interior walls for garage

[Butch(OH)]

Beside our house we have and older 20x30 building that is kinda attached to our house, only by a doorway and 8 foot of one wall. Years prior to us it was converted into a one car garage. It is tight and has a nice concrete floor and overhead door. They finished the ceiling and interior walls with cheap 18 wood paneling. It is deteriorating and we want to replace it. I wanted to do white ribbed steel but wife thinks she wants drywall and painted. Question is how well will drywall hold up in an unheated garage? I am worried about moisture with weather changes.

 

[Steve@Advance]

I need to follow this.

My attached garage is the same, crappy dated paneling and popcorn ceiling that is falling off.

I've been considering taking the paneling down, scraping the ceiling, texturing and priming, painting with exterior paint.

Lets see what the others recommend...

 

[44 massey]

OSB sheathing would be my choice but with the cost of any kind of wood right now the metal would probably be most economic way!!!

 

[K Effective]

Drywall is required here on garage walls that separate house from car space- 5/8" for fire rating. We chose to drywall all of ours. I insulated the stud spaces with fiberglass batts and blew the ceiling with cellulose, but have no heating system.

The joints were finished by the pros who did the rest of our house during remodel- most have cracked and will open up during cold weather, then close tight in summer.

I painted all with oil-based gloss exterior white- it has proven to be very durable and washable, I use a bucket and wash mitt and hose it down. We host the family reunion and use the empty garage for all the tables of food, so cleaning is scheduled.

Hard to beat the price of drywall, normally. Not sure how the hurricanes/fires/nnalert has affected the price.

There are sone really cool plastic or plastic over plywood alternatives, but price goes up fast, and joints/corners become more labor intensive.

We have used pole barn metal turned backwards- it usually has an eggshell off-white finish, and is smoother with the ribs facing in and screws in the recesses. You might find some odd color or mix/match colors and turn them around to all be the same.

 

[Butch(OH)]

OSB is/was under consideration, not only has price went to the sky but has anyone beside me noticed that every tine the demand for OSB and price goes high that the quality goes in the toilet?

 

[Butch(OH)]

We have no codes or inspections to deal
with here. There are several Amish
dealers near us that sell steel and they
have a ribbed product made for interior
use. Last I checked was just under $2 a
foot cut to length and lays 36" By the
time you purchase the trim and screws you
have some money in it.

 

[K Effective]

The drywall butt joints are the ones that opened up here, most of the side joints are okay, better suited for more mud. If you were just doing the walls, you shouldn't have to worry about those.

I'm not sure where the price is on those textured vinyl panels from the box stores- the joint trim is relatively easy to use and they look nice. I got a load of used ones from an old DIY car wash and flipped them backwards to line the interior walls of my barn where the cattle are. Holds up well to direct-application manure.

 

[showcrop]

Check out Kallwall fiberglass.

 

[Bret4207]

Everything is wicked high right now IMO. If you could find a mess of used roofing I'd tack it up and spray it white. Sheetrock is stupid high right now, way more that it should be no matter the excuse. At least with metal once it's up you're done. Sheetrock in an unheated building you WILL have issues no matter what you do.

 

[1948CaseVAI]

Every attached garage near me is unheated and drywalled. Works fine!

 

[Russ from MN]

I have always had drywall, taped and painted, and it has been fine, but it's a lot of work. If I was doing a new shop I would probably use white painted steel, with 6 feet (2 sheets) of a darker color on the bottom. It depends on how fancy you want it. With steel you have the corrugations to deal with when attaching shelves and cabinets.

 

[Mule Meat]

You mentioned White Ribbed Steel.

Something that I have used a number of times on out buildings, porches and shelters that may be a little interesting to you.

Metal roofing. 99% of it is the same white on the back side no matter what color "up" shows. A lot of places that sell metal roofing will have a pile of scratch & dent, returns etc that they are willing to sell cheap.

Installed "upside" down it makes great wall and ceiling panels.

Just something for you to ponder.

 

[circus]

It's been many years and the garage drywall is fine. You have to use 5/8 drywall on the ceiling and, common to the house, wall in a attached garage. Fire stop. Using setting type plaster to bed the seam tape will avoid cracks as the humidity changes. Don't let the bottom edge of the drywall touch the concrete floor. Good luck

 

[Mike(NEOhio)]

You can use the waterproof drywall that's used for bathtub enclosures. Light green in color. If you're worried about moisture.

 

[WNYBill]

Butch,

I am with you on using metal rather than drywall. Use 1x3 for trim and forget the special screws, deck screws will work fine. If you mark the studs you could use roofing nails. Every drywall garage I ever saw had a hole in the drywall where somebody or something got too close. And you have the moisture to consider.

Bill

 

[dr sportster]

Different types of sheet rock for different applications

 

[ss55]

Drywall on garage walls has worked well for me. I haven't had any problems with holes through 5/8 thick walls, thinner 3/8 or 1/2 inch would be a problem. I would think anything that could punch a hole through 5/8 will also dent or punch through thin sheet metal too.

Check your building codes, you may need some kind of fire stop between a house and any attached structure, if not now, in the future when you want to sell it.

I would be concerned about noise with metal walls and a metal ceiling inside a small garage. Air compressors, table saws, impact guns and other noisy machines might ring like an alarm clock inside a coffee can as there is nothing except the concrete floor to absorb the sound waves. At an absolute minimum, I would put drywall on the ceiling to absorb much of the sound.

You can always apply sheet metal over drywall along the lower part of the walls to protect them. Is there already drywall behind the decorative paneling?

 

[Butch(OH)]

We have no residential building code or inspection. The building has full 2x4 oak studs and 2x8 oak ceiling joists. It has tongue and groove wood siding overlaid with vinal. Inside they nailed the paneling directly to the studs. There is nothing going on in the building except a refrigerator and wife parks her car in it.

Buildingis only attached at right front corner and next 8 foot or wall to right

 

[kris Jensen]

I would suggest drywall and for the extra cost go for 5/8 inch. It is strong and durable.
Ours is 22x22 and attached to our house with one wall. Code requires drywall. Good quality outdoor semi gloss paint.
It is washable, therefore cleanable. After that you can cover it with whatever
you want. Live on an island in the Pacific. very few days in 20 years has moisture been a problem
If you are going to poke large holes in it I would suggest retraining in your work methods
or a separate outdoor covered space

 

[Stephen Newell]

You might use the green rock. It's about $3.00 more a sheet but is water resistant.

 

[Skyhighballoon(MO)]

Butch when I built the new house here at the farm (central Missouri) in 2015 it included a 54'x36' deep attached garage on the south end. All 2X6 outer walls and clear span roof trusses on 16" centers matching the studs. Both the walls and ceiling were sheet rocked and finished to the same level as the interior house sheet rock then painted white. R19+ blown cellulose in the walls and R30 blown cellulose in the attic over the garage. R9 insulated garage doors but they stay open much of the time during the day in warmer weather. I've had zero issues with any sheet rock or joints deteriorating or cracking even with summer humidity. Garage averages about 50 degrees with no heat even in the worst of winter if you close the doors right away after leaving/coming home. My biggest issue is mud wasps/daubers making nests all over in the summer when the doors are left open and spiderwebs up in the wall/ceiling corners.

 

[showcrop]

Whatever you end up putting on it I would insulate it while the current covering is off. Even if you don't plan to be out there it would add a lot to the resale value.

 

[C.Amick]

In addition to moisture problems, drywall also doesn't hold up too well in extreme temperature changes as the unheated building expands and contracts. Might consider using 4 by 8 sheets of exterior wood siding.

 

[Ultradog MN]

I put 5/8" fire rated drywall in mine.
Taped it with Durabond.
It will last a long time.

 

[gregww]

My walls are covered with 1/2 inch plywood. Yes it is more expensive but, when I want to hang something, or put up shelves, I put it where I want it, Not where the studs in the walls dictate I can put it.

 

[Bret4207]

(quoted from post at 20:38:13 10/12/20) In addition to moisture problems, drywall also doesn't hold up too well in extreme temperature changes as the unheated building expands and contracts. Might consider using 4 by 8 sheets of exterior wood siding.

Agree. Some guys say they've never had any moisture issues with sheetrock. I have to think they don't live anywhere like I do with temps from 100F plus to -40F and humidity that's through the roof. I have sheetrock stored in my barn now that will have to be looked at very carefully before use and it's less than 4 months old!

As far as the "waterproof" sheetrock, it's not. Read the product description from the manufacturer ."Resistant" isn't the same as "waterproof". I have a bathroom ceiling that proves that!

 

[Blackhole49]

I'm with greg. I put 7/16 OSB in my 22'x 24' garage and 24'x 40' shop. Once painted it doesn't look
bad and sure is handy for shelving and hanging things. My son liked it so much, that's what he put
in his garage when we built it 3 years ago. The only thing he didn't do is paint it. His theory is;
hey, it's only a garage.

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[Loosehandle]

Steel for sure

 

[Farmall Bob]

Hi Butch,
We have dry wall in a large (2) car garage, and added a wall mounted gas heater, works great for me.
Bob

 

[buickanddeere]

Vapour barrier .
Insulation and double drywall with offset
Seams . A lot
Of houses burn due to fires starting in the attached garage .

 

[Dusty MI]

I built my new shop in the summer of '13, used 7/16" OSB. Painted it before hanging it.

 

[kcm.MN]

I haven't read through most of the replies, but this is one idea the wife and I have talked about in the past:

There was a time when we considered putting solid PVC soffit on the ceiling of a room, or a porch, or even the interior wall(s) of an outbuilding. Another idea is to use fiberboard lap siding. That would be hard, waterproof, and fire resistant. Another plus of the fiberboard is, it easily accepts paint, so could be re-painted any time desired.

 

[bc]

(quoted from post at 11:41:35 10/14/20)
Vapour barrier .
Insulation and double drywall with offset
Seams . A lot
Of houses burn due to fires starting in the attached garage .

Definitely something to think about. One of my cousins in Gary Indiana burned to death working under his pickup one winter out in the garage. Not sure what he was doing or how but somehow the heater he was using must have caught some gas on fire. Gruesome death. He was always a much better comedian than I was. Had lots of laughs with him.