drywall estimate

[Jess]

I'm trying to get a ballpark idea if the estimates I'm about to receive are "decent".

I need sheetrock installed then taped and textured. Orange peel on the walls, knockdown on the ceiling. Sheetrock screwed, not nailed.

There are 3 rooms. They are "typical" rooms as far as the number of lights, outlets, doors and windows are concerned (game room, bedroom, storage room). The room sizes are:

1 - 18' x 15' 2 - 13' x 10' 3 - 10' x 8' Walls are 8' 6" high. (I assume to keep down on the seams this requires 54" wide drywall).

The work will be done in Portland, OR. I will not hire union workers.

From past experiences from other work I have had done, (roofing, painting, etc.), the range of estimates is very large. So if I bring in two different contractors for estimates and they both just happen to be one of the "very expensive" guys, and then I choose one of them, I just screwed myself because I didn't know the market.

I'm not looking for super-duper guy that does everything perfectly and does work on million dollar homes and I don't want some dudes that are super cheap and do a crappy job - So I am just trying to get a "BALLPARK" idea of the cost of this work done by drywall contractors that do a decent job at a median price.

Do you have any estimates for this job?

Thanks, Jess

Keyword=JessJoeMama

[Steve B]

Buck a square foot labor in my area. Haven't had any work done recently, so it may vary from that. It definitely does vary from place to place, and exactly what you want re: texture, finishing, etc.

Steve

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[Colbyt]

40 - 8 foot (1280 sq feet) boards slick finish on all labor and materials on second floor cost me $1100. 2 years ago. Materials may be up a little since then but I doubt labor prices are.

Try to find a company that usually works for builders not a remodeler. Your job is large enough to be acceptable to most of them. If shooting in the dark look for the smallest yellow page listing. No point in paying for the big ad. Your local home services section in the classifieds is also a good place to find people who want to work now. The paper is how I actually re-connected to a group I had used before but that had undergone a name change.

I don't have a clue how Portland compares to Central KY.

Colbyt

[cubby]

I was thinking a little more than that with ceilings and texture. In the range of $2k.

Be sure to post back to let us know what the quotes were like!

[Oren]

Last time I asked it was 3 bucks a square foot. Ready for paint. Times are slow and folks need work. The OP should be asking the sq. ft. prices?!

[Joe]

[HeyBub]

It may be that labor price or competency is below other considerations. Just as many union members do not patronize non-union enterprises, such as Walmart, it's entirely reasonable for others to boycott unions.

[benick]

Hard to say in your area but the BEST way to find a contractor is WORD OF MOUTH...Start at the place where they buy materials and ask neighbors...HTH...

[jamesgangnc]

I didn't know they made 54" wide drywall.

[benick]

I didn't know they made 54" wide drywall.

Yes , they do but you MAY have to go where the pro's get their materials to find it...

[Steve B]

I didn't know they made 54" wide drywall.

Would you use that for 18" centers?

Steve

[keith]

Why would anyone do 18" centers? I'd think it would be for 9' ceilings, which are pretty common.

[Steve B]

Why would anyone do 18" centers? I'd think it would be for 9' ceilings, which are pretty common.

reply:

I'm asking you. I thought all drywall was 48" wide.

Steve

[RicodJour]

There's a whole assortment of drywall that you never see at your local yard or home center. The wider stuff is meant for taller ceilings as the boards are usually installed horizontally, but they're okay to use vertically if you use a backer and let the joints float between the studs.

R