The Gypsum Association recently released the latest edition of Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products, GA-216-2016. Press releases made many salient points about this document, including the fact that it is referenced in the International Building Code as an appropriate standard for the application and installation of gypsum boards and panels. However, there is much more that should be known about this relatively slim but incredibly important GA document.
While the Fire Resistance Design Manual, GA-600 is considered the Association’s flagship publication, GA-216 is colloquially known as the “Drywall Hanger’s Bible”. Just within over twenty pages, Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products provides virtually everything you need to know about hanging interior gypsum panels of every type and under a wide variety of circumstances commonly encountered in the field. Where other GA publications provide greater detail or clarity on the issue, GA-216 directs readers to those publications, many of which are free to the public. When addressing control joints in acoustical and fire rated systems, Application and Finishing of Gypsum Panel Products references both GA-600 and Control Joints for Fire-Resistance Rated Systems, GA-234, which is available for free download in the association’s online bookstore.