Making Drywall Easier

The drywall phase has begun.  I have finished framing, plumbing, electrical, and insulation, and now the basement is slowly going to start to take on the appearance of a real living space.  That being said, I’m sure this is going to be a long process.

I got my first load of drywall earlier this week, getting 24 sheets to get me started.  I’m estimating around 80 sheets to cover both my walls and my ceilings, so I’ll have a few more Menards runs before I’m all done.  I’ve also estimate approximately 3200 screws needed for the entire job, so we’re talking about something big here.

Like a lot of my work in the basement, I have had to do a lot of reading and research into what it takes to hang drywall.  And as a side note, it’s interesting to note that drywall is not installed, it is hung.  I saw one how-to video where they referred to what they were doing as “rocking”, since drywall is also called sheet rock.  Anyway, I am drywalling the ceiling, and drywall is too heavy for someone like me to hoist it up by myself to get it into place.  I looked into renting a lift, but decided to take my chances on eBay.  I ended up getting a drywall lift on eBay for just a little more than hardware stores would rent one to me for a week.  So far, it has been worth every penny and then some.  I have put up 4 sheets so far, and this tool great.

This helps me hang drywall on the ceiling by myself

The lift has a tripod base (three wheels) so I can move it around even when the drywall sheet is cranked up to the ceiling.  It might be my favorite tool so far.

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