According to the American Society for Testing and Materials, gypsum boards, more commonly known as drywall, is the generic name of sheet products consisting of a noncombustible core, primarily of gypsum with paper surfacing. Natural gypsum is a mineral and is mined near the earth’s surface.
Gypsum
Gypsum boards are considered an environmentally friendly product because the materials used are recycled from other industrial processes and the paper facing is made from 100% recycled paper. There are many types of boards available for different uses. For example Greenboard contains oil-based additives that provide moisture resistance, Cement board is more water-resistant than Greenboard and is used for showers or sauna rooms and is used as a base for ceramic tile in damp areas. Soundproof gypsum boards are laminated boards that dampen sound passing through the walls. Another important gypsum board is classified as fire-resistant. Even though it is not fireproof, it will withstand higher temperatures. Rooms with furnaces, garage ceilings, and stairwells would be the recommended applications for fire resistant boards. Standard sizes for boards are 48 or 54 inches wide and 10, 12, or 14 feet long. Thicknesses range from ¼” thick to 1”. It is important to hire a contractor that knows which boards to specify for different applications to avoid problems in the future. In the next blog entry we will be discussing different finishing levels and why this is important.
