Basement Remodeling Article:

Thoughts on Paperless Drywall

Honestly, I could have changed the title of this report to: "Paperless Drywall: Forget about it." - must be said with an Italian Mafioso accent.

Disclaimer: I have only used this product once at the request of a customer.

Really, I am glad we got to experience the product so I could have an opinion about it. By itself, it’s an excellent product. In applications other than basement remodeling I am sure it would work well. Understand too, this is just my viewpoint.

First off, this drywall is more expensive than the regular gypsum board we normally use. It’s also harder to cut and seems heavier.

Here’s the point I want to make. This occurred to me as my workers were hanging the drywall in this customer’s basement.

So this drywall will not be as affected by water. That’s good. That is an improvement in the protection of a basement finishing investment.

The risk is, if enough water comes in and gets behind the walls, then both the wall and the insulation get wet. The insulation is ruined and the wall needs to be opened up to dry out. The drywall still must be cut out!

This defeats the entire purpose. What’s more, there was an extra expense to install the paperless drywall.

Why bother going to the extra expense? Why deal with a less user friendly material that will not eliminate any problems from potential water damage?

Instead, I recommend making sure the basement is as waterproof as possible by whatever means deemed necessary. I’d make sure I had a good battery backup sump pump ready to swing into action if the main one fails. And most importantly, I’d make sure I was fully insured with great coverage – including the replacement costs of my basement contents.

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