OSB or Sheetrock??

[leeklm]

Will soon be time to put sheeting on the ceiling & walls, and another decision to be made.... I plan on putting sheetrock on the ceilings, but am undecided on the 9ft walls. I am sure much of the decision is personal preference, but wanted to pull in a few opinions here. The shop is approx 1300 ft, and will be used primarily as a "shop" as opposed to a man-cave hangout...

Sheetrock...
-Clean look
-reflects light
-cost less (I would most likely just paint, and not tape)
-flame resistant
-Dings/chips easy

OSB
-sturdy
-can nail or tack items up anywhere
-minimal light reflection (I do not like the look of painted OSB)

Anything that I am missing here?? Thank you for your thoughts and opinions!

 

[The_Tango]

OSB covered with 1/4" sheetrock

 

[bobemmerich]

I have sheetrock in my garage, but if I were to do it over again, I would probably go with some OSB or Plywood for ease of hanging stuff. Depends on your budget. What about sheetrock with Hardboard over it?

 

[Chaz]

Sheetrock... Lays flat, easy to repair, paints easily. Take the time to tape and mud- you wont regret it... OSB just holds dirt and your whole shop looks gray in a year.

 

[BADSIX]

a friend of mine did 1/2in plywood up 4ft. then 4ft up with 1/2in sheet rock for an 8ft high wall. i like the idea of the osb covered with sheet rock but your looking at more money, 1/2 plywood painted white works allso.

 

[Zeke]

Check prices on interior grade ply vs. OSB. Not everyone will have the lesser expensive ply, but a good supply house should have it. There are grades such as B-D plugged that will cost about what OSB costs. Not all that easy to find, but they are out there. Just not at home stores.

You can dress up plywood yourself as well.

 

[Porcupine]

I'm redoing the inside of my garage and with the exception of the ceiling and the wall common to the house (both will be sheetrocked), the rest of the garage will be 5/8 plywood. Overkill, maybe, but, for me, I want walls that will hold up to some abuse where I won't have to patch holes here and there. I won't argue that the sheetrock will look smoother (unless maybe you are using good one side plywood), but for me it is a compromise. A good primer and gloss white paint and the plywood walls will shine and be much more durable in the long run. Nothing wrong with putting sheetrock overtop the plywood, as then you'd have the best of both worlds, for an added cost, however.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

IRC (International Residential Code) states:
R302.6 Dwelling/garage fire separation.
The garage shall be separated as required by Table R302.6. Openings in garage walls shall comply with Section R302.5. This provision does not apply to garage walls that are perpendicular to the adjacent dwelling unit wall.

TABLE R302.6 DWELLING/GARAGE SEPARATION

SEPARATION MATERIAL
*From the residence and attics- Not less than 1/2-inch gypsum board or equivalent applied to the garage side
*From all habitable rooms above the garage- Not less than 5/8-inch Type X gypsum board or equivalent
*Structure(s) supporting floor/ceiling assemblies used for separation required by this section- Not less than 1/2-inch gypsum board or equivalent
*Garages located less than 3 feet from a dwelling unit on the same lot- Not less than 1/2-inch gypsum board or equivalent applied to the interior side of exterior walls that are within this area

Here's where it gets sticky- The third part of the table "structure(s) supporting floor/ceiling assemblies used for separation required by this section"; literally means those perpendicular wall(s) that support or, the parallel wall depending on the direction of the support members. But, because of the distinction for the "perpendicular wall" most inspectors disregard the literal translation.
From a professional standpoint- I affirm the use of drywall to cover all combustible framing support materials. If you want additional support for hanging whatever on the wall- either plan out where everything is going and add additional blocking between studs or, cover framing with plywood followed by drywall. I used the term plywood specifically because OSB doesn't have good mechanical fastening device (a screw)holding power. It's primary use is for structural support.

 

[Falcon67]

I'm using sheet rock. I may use some thin hardboard in areas where wall damage might occur. I went over this and after looking at the mobile tools that were most likely to damage the wall, I figured out that a 12" baseboard will prevent 90% or better of likely wall impacts. I'll put hardboard on the wall behind the mill and drill press since they like to sling things LOL.

 

[wintermute]

For my carport conversion, code only required 5/8" sheetrock on the single dwelling wall. I used 1/2" sheetrock on the remaining walls and left the ceiling the original wood and painted it all satin white.

 

[Porcupine]

I was told buy our city building dept that I had to have the 5x8 firecode drywall on the wall attached to the house, and they "recommended" that I drywalled the ceiling of the garage. All other walls they told me I could do pretty much what I wanted. Interesting though that they told me the drywall had to be mudded and taped but that it was more to do with having a "smoke" barrier rather than fire barrier. That being said, a few of our neighbours' attached garages are not finished at all - no insulation no wall coverings or ceiling coverings (except wall attached to house).

 

[kbs2244]

I really don’t like drywall in a garage/shop.
If it is an attached to the house garage I understand the fire code need and agree with it.
But if detached, no.
It is weak and it gets soggy and falls apart when it get wet.
As interior paneling has no structural requirements, I would go with ¼ inch “underlayment” plywood. Sometimes called “luan.”
It is pretty smooth on one side for painting, much lighter than drywall, and even though only a ¼ thick it will hold a nail better.

If you go with it for four foot around the bottom and use ¼ inch white pegboard above it you will have something that will not ding topped with ease of hanging things.

The peg board is called “garage liner” and comes in white.
Paint the underlayerment white the day before you put it up.
It is much easier that way.

 

[38Chevy454]

Drywall on ceiling and OSB on walls for me. i painted it with Kilz, two coats to seal it up good. I like that I can put a screw in anywhere to hold something.

 

[leeklm]

Thanks for the comments. I forgot to mention that this is a detached garage. Ready for the rough electrical inspection this week.... Yay!

 

[ddawg16]

The 'search' function would have given you plenty of info.....

Anyway....

My garage is detached.....all drywall (sheetrock).....after 2 years I have yet to see where OSB would have been any better.

What ever you do...I would highly suggest drywall for the ceiling....I really doubt your going to be screwing things into the ceiling.....and when the OSB catches fires, the drywall on the ceiling will slow down the spread of the fire.

 

[cowboyjosh]

I like both OSB and Drywall in garages, attached and detached. In every jurisdiction I build in though they REQUIRE taped drywall in both attached, detached, and accessory (think carriage house) buildings. Never had a homeowner ever ask why everything is drywalled or if we could use OSB. Allot of times on houses with bonus rooms over the garage we add OSB behind the drywall for wind load.

 

[Matt M PA]

We used SmartPanel in my detached. It comes primed, and looks kind of like T1-11. I painted it all white, so bright and has a rustic look.

When I did my attached garage over...which is in a split level house so the ceiling is sones eat low...we covered the sheet rock with slat wall...from the ceiling down and used that fake smooth tile board from the floor up to help protect against car exhaust, splash, etc.

 

[Kevin54]

Not a thing wrong with drywall unless you are prone to throwing fits and tossing things around. And as far as getting wet, deteriorating, etc...just don't turn a hose on the drywall. If you are smart enough to hit a stud, you can pretty much hang anything you want. The only downside is taping, mudding, and sanding. But if you take your time, don't get impatient and use the right tools, you can have a professional looking job. Or you hang it and get a pro to finish it.

 

[Thirsty]

I drywalled mine for the added fire protection and added noise buffering, I hate mudding and taping but it was worth it.

 

[NUTTSGT]

This is an on going debate here. 6 of one, half dozen of another. I have OSB in my garage.

 

[Gary S]

This is an on going debate here. 6 of one, half dozen of another. I have OSB in my garage.

Agreed. It is your personal preference.

I have built two garages in the past 20 years. One got sheetrock. The second one got OSB. I'd never do sheetrock again for me.
My garage is a work area, not a place to impress people.

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

Agreed. It is your personal preference.

There's no "personal preference" about it. Either you build it to code or you don't. And as stated previously, almost all convening authorities require drywall on the walls and ceilings of garages- detached or not.

I like to take the stance of- Do I want a fighting chance of being able to put a fire out with little or no loss. Or, do I loose everything because the entire structure was a kindling box? Oh, and the insurance company laughs when the claim comes across their desk.

 

[slickgt1]

If you ever need to snake a little wire behind the wall, punch a hole through sheetrock, snake, and fix it up. OSB looks like **** anyway, and you don't really get much strength in screw holding power.

 

[RascalRider]

I did OSB in my carolina carport garage. Works for me.

 

[Thirsty]

There's no "personal preference" about it. Either you build it to code or you don't. And as stated previously, almost all convening authorities require drywall on the walls and ceilings of garages- detached or not.

I like to take the stance of- Do I want a fighting chance of being able to put a fire out with little or no loss. Or, do I loose everything because the entire structure was a kindling box? Oh, and the insurance company laughs when the claim comes across their desk.

I totally agree, a friend who is a fireman told me they could have saved many houses/garages if they would have had just 5 or 10 minutes more which drywall will give you.

 

[JMURiz]

Like others have said, I used 5/8 drywall because of it's fire-rating.
It's plenty strong too.

 

[nonhog]

I'm doing both. Sheetrock where I grind/weld. and the 10 ft. ceiling areas.
OSB likely elsewhere.

Ongoing project.

My detached shop got signed off w/o any sheetrock covering.

 

[ert01]

Osb in my garage. I didn't have much choice since I bought it that way but I wouldn't do drywall anyways... Not robust enough.

To help fill in the roughness on osb you can use what they call block filler. It's what they use to paint cinder block walls and it's a really thick paint that fills in the holes to help smooth it out so its easier to cleanand doesn't hold the dirt as much.

 

[Justanoldguy]

you don't really get much strength in screw holding power.

Sorry, but can you eplain this please?
Are you saying that nails hold better than screws?

 

[K'ledgeBldr]

Sorry, but can you eplain this please?
Are you saying that nails hold better than screws?

OSB (Oriented Strand Board) is a structural panel. It's primary use is to provide rigidity to wall sections. When it is nailed to a wall section the nails are "pinning" the panel to the framing members. Screws are a mechanical device. and their strength is on the framing member as well.

As far as attaching something to the OSB whether with a nail or a screw the holding power is minimal at best. Because the individual strands of wood plus the resins don't hold as well as solid wood fibers- i.e., 2X4.

 

[Steevo]

I thought about this thread today, when I was shuffling around some stuff in the shop with the forklift, and cut it a little too close. I made a 12" long horizontal slash in the sheet rock, just the width of the tip of a forklift fork.
I got out my vinyl spackling compound, and did a couple of shallow fills until it was ready for the finish fill. I can slap a little paint on that with a brush, and it will never show.

How would you fix a wall puncture or break if you had OSB?

 

[NUTTSGT]

There's no "personal preference" about it. Either you build it to code or you don't. And as stated previously, almost all convening authorities require drywall on the walls and ceilings of garages- detached or not.

I like to take the stance of- Do I want a fighting chance of being able to put a fire out with little or no loss. Or, do I loose everything because the entire structure was a kindling box? Oh, and the insurance company laughs when the claim comes across their desk.

I doubt the insurance company will deny the claim due to the use of OSB. If that was the case, they'd never be paying on claims where the fire started from a cigarette.



Not all localities use inspectors for residential building construction, while others have inspectors for everything.

 

[NUTTSGT]

I thought about this thread today, when I was shuffling around some stuff in the shop with the forklift, and cut it a little too close. I made a 12" long horizontal slash in the sheet rock, just the width of the tip of a forklift fork.
I got out my vinyl spackling compound, and did a couple of shallow fills until it was ready for the finish fill. I can slap a little paint on that with a brush, and it will never show.

How would you fix a wall puncture or break if you had OSB?

Depending how big it was, maybe rip off the entire sheet, buy a new sheet for $7.17 (IIRC 2 weeks ago) or mark out a square box around the slash, cut it out and replace it. Maybe it wouldn't even hurt the OSB?

 

[slickgt1]

Sorry, but can you eplain this please?
Are you saying that nails hold better than screws?

No I didn't say anything about nails at all. OSB is not that strong when you screw something into it. Yea, you will get more strength then sheetrock, but you should not assume that it is as strong as hitting the stud. That is precisely why I didn't bother with OSB. My house is block and brick. The framing I did in the garage was 1x4. If I can't hit the studs, worst care I will just tapcon right through to the block.

And yes, sometimes nails are stronger than screws. I see this everywhere. I see guys putting up frames with drywall screws.

My 55" flat screen TV is hanging on a 50lbs mount on my wall. It is held in place by 4 Hilti toggles, through 5/8" sheetrock. Pushing 3 years now. Even with the tv pulled out to the full length of the mount, it still stays in place with no hint of coming off.

There is more than one way to attach things to the wall. For permanent items, I glue them with PL, use my finish nailer to cross nail through the sheetrock (to tack in place), and then finish off with screw that hit the stud. I actually needed to get behind one wall now. Took out the screws, but could not get the cabinet off. When I did, I took sheetrock with it.

I really don't see a reason for OSB, with its lack of fire protection.

 

[Justanoldguy]

Thanks for that HUGE long explaination.
But in your previos post .. "OSB looks like **** anyway, and you don't really get much strength in screw holding power" you never mention hanging stuff off it.
I was thinking the attaching of sheets to the studs and screws are far superior.
Be more specific in future.
I have never yet seen a situation where a nail has more holding power than a screw.
your quote "And yes, sometimes nails are stronger than screws. I see this everywhere. I see guys putting up frames with drywall screws" ..

 

[Sunstealer73]

I have never yet seen a situation where a nail has more holding power than a screw.

Aren't nails stronger than screws in a shear situation? That is what I have always heard anyway.

 

[mergatroid]

n How about 1x8 tongue and groove with the bead on one side? Just finished my brothers log home with it and it looks awesome!

 

[Gary S]

There's no "personal preference" about it. Either you build it to code or you don't. And as stated previously, almost all convening authorities require drywall on the walls and ceilings of garages- detached or not..

Code here requires drywall for attached garages only, and even then, only on the walls adjoining the living space in the house, and the ceiling shared with the house.

Detatched garages don't have those requirements.

 

[K13]

Thanks for that HUGE long explaination.
But in your previos post .. "OSB looks like **** anyway, and you don't really get much strength in screw holding power" you never mention hanging stuff off it.
I was thinking the attaching of sheets to the studs and screws are far superior.
Be more specific in future.
I have never yet seen a situation where a nail has more holding power than a screw.
your quote "And yes, sometimes nails are stronger than screws. I see this everywhere. I see guys putting up frames with drywall screws" ..

Wow you ask him to clarify and then rail on him that he got too involved with the clarification. The right size nail used in comparison to the wrong sized or type of screw would clearly give more holding power which I believe is what the OP is talking about as in framing a wall using drywall screw as opposed to nails.

 

[Thirsty]

Code here requires drywall for attached garages only, and even then, only on the walls adjoining the living space in the house, and the ceiling shared with the house.

Detatched garages don't have those requirements.

True, otherwise every unfinished garage in the Country would be out of compliance.