr Lumber.  I drew Ed a very nice “picture” of my floor plan (not all hardware stores appreciate this, mind you) and we talked about where I wanted the seams to be so they would not show, if possible.  We talked about green board (drywall you use in wet areas like the bathroom) and backer board (drywall you use for areas that are going to be tiled) and mud and tools and I left with a list of materials and a not-too-big chunk out of my pocket.  The total was less than $350 and, it turns out, I also had a lighting return for $300 so the chunk was even less painless.

On “Drywall Day” there was rain in the forecast.  Ugh.  If I had the drywall delivered they would have to put it somewhere and it certainly was NOT going to fit in my tiny house with all the work going on.  I couldn’t put it in the big house and the garage is full of STUFF!

I decided to rent a box truck.  The plan was to load the drywall into it and park it NEXT to my tiny house and store the drywall in there while we worked on the project. Having a box truck meant I could also return any extra materials if I had over-estimated. 

All ready to go!
So, what ELSE could I possibly fit into one day?  A big-city newspaper reporter called and said she wanted to come interview me that day and take pictures of me and my now-two friends working on the drywall.  I invited her to wear work clothes and help!?

Trim-Tex Magic Corners?  Check!
Drywall / Green Board / Tools?  Check!
Rental Truck?  Check!
Two amazing helpers with more experience than myself?  Check!
What have I gotten myself into?

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