Can I put drywall over my single wall ??

[Catnlinz]

Aloha. I just purchased an old house here in Hawaii that is single wall constuction. The walls are about 8" cedar tongue and groove planks. I'm tired at looking at all the vertical grooves. I'm wondering if I can put drywall directly onto the walls for purely cosmetic reasons. I would like some of the rooms to have smooth looking walls. The walls are very sound. I don't know if there can be contact between the existing wall and drywall or if everything needs to be framed first. Rooms are so small in these island homes, I hate to loose 8" because of framing. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Mahalo.

[Jimmer]

Catherine,

The problem with attaching drywall directly to the cedar plank is that through the seasons as the humidity changes those planks expand and contract. The drywall could crack or buckle. Could you use 2x4 on their flat so you would only lose the 1.5" plus the .5" drywall. If you could use half-lap joints you should be able to create a fairly thin and strong frame.


Good luck, Jim

'Just a handyman trying to help'

[Tkennedy]

Hi Jim and Cat,

Could she use 1 X 2 's and run them as fur strips over the planking? This would give her a much flater surface to screw the dry wall down to.

Todd

home handyman