Concealed Drywall Standards

Finish Levels

• At the range’s top end is five, which specifies that fasteners, joints, accessories and interior angles receive three coats of joint compound. This is followed by a final skim coat that covers the drywall’s entire surface, leaving walls and ceilings as smooth as possible. At the bottom end of the range is zero, which signifies no drywall finishing takes place.

Concealed Drywall Standards

• Concealed drywall standards refer to a level-one finish, which means drywall finishers must embed tape in joint compound over seams between boards, including interior angles. The finishers may leave tool marks and ridges in their work, although excess joint compound should be scraped off, leaving the surfaces somewhat smooth. Other than this, no further finishing need take place.

Applications

• A level-one finish is suitable for areas that won’t be seen by the public. A building project might call for level-one finish in utility closets, access hallways, storage rooms, crawl spaces and other locations that won’t receive paint and need not be presentable.

Considerations

• While it might seem that a level-zero finish would be more cost-effective for concealed drywall, the level-one finish offers some advantages. First, it provides some soundproofing by blocking the passage of air through wall and ceiling joints. Second, sealing the joints also provides some insulating qualities. Third, closing the gap between boards inhibits the fire passage between rooms. Many regional building codes require at least a level-one finish for fire safety. For all these reasons, builders often require a level-one finish on concealed drywall, despite the added cost of finishing areas that the public won’t see.on’t see.