New Build & Addition Drywall · Kitchener
Drywall Installation for New Builds and Additions in Kitchener
New framing moves. The lumber dries, the house settles, and a finish that ignores that will show nail pops and corner cracks by the second winter. The job is planning for it.
The newer subdivisions on Kitchener's south and west edges — Doon South, Huron Park, the Trussler West and Rosenberg lands — produce the same drywall job over and over: a house delivered with a bare basement, a buyer who wants it finished, and framing that has been in place for a year or less. Additions and garage conversions in the older neighbourhoods are the same work on a smaller scale, with the extra wrinkle of marrying new board into old plaster or old drywall at the join.
Why new houses crack
Kiln-dried framing lumber still carries moisture when the house is built, and it shrinks as it dries over the first heating season. Trusses lift at the centre in winter as the top chord stays cold and dry while the bottom chord warms, which is why the corner where the ceiling meets an interior wall opens up in January and closes in July. None of this is a defect in the drywall; it is what wood does. The answer is detailing: floating the ceiling-to-wall corner on truss ceilings so the board is not fastened within the zone that moves, screwing to a schedule rather than wherever the gun lands, using control joints on long runs, and holding board off the slab so the concrete's moisture does not wick into the paper.
What a bare basement actually involves
- A permit. Finishing the basement of a house is on the City of Kitchener's list of projects that need a building permit, as is re-insulating and any new plumbing. The builder's open basement was approved as unfinished space; finishing it is a new application.
- Bulkheads and drops. Duct trunks, the main drain, the beam and the gas line all have to be boxed. The number of drops is a bigger driver of time than the floor area, which is why two basements of the same size can be quoted very differently.
- The cold room and the mechanical room. Usually left unfinished and separated with an insulated, weatherstripped door. Boarding over a cold cellar without dealing with the vent is a condensation problem waiting for the first winter.
- Moisture-resistant board in the bathroom and laundry, cement board behind tile, and ordinary board everywhere else — matching board to room is a small cost that avoids a large one.
Garage conversions and the garage wall
Where new living space shares a wall or ceiling with the garage, the Building Code treats a garage that serves only that house as part of the house: no fire-resistance rating is required between them, but an air barrier system that is an effective barrier to gas and exhaust fumes is, along with a tight-fitting, weatherstripped, self-closing door that does not open into a bedroom. In practice the garage-side board is taped and the plates, rim area and every penetration are sealed so the assembly is airtight — hung-and-left board with open joints is not an air barrier. If the drawings call for a rated assembly, for instance a suite above the garage, the drawings govern.
Additions
Where an addition meets the existing house the two structures settle at different rates, and the joint between old and new wall is the place a crack will appear. A control joint or a trim detail at that line is the honest answer; a seamless finish across it is a crack waiting to happen, and we will say so at the quote stage.
Frequently asked questions
The builder offered to finish the basement — why would I use someone else?
Sometimes the builder's price is fine. The things to compare are the finish level, how the ceiling-to-wall corners are detailed on a truss roof, the board types in wet rooms, and whether the permit and inspection are included. A quote that is only a square-footage number does not answer any of that.
Will there be nail pops?
On a house this new, some movement is close to certain in the first year. Good detailing keeps it to a minimum and puts it where it is easy to touch up. We tell you where to expect it rather than promising a wall that never moves.
Can I leave the garage wall as bare drywall?
The board facing the garage has to work as an air barrier to keep exhaust out of the house, which means taped joints and sealed edges and penetrations even if it is never painted. That is the Code's requirement, not a finish preference.
Serving Kitchener and surrounding areas. Contact us for a no-obligation quote specific to your property.