Ready for Drywall!

March 16, 2023

Just finished our pre-drywall inspection with the construction manager, George Leon. George is a very experienced manager who knows this business inside and out. It's such a pleasure just to spend time with him since he explains everything so well. When it comes to houses, George has seen it all.

During the inspection George took as much time as we wanted to point out various items and explain them. It certainly raises our confidence that there is someone keeping a close eye on what is going on. Thank you George!

Promise to post a picture of George next time!

During the past few weeks the focus has been to accomplish everything needed to prepare the house for hanging drywall. Everything that lives "inside the walls" needed to be addressed.

During that time we stopped by every few days to check things out. Fun!

All the ladies

It started with plumbing and ventilation.This included water lines, propane lines, vent pipes, plumbing pipes, vents for all 7 bathroom fans, vents for the kitchen, air conditioning lines, and the gas fireplace.

Sink area in Master

You can see how each cut through the framing has a metal plate installed to prevent inadvertent punctures later one such as during drywall installation.

Master Shower

Plumbing needs to be tested before hanging drywall as well. This caught at least one significant leak which has been fixed.

Basement (Main) HVAC System.

Upstairs HVAC Unit.

Ladies in the kitchen

Fireplace

We've been bringing Socks over to get her familiar with the new digs.

Socks in Lauren's Bedroom

Next came electrical lines and TV cables of course.

It was interesting to see how they handle large switch boxes. The small piece of stud will be attached to the drywall using screws. Seems odd but it should work just fine.

Finally, insulation. Various types of insulation are used in the home. Above the foundation, the walls are all 2x6 and they use R19 insulation. In the basement, the walls are 2x4 and R13 is used. All exposed areas receive insulation - obviously prior to the drywall. Of course, the second floor ceiling insulation is blasted in after the drywall is in, so that is not done yet.

Entry hallway - main floor

Garage

Upstairs Bedroom

All in all, it's a lot of detail items that need to be done before the inspector will give permission to hang drywall, so this is a major milestone.

The inspector also looks at items that are required by various building codes. Bolts between the framing and foundation, for instance. Or the way the exterior walls are sealed against wind and rain are checked. And, of course, the way all the pipes and wires are installed.

We noticed the builder did a quality control check of all the framing to identify items that needed to be addressed. These include cracked or bowed studs, holes in the exterior walls, etc. It's easy to see where each item was identified using bright spray paint and how it was been addressed. The results is a more sturdy and permanently viable home.

There are many pieces and parts that need to pass inspection at this stage, and you can tell when talking with the construction manager that it is an intense time. A single failed item can delay drywall installation and slow completion of the house.

One thing we wanted to do was photograph the walls near each bathroom sink so we know what is behind the drywall in case we want to install a medicine cabinet or something else. I'll catalog these next. might come in handy down the road.