remodeling for geeks

Drywall Skim Coating - Outside Corners

My previous posting showed skim coating prep for inside corners. If you have outside corners they need to be fixed also.
Here is the soffit over the vanities at the Lightyear Sunken Bath Project. We are cornerbeading it to create a smooth job.

Cornerbead is available in 8' and 10' lengths most places. When you have a run that is longer, and need to butt two pieces together you bridge them. Bridging is using a small piece of bead behind your outside corner. This allows you to butt the next length to it and have a smooth line to tape and mud.

Now that the corner bead is installed the skim coating continues. Here I have skim coated the the walls of the soffit, but without running the beads. This gives a smoother area to run your knife against when filling the beads and the inside corners. A little work now saves a lot of work later.

I am using USG Dust Control Mud here as it works so well. Sands like a dream and clumps together for clean up.

Here is the corner with the next skim coat applied.

Here is the soffit area where we installed the bridging at the top of the post.

Drywall Skim Coating - Inside Corners

In remodeling you sometimes decide to bridge the new work to old or existing work. Matching or changing your wall surface becomes a consideration. This is a short guide on skim coating existing walls to match the new construction.

The previous wall surface is a heavy knockdown texture. Basically what happens is that the walls are taped and second coated, and then taping mud is thinned and sprayed on the walls with a texture hopper, and after a few minutes, it is 'knocked down' with a taping knife resulting in a textured wall. It is a cheap finish system and all too often is done badly.

This is the alcove where the toilet sits in the Lightyear Sunken Bath Project. In this case we decided to make the walls smooth. This has just about every thing you can run into when remodeling with drywall between old and new construction.

The left of this photo shows the edge of the drywall that covers where we installed a pocket door. The back wall shows where we installed a glass block for light and replaced the piece of drywall we cut out previously. You can also get a good idea of the 'knock down' texture.
The right side shows where we framed up the new partition between the toilet and the shower with the opening for the open shelf unit.

Here is the beginning of taping this area. We use mesh tape for the flats, and paper tape for the inside corners. Taping on texture has its own issues. When you feather your mud, the knife running over the texture telegraphs and creates ripples in your mud coat.
When taping inside corners on these areas, mud and embed your tape, and wipe down the new flat side first. This creates a guide area for wiping down the other side and give you a clean smooth corner.

Here the process is a bit further along with the introduction of the open shelf unit and the metal bead. This unit is trimless, so I installed 'L' Bead along the outside edges of the shelving unit. Not shown in this photo is a piece of mesh tape applied diagonally just below the high side of the bead. This strengthens the joint, minimizing cracking, and reinforcing the gap made by the bead and the drywall. We also taped the flats and installed the corner bead.

Look at the bottom of this photo and notice the grey triangular area. This is where I did not cut through the corner deep enough when I removed the old drywall prior to rebuilding this. 

Here is where I have prefilled this area thinking that I had gotten all of the loose paper removed. Bzzt! not so fast. You can see the bubbles from a bit of the paper that had separated. You have to remove these and fill them in. If you do not, succeeding coats of mud will bounce, and look bad. You can also get an idea of the texture filling with the splotchy area outside of the triangle.

Here is where I have taped the flats and the corners. You can see the diagonal line of where the two 'L' beads do not match up perfectly. This will be fixed on succeding coats. The magazine rack also gets taped. If it is an inside corner it gets tape.

The most important part of skim coating is taping the inside corners to provide clean sharp angles.

Once your corners are done, you can then begin the process of skim coating to smooth your walls. I have a graphic guide to skim coating here.

Lightyear Sunken Bath Episode 11 Access Panel Follies

The tub we have installed is a 36'' Jacuzzi Espree model. This presented a number of challenges such as planning and sizing the finish materials to trim out this unit. The walls are going to be covered completely with solid surface material from the top of the tub deck to the bottom of the soffit. The soffit was built wide enough so that we will have a clean vertical line between the tub and the soffit. 

It is designed as a drop in tub for those having bathrooms the size of 2 car garages and want to build platforms to display it. Why the hell you want to have steps to get into a bathtub, whose primary claim to fame is the therapeutic bubbling is beyond me, but hey, it keeps folks employed building displays for them. Now most of my visitors do not have bathrooms that large and in some cases like me, have houses that are barely larger than two car garages.
By now if you are following along, we have mounted it in a more traditional manner, (being surrounded by three walls.)

One of the things that I have learned in doing remodeling is thinking about working on things later. Electric tubs are a poster child for this thinking. Stuff breaks and requires access to repair it.
So for this project we are framing in an access panel. I talked with the solid surface guys and we had decided to put a panel across the whole thing with screws to be able to access the pump and motor down the road. Later that night I was thinking about it. Putting an access panel all the way across would mean that I would have an unfinished base trim detail in this area. So I made the panel surface smaller, providing blocking for the screws for the panel, the gap for the upper trim piece, and enough space at the bottom to be able to run the baseboard in this area. This allows the panel to be removed woithout damaging either the walls or the floors.

This is the front view. The back side is an ugly mess as I had to trim the track to clear the hoses and pipes on the top, and the stand, bracket and plumbing on the bottom.

Here is the left side showing the gap across the top for the reveal piece of solid surface. This also shows the pump housing that sticks out enough so the solid surface guys will have to router out the back side of the panel for clearance. This is one of those details that let you know that the product was designed for ease in manufacturing rather than ease in installation. sigh... another remodeling surprise!

I also provided a space to get into the back of the tub should it be necessary for servicing the jets or lines on the wall side.

Lightyear Sunken Bath Episode 11 Water Heater and Tub Installation

Tuesday and Wednesday had me taping up a storm to get ready for the installation on Friday. Thursday had me taping and painting the closet for Friday. I wanted to get the closet done so that I could paint before installing the water heater. Because I am basically lazy I don't want to try to paint around 500 pounds of water heater.
So here we are Friday morning.

I mentioned previously that the floor sloped. I also built a platform for the water heater to get it off the ground and level. Here that is.

This is basically 26'' square. The back to front drop from level is almost an inch. The side drop is a little less than a 1/4 inch. I bevel cut 2x4's, screwed them together, and used simpson anchors and blue screws to attach it to the floor. The top is a plywood deck with a piece of 1/8'' hardboard masonite material and 'power grab' glued it to the plywood.

I hope nobody tried to pick this up before I am dead or read this post, because it is one of those deals that will make them swear and go crazy trying to pry it up.

Chris and Vern from Exclusively Plumbing showed up and the installation proceeded.
First up was dry fitting the tub. Slid right in and surprised Chris. He mentioned and I know from bitter experience that this is not usually the case. Vern and I discussed the details and double checked everything while he was doing the rough in.

Some tubs come with a drain kit. This one did not. So while Chris went for parts, Vern installed the water heater and capped off the manifold that had been feeding this end of the house. Joe the electrician installed the wiring and we fired it up. One of the nice details was applying trims to the penetrations on the water lines.

Here is the light installed. It is a lot brighter than this photo.

Chris installing the drain kit for the tub.

This is why we built a form to keep this area clear of concrete.

We also installed an inline water heater for the Jacuzzi.

This was a weird deal as the cover had to be removed in order to get the nuts back far enough to slip into position. The plus to this unit is that it has a flow control switch, which means that if the water is not flowing, it is not on.

We have Bubbles!!!

Next thursday or friday the solid surface lads will be here to install their stuff. Meanwhile I will be taping and skim coating the walls, installing doors and trims and painting.

Todays brain fart... I can't count the number of Jacuzzi style tubs and hot tubs I have installed, but I have never actually used one. Maybe when I win the Powerball, I will get me one.

Lightyear Sunken Bath Episode 10 - Water Heater and Tub Prep 2

Having gotten the drywall hung it was time to tape. I always tape coat my flats and corners before installing corner bead. It works out better for me. I have a tutorial with the long explanation here. I am using 45 minute 'hot mud' 'speed set' for this as there is a lot to do and little time to do it in. Speed set is also moisture resistant and is preferred to tape tub and shower walls. The plumber and electrician are coming Friday. The closet needs to be painted by then and the tub area needs to be sealed for the solid surface guys who will be coming out to measure as soon as the tub is in.

Here is the ceiling in the water heater closet. The ceiling edge is covered with a 1/2'' piece of 'L' bead to provide a clean line. This area was originally a privacy area with a block wall and a sloping sidewalk. It got some stub walls and a roof, which was attached to the original roof eave which led to 'interesting' details (the first photo shows you the ceiling line) to work around to make this come out.
Notice that I have bagged the sub panel and covered the outlet. As you can see, just in time by the glob of mud on the electric panel. Filling the electric panel with drywall mud or touching live wires with a metal bladed taping knife will piss off your electrician and generally ruin your day.

The tub area gets some corner bead on the outside corners, as well as coating. The small windows are finished as much as they will get as the solid surface will be wrapping the exposed areas.

The large block window gets corner bead to square it, and will be filled and finished coated to make it flat for the solid surface application. Here I have also bagged the window.

The inside corners of the tub area are sealed and will be primed but no further mudding will be done here. It is not necessary.

Lightyear Sunken Bath Episode 9 - Water Heater and Tub Prep 1

In our last episode I discussed blocking prior to drywalling. Since we are installing a water heater  to provide water for the Jacuzzi, and fixtures on this side of the house, which included tying in the hall bathroom (an in progress change that made sense and did not add significantly to the cost), next is getting ready for installing the water heater and setting the tub.

Coordination is important for running these projects especially when acting as your own contractor in terms of getting the professionals like the plumber and electrician to work with you. For example on this project we have an electric water heater and an electric bathtub (i.e. Jacuzzi) I choose to have both on site during this phase as if there is a problem it can be solved without everybody having to make extra trips. When the electrician installed the panel and was testing it, he discovered that one of the new breakers was bad.(It happens)

We had already partitioned the space outside of the bathroom proper to provide a space for the heater and some storage.
By Monday I had the door between the bathroom and the new water heater and storage area removed and relocated in its new location, and had three of the walls drywalled and first tape coat on.
Over the weekend I tracked down a light fixture for this area as well as some other materials. Monday I framed out the opening into the storage area, drywalled the ceiling and archway, as well as the tub area.

The tub area was drywalled with M/R waterboard(green board) and screwed off. The majority of the new construction is steel stud which can't be nailed. The f;at seams are covered with mesh tape, the inside corners are paper tape and the outside corners are covered with metal corner bead.

This is the long wall with our glass blocks in place, and the soffit in the foreground at the top of the photo. These openings will be wrapped with solid surface. What you can't see in this photo is the plastic wrap that I covered the face of the blocks with. This is to make clean up easier after the soldi surface is done.

Here is the back tub wall drywalled. Notice the archway for the pocket door has some narrow drywall at the top and along the right side. Because this is getting a bifold door, the rough opening dimensions are narrower that a standard framed door opening.

On the left side of the new archway are two electical boxes. We are installing a Jeeves Heated Towel Bar. The bottom box is the power for the towel bar, the upper is for the timer. They are sold separately, but if you go this route it is a good idea as it takes time to warm up and you don't want it running all the time.

One last detail is the width of the soffit. It is 36'' finished. This will provide a straight vertical line for the solid surface between the ceiling and edge of the tub when it is installed. The soffit was originally designed to carry the electricity and water lines for the tub. In discussing this with the plumber we eliminated the waterlines, which saved time and money. The electric lines are up there as it was shorter than alternatives.

Chinese Drywall dissolving copper in Florida

Drywall is one of the most important materials in housing. It literally defines your interior spaces.
 An article in USA Today says that a Chinese drywall manufacturer, Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin produced defective drywall that is releasing  gasses that are corroding copper pipes and wire.

"Homeowner lawsuits allege that the drywall has corroded air conditioning and refrigerator coils, microwaves, computer wiring, faucets and copper tubing.

Tests paid for by Lennar say the drywall appears to emit sulfur gases that can damage air conditioning coils, electrical plumbing components and other material.

In one test, copper pipe turned black after four weeks when placed in a sealed container with a piece of affected drywall, according to a lawsuit filed Jan. 30 by Lennar against Knauf Gips of Germany and its Chinese affiliate, Knauf Plasterboard Tianjin, and others. The pipe then started to corrode, Lennar says."

According to the article up to 60,000 homes with the majority in Florida are affected.

"Lennar and Taylor Morrison, a home builder based in Arizona with a dozen affected Florida homes, say they're absorbing the expenses of relocating residents for the several months it can take to repair affected homes.

Lennar says it used the Chinese-made drywall in a small percentage of Florida homes built from November 2005 through November 2006. It's not being used in new homes, it says. Lennar and Taylor, both of which build homes outside of Florida, say they're not aware of homes outside of Florida being affected."

Source: USA Today

Not a very good deal on something that accounts for a small percentage of a construction budget, yet defines a house. One more reason I use USG Drywall.

Google Search Results.

Drywall 'Kicker'

'Modern' platform framed houses have walls that start out being over 8' tall. the 92 5/8'' for the vertical stud, the 4 1/2'' of the bottom and top plates, giving you 97 1/4'' roughly. Most  drywall is 48'' tall giving you 96''. Hold that thought. No we are not having the 54'' drywall discussion, since why the hell would you build a house that 1/3 of your cubic footage has to be cooled and heated that you get no benefit from (and how many of you are between 6 and 8 1/2 feet tall?) except being able to brag to the neighbors that your utility bill is bigger. This is not on your top ten list of things to accomplish on remodeling.

Hanging drywall is a procedure, that goes ceiling then walls. Drywall doesn't care which way you hang it. I do. You can hang drywall parallel to your framing, but it is not recommended as wood moves, and on ceilings if it does you will have cracks that run the entire length of the sheet, requiring you to fix over your head. Trust me, you are not going to like taping the first time around, the second time around there is more stuff to work around.

If you stand the sheets up on your walls, not only do you have a crack problem, but it is a lot harder to tape. By hanging your drywall perpendicular to your framing, you will minimize  cracking and being able to tape the wall seam at 4' is a lot easier than getting up and down sawhorses and ladders.

One of the lesser known drywall tools is the 'kicker', or floor drywall lifter.

Remember the 48'' tall drywall? Two sheets are 96''. Even with 5/8'' drywall on your ceiling, your wall is around 96 1/2'' high. the top sheet gets pressed to the ceiling and nailed off. The bottom sheet sitting on the floor has a serious gap. This is where the 'kicker' makes its entrance.

This is the most common variety. It is a noisy steel contraption whose sole purpose is to lever the bottom wall sheet tight to the upper sheet on your walls. You kick it into place, and push down with your leg and nail or screw the sheet tight to the upper sheet.

Better seams, better taping, better job. 

This is also handy for short lifts like lining up solid doors to slip in hinge pins, lining up cabinet faces.

It is one of those tools that most folks do not need for small projects. Check with your neighbors. There is an alternative using a wonderbar.

The Drywall Buffer and 'salty' terminology

Cutting drywall is a simple operation in most cases. Sometime the cut edges are not clean, having bumps where the material is sticking beyond where your  cut line is.

In the trade these are known as 'dogballs'.(no i have no clue either, it just is) It is important to clean them up for a clean tight drywall job. For that you need a Buffer.
This is a Stanley Pocket Plane, aka the mutherf*cker.

(another bit of salty trade terminology whose antecedents goes back to time is money. Drywall hangers for the most part are paid footage, which means that having to stop to buff off dogballs means taking time away from hanging, making the job less profitable, which is why they call this the mutherf*ucker. Professional drywall hanging is much more precise than it seems.)

Having a situation, and a buffer, a few quick strokes, and you are ready to hang your sheet.
 The tighter your joints, the easier to tape, the cleaner and better job you will produce.

You can use the edge of your keyhole saw or the edge of a taping knife to do this, but it is more time consuming, messier and less elegant.  

Drywall Circle Cutter

One of the more recent trends in home design for the home remodeler is the installation of recessed can lights, and speakers. Marking and Cutting the holes for them is real easy with a
Drywall Circle Cutter.
This is one of those tools that is not strictly necessary for the home remodeler, but if you are doing a lot of round lights or speakers, will make your life a whole lot easier.(this one allows you to mark holes up to 16'')

It is a very simple tool. It has a cutting wheel and a movable pivot. Once you have determined your hole center, by measuring the center of your light/hole from the edges of the sheets or walls, and transferred these to your drywall, you loosen the pivot and move it to the size you need, remembering that your measurement is at the front edge of the pivot. The photo below shows us we are making a 2 /3/4'' diameter hole. 

Note: You may want to make your hole a bit larger than your fixture diameter. A 6'' hole you may want to cut 6 1/4'' to allow for any imperfections in fixture or measurements. Care needs to be taken here, especially if using narrow trim rings.

 

Note that the pivot point is lower than the cutting wheel to allow you to get a solid pivot point. 

You press the pivot into the center of your marks and rotate the tool around, maintaining pressure on the cutter to cut through the paper.

 

Once you have completed your circle, depending on the size and location, either carefully hammer inside the circle to break the drywall,(you will need to use your utility knife to clean up the edges if you hammer) or use your keyhole saw to cut it out. 

This can also be used for the holes for the waste lines in your kitchen/bath/laundry rooms.