Drywall is one of the easy-to-use construction materials one should consider using. However, when installing drywall, you must be careful to avoid errors that can be costly to rectify. You can use drywall when installing plain old walls with no obstruction. But one of the questions you will have is whether the drywall should touch the floor or not.
The drywall shouldn’t touch the floor. Provide some room for wall and floor expansion to prevent the drywall from cracking. Leave between 1/2 -inch and 1 inch between the surfaces, protecting the wall from moisture buildup when the floor floods.
In this article, we’ll tell you why drywall should not touch the floor and other things you need to know about installation.
Reasons Why We Leave Space
One of the major reasons we leave space between the floor and drywall is to give room for expansion and contraction. Remember, the floor and walls tend to expand under extreme temperatures or conditions.
When this happens, the surfaces will put pressure on each other, and if there is not enough space, the drywall will crack, forcing you to do unplanned repairs.
Additionally, a gap is necessary as it prevents the drywall from absorbing moisture from the floor. When the drywall gets wet, it’s prone to break down, resulting in damage.
Most concrete floors are also not perfectly level. This means any lump on the concrete floors will force the drywall to be unlevelled, causing gaps between the drywall and the ceiling.
Should Drywall Be Installed Before or After Flooring?
When constructing or repairing your home, one of the tough decisions you’ll have to make is whether to install drywall or flooring first. It’s advisable to install drywall before the flooring because drywall tends to be messy.
If you install the flooring first, you will have a lot of cleaning work to do. Drywall on the floor will also cause damages which can be costly to rectify. Furthermore, removing the flooring is easy as the drywall will not extend over it.
How Far Should Drywall Be Off the Ceiling?
A 0.37-inch gap between the ceiling and the drywall is recommended. This space provides room for fixing screws and fasteners. Without this gap, the building will experience structural problems with time. Buckling of the surfaces can occur, requiring you to do repairs.
Besides that, the gap will provide room for the expansion and contraction of the walls when there are extreme temperature changes. This will prevent cracks and warping on the drywall, which is costly and challenging to repair.
Remember, when you install the drywall too close to the ceiling, it will crumble at the edges or break out at the corners. Removing the drywall piece closely fixed next to the ceiling will also be messy and time-consuming. So, leaving a gap is best to avoid all these problems.
Can You Drywall Ceiling After Wall?
You can drywall ceiling after wall. But this will be tiresome and not offer the necessary support the ceiling drywall may need. For this reason, it’s best to do the ceiling before the walls.
Why Drywall Ceiling Before Walls
For Better Support
You should install the drywall on the ceiling before the walls because the drywall on the walls will offer enough support to the ceiling pieces keeping them in place. If you drywall ceiling after wall, the screws and taping will be the only support it will rely on. With time the drywall weight can pressure the adhesions, making them crack around the edges.
Gives Clean and Fitted Corners
It will also be easier to create tight and fitted corners. This will result in clean, beautiful corners that make the drywall the focal point in the room. But installing drywall ceiling after wall may cause imperfections as the drywall corners are tricky to handle. This can create gaps and other inconsistencies when you push the drywall pieces against the wall.
It’s Faster and Easier
Installing the drywall on the ceiling first before the walls will also be faster and easier. This is unlike when you start with the wall and finish with the most challenging part above it, which requires keenness and more time.
Remember, the drywall wall installation won’t take much time after you complete the drywall ceiling. This will encourage you to finish the remaining job which isn’t much.
Additionally, you will not know the suitable space to leave when you start with the walls. But it will be much easier to push the drywall against the ceiling to have a perfect fit that covers the leftover gaps.
Bottom Line
When installing drywall on the walls, leave a gap between the floor and the wall. The ½-1-inch gap will allow expansion and contraction to prevent the drywall from cracking. It will also prevent moisture from the floor from rising up the drywall.
If possible, install drywall before the flooring to avoid additional cleaning work. Also, leave some gaps between the ceiling and wall when installing drywall. But don’t forget to drywall the ceiling before the walls to have clean corners and enough support.
Read More About Drywall: Drywall Bowing (Causes & Fixes!) (❁´◡`❁) Cracks Where Ceiling Meets Wall (How to Fix!)
