May 20: Sometimes, conventional wisdom should be questioned. In this case, it’s the conventional sequence of residential construction. Today, the drywall crew arrived to “hang the lid”—builder speak for installing ceiling drywall.

  In my quest for a super air-tight house, I decided to eliminate all electrical and mechanical penetrations through the ceiling and to insulate it and drywall it before framing out interior partition walls. While it takes separate set-ups for each crew and some flexibility in scheduling the next phase, it does make the actual job easier and faster.

Drywall is relatively cheap and it’s common to add a few sheets in case of a miss-cut, but I wanted to reduce waste. I also wanted to try out a product called Insta-Back that eliminates the need to cut drywall back to the nearest truss. I came up with a plan that saved 4 sheets of drywall, reduced the number of seams to be taped, sped up installation, and left me with a manageable pile of scraps at the end.

6 Insta-Back clips can be seen along this butt joint

My plan called for cut sheets at the perimeter only and full size sheets in the field, run past their truss supports. All lengthwise seams are factory. Butt seams are joined by Prest-on’s “Insta-Back” drywall clips that promised a “bump-free” joint with a 1-2 degree taper, similar to a factory joint.

Adam Esch of Esch Drywall appreciated the wide open space to roll his scaffold and did a great job. But I could tell he wasn’t too impressed with the clips. Later, I went back through with a level and determined that of 20 butt seams, only 2 had the requisite taper, while most simply held their own by laying flat. I’ll have 3 or 4 bad joints to deal with. At this point, I’m not sure if the problem can be blamed on the Insta-Backs, or the adjacent trusses. For the walls, I may try another product.

I chose 5/8” thick USG’s “EcoSmart” panels for their long list of green credentials and green certifications. The upcharge was under $20. The panels are significantly lighter and use less water in the manufacturing process. The ingredients are so benign, I tossed scraps at the edge of my lot to decay into the soil.

A Neat Pile of Scraps for the Garden

We left a 12” gap down the center of the ceiling at the request of the insulator. He’ll use the gap to snake his hose into the truss cavities. Later, we’ll fill the gap with 1/2” thick drywall for a smooth connection to the factory seams. Here’s hoping drywall mudding and taping will go well, because I’ll be tackling it by myself!