From Bare Framing to Walls: Insulation and Sheetrock

Continuing with our beachside Florida renovation…

We had already taken down the walls on a quest to find where water was intruding and causing damage. We got a "red tag” for doing demolition without a permit, while looking for the source of water intrusion. Whoops! The situation was made right with the building inspector, and permits secured for structural, electrical and plumbing. The electrician has already been through, and we passed our pre-wall inspection. Onward...

Here is how we used insulation, installed Sheetrock and used joint compound to fix damage from rodents and water intrusion.

Early in our project, we needed to solve termite damage, water intrusion issues, plus damage and smell from rodents. A rats’ nest was present within the walls near the kitchen sink location, and it reeked of urine.

I began to rid the kitchen of the intense smells of rat by using gloves to pick out parts of the nest. Painting Kilz oil-based primer over the framing boards surrounding the smelly rats’ nest locked in rat urine smells and will do so for other similarly pungent odors (think cat urine).

Next, we used Roxul mineral wool insulation. This product is fire, termite and moisture resistant, which is very suitable to this wood frame, termite and moisture damaged renovation. Using a drywall saw, my husband cut the insulation about half an inch wider than the wood framing, and gently snugged the insulation between the boards. Unlike the more familiar pink stuff, this is the color of metal and pumice rock. It has fantastic sound dampening properties, as well.

Hanging Sheetrock was the next step in the progression.

We rented a drywall lift from one of the big home renovation stores. Using this simple lift, one person could place a piece of Sheetrock at a time up near the ceiling. Each sheet was secured in place with drywall screws into furring strips. We used a rotozip to cut around the canned lights. A tip: take photos of the electrical outlets, so that you know how many

Once the ceiling and wall sheets were up, we taped the joints and used joint compound to cover up the gaps between sheetrock panels and to cover up nail divots.

We smoothed a skim coat of ready-mixed joint compound over the surface of the new walls, to give them a slight texture and to finish the drywall. Time is required for drying in between coats. We have dragged our children along on our real estate journey, and urge them to assist where possible. The final steps for a smooth finish: sand the ceilings with a sanding pole, vacuum up the fine dust, wipe with a damp cloth. This gives a good clean surface for priming and painting.