How to replace drywall ceiling in a closet?

[Nick Danger]

I had a roof leak, and I finally ripped the ceiling out of the closet to find it. I'm glad I did, because it was black and slimy up there. Wet insulation was keeping everything nice and damp, and mold was taking over.

My plan is to scrub the area with bleach, replace the insulation that I threw away, and put up a new ceiling. I don't know how to do that.

The ceiling is about 24" x 82", with a light fixture in the middle. It was originally on top of the drywall walls. Do I warp it to slide the short ends above the walls? Do I slide it into a corner, and let the other two edges hang out? Or should I just push it straight up and not bother with the walls? Do I nail in the light junction box before or after I put up the ceiling?

 

[rockwithjason]

you will have a tough time warping the drywall in in just one piece. i would clean out the grooves above the wall boards and then install the ceiling in two pieces cut length wise down the middle. this will allow you to push the drywall into the grooves above the wall boards. then tape, mud and finish it up. nail in the fixture box before you start and pre cut the hole in the drywall.

 

[Nick Danger]

You recommend against just hanging the piece from the screws? There are joists every 24 inches and boards on the ends.

 

[WQ59B]

IMO, it's worth it to see if you can at least get one of the 82" sides above the wall drywall. You can hang the rest via screws & not worry about the other 3 sides. 24" wide is not a great deal of weight- IMO it's not worth taping/spackling an 82" seam in the middle to get both long sides atop the wall. I'd probably put up (2) 24x41" pieces tho.

 

[24X26]

Straight up and use corner molding so you don't have to tape the corners.

 

[rockwithjason]

You recommend against just hanging the piece from the screws? There are joists every 24 inches and boards on the ends.

no, from your post i assumed that it was important to you to have the edges supported that way. if that is not important to you then you can hook just one edge or no edges overlapped.

 

[Nick Danger]

no, from your post i assumed that it was important to you to have the edges supported that way. if that is not important to you then you can hook just one edge or no edges overlapped.

Ah, okay. I don't have any preferences. I just don't know how to hang drywall.

I like the idea of using corner molding. It's a low spot on the roof, and it's leaked before. I could float the drywall above it. I could drop that ceiling at will.

 

[gpalmer77]

Don't worry about the ceiling sitting above the walls, it's a closet. Or, for extra peace-of-mind, glue and screw it. Also, you could cut it 1/2" bigger in width, and perfect for length, and get 1/4" on top of the walls down each long side, wouldn't worry about the short ends.

 

[garrett1812]

Sounds like a good opportunity to keep attic access. Maybe install an easily removable piece of wood.

 

[Nick Danger]

There is no attic. The roof is nailed to the top of the joists, and the ceiling is nailed to the bottom of the joists. But since there is a repeat leak above the closet, I think I'm going to get molding and float the drywall above it. I assume that with it supported at both sides of a 24" span, there is no need to screw it in.

 

[JamieK]

24" is a bit much to be unsupported in a visable area. In a closet, though, it should be fine. Maybe a little sag after a few years, but who will notice it. Go with 5/8" thick drywall to minimize this or attach a couple of backing boards.

 

[Nick Danger]

That surprises me. The ceiling has 24" joists, and all the drywall ceilings in the house are just nailed to it.

 

[CNGsaves]

Is the roof leak fixed for good?? Was it from rainfall, or do you have a swamp cooler up on roof that is leaking water??
(reason is I'm guessing that Albuquerque, NM has very little rain)

Agree to install in two pieces and install 2x4's where needed for support. Always screw sheetrock to ceiling.

 

[Nick Danger]

I don't know if the leak is fixed for good. Since it's the third time, I doubt it. It's the low spot on a flat roof house, and water tends to find a way in.

 

[CNGsaves]

Wow, bad deal you've had 3 leaks . . all in same closet ceiling??

If so, then surely I would NOT close up closet ceiling. Instead use opportunity of having that tore open to look at underside of roof and find ROOT CAUSE of what is causing the leak. No need spending money over-and-over fixing closet ceiling if the leak is ongoing.

There are some wide rolls of roofing material that businesses use that surely could resolve your "low spot" on flat roof leak problem. Just saw a medical office get re-roofed and rubberly roll of roofing material was like 10 ft wide.

Good luck resolving the pesky leak.

 

[Nick Danger]

Wow, bad deal you've had 3 leaks . . all in same closet ceiling??

If so, then surely I would NOT close up closet ceiling. Instead use opportunity of having that tore open to look at underside of roof and find ROOT CAUSE of what is causing the leak. No need spending money over-and-over fixing closet ceiling if the leak is ongoing.

There are some wide rolls of roofing material that businesses use that surely could resolve your "low spot" on flat roof leak problem. Just saw a medical office get re-roofed and rubberly roll of roofing material was like 10 ft wide.

Good luck resolving the pesky leak.

I tore out the ceiling to look for the source of the leak. The leak is right where the drainspout (canale) is attached to the roof. It's a weak spot. The most recent leak was caused by patching material separating and letting water through. It looked fine. I figured it out by tapping with a screwdriver and hearing a hollow sound. I scraped things down a couple of layers and put down new compound. When I flooded the area with a garden hose, there was no leak. There's been no leak for a month, so I'm ready to put the ceiling back in.

I'm pretty sure that it leaked in the same spot sometime before I bought the house in 1998. There were painted-over stains on the ceiling next to the closet.

My house is an example of why flat roofs are no longer code in New Mexico. They are now required to have a couple of inches of slope to prevent standing water.