How to cut drywall straight

The Razor Knife

The most commonly used tool for cutting drywall is the razor or utility knife. You score the panel, apply some pressure, and snap! You’ve got a new, clean edge.

The sheet of drywall will even stand on end by itself. Remain on the back (unscored) side of the drywall. Bend the two scored sections so that they are 90 degrees to each other. With your utility knife, cut the paper on the back side of the drywall.

Drywall is a flat panel made of gypsum plaster sandwiched in between two sheets of thick paper. It adheres to metal or wood studs using nails or screws. Sheetrock is a specific brand of drywall sheet. These terms are often used interchangeably.

Home Depot will cut both wood and sheetrock to you specifications when you purchase it at their stores. A few cuts are normally free, but if you have an extensive cutting requirement, they may charge extra.

After measuring your drywall, lay a T-Square on the right side of the material. Use a pencil to draw a scoring line. With a sharp utility knife or other cutting tool, follow the pencil line and lightly cut through the paper layer of drywall.

1/2-Inch-Thick Drywall

Half-inch drywall panels are the standard thickness for interior walls, as well as ceilings. These panels are easy to carry and hang. Even easier to carry are ultra-light 1/2-inch panels, which are 13 pounds lighter than conventional 1/2-inch drywall.

The average price for drywall and sheetrock is $15 per 4′ x 8′ panel, with a typical range of $12 to $20 per panel. This translates into a cost of $0.40 to $0.65 per square foot. For walls and ceiling for a 200 square-foot room, you can expect to pay $300 to $500.

Cost to tape and mud drywall

To finish the drywall, it costs $1 to $1.65 per square foot. This works out to between $30 and $60 per pre-manufactured panel that’s hung on the studs and finished with texture.

Calculate how many drywall sheets you will need by dividing the total square footage of area by 32 (if you’re using 4-by-8 sheets) or by 48 (if you’re using 4-by-12 sheets). If you want to get the cost, just multiply the total number of sheets by the price per sheet. Remember to add local taxes and delivery charges.

On average, expect to pay a professional anywhere from $0.35 to $0.80 per square foot to tape, mud and sand the drywall to prep it to be painted. This price will not include the paint or primer. For instance, a 500 square foot room can cost anywhere from $175 to $400 to tape and finish the drywall process.

If your wall has distinct crevices, breaks, or textured areas, or if your brand of drywall mud isn’t offering enough coverage, you may have to do a couple of additional coats of compound. However, in general, you’ll need one coat to fill in the seams and three more coats after taping.

If you have about 2,000 sq. ft. of wall space, your total price for new drywall will be about $3,500-4,800.

A standard output average (on a wall that already has studs) is to hang between 4 and 5 sheets of drywall per hour, or between 35 and 40 sheets in an 8–hour day.

Drywall Costs

Drywall installation costs $1,835, with a typical range of $1,004 and $2,877. This translates into a price of $1 to $3 per square foot for materials and labor. Most homeowners pay $2 per square foot, depending on the number of rooms and the level of finish.

For this reason, drywall installation has a range of associated costs. The national average cost to install drywall is between $1,500 and $2,000, with most homeowners spending around $1,750 on 1,000 sq. ft. of standard ½” drywall, hung and finished in a remodel.

It costs approximately $875 to $1,100 to hang sheetrock in a 500 square foot room. This cost includes labor and materials, but it does not include the cost of removing old drywall or disposing of debris.

Multiply drywall square footage by the going rate

Once you have determined your sheet count and corresponding drywall square footage, you can multiply this by the contractor’s square footage rate. You can use the total drywall square footage numbers to estimate both material and labor.

You can expect to pay around $2.25-$3.00 per square foot for level 5 finish drywall. Because the cost of drywall installation can vary so drastically due to many factors, drywall contractors should take the time to look into project management software like eSUB.