When compared to the application process for
other construction materials, attaching a sheet of gypsum board is a reasonably
simple task. After all, how difficult is it to find a stud and run a nail or a
screw through the board?
Because
all three are installed to prevent the passage of fire and heat, it’s not a
stretch to say that a fireblock, a draftstop and a firestop system each serve
a similar purpose in a building’s fire protection.
The Final Action Hearings to create the 2012 International Residential Code and the 2012 International Building Code concluded in mid-May. Three items of interest to drywall contractors were approved during the meeting.
This column first ran in Walls & Ceilings in July 2005. Our technical service hotline has recently received several calls that this article addresses, so we have decided it’s time to revisit the topic. We have updated the article in a few places to ensure that the information is current and germane to today’s circumstances.
It’s been about five years since model building codes were initially modified to limit the use of water-resistant gypsum board (“green board”) in shower and tub areas. Accordingly, it seems like a good time to review where the code language rests at present and to discuss some related misconceptions.
The Gypsum Association has been providing information to the construction industry since before it was officially an association. Prior to the formal establishment of the Association, several gypsum manufacturers had supported an informal Chicago-based organization known as the Gypsum Industries. The Gypsum Industries developed standards through third-party organizations and supported a research associate at the National Bureau of Standards.
This
column was originally run in October 2004 when home-owners were fixing up older
homes in hopes of flipping them for a handsome profit. Now that the housing
market is experiencing a correction in much of the country, more homeowners are
staying put and sprucing up their homes with the intent of upgrading without
having to sell in a soft market.
The use of gypsum board as a thermal barrier occasionally causes some misunderstanding. This seems to occur most often when an individual confuses the code requirements for a thermal barrier with the concepts behind an R-value, and he or she attempts to use R-values to resolve a thermal-barrier situation. Unfortunately, the two concepts, while somewhat linked scientifically, are altogether different and should not be viewed as equivalent or related ideas.