Removing Drywall From Your Home

In all the remodeling shows on TV you see people slam a sledgehammer into the drywall in order to remove it. But this is something that you should not do in your home. The reason is that besides making a mess you could be damaging pipes and electrical wire. There are much easier, and definitely cleaner, ways to remove drywall.

Here are some tips on how to remove drywall from your home.

∗ First you have to prepare the drywall for dust. To do this you can close closets and cabinets, move furniture out of the room, or cover furniture with plastic. Shut of fans and close all the windows to keep dust to a minimum. You should also turn off the air conditioning and heating if you can. If you cannot then at least close off the vent into the room where you are removing the drywall so the dust does not go into other rooms of your home.

∗ Remove the surrounding trim of the drywall. You may have to remove the baseboard to do this, as well as the crown molding or chair rails. If it is the case where the wall is part of the door or window you also have to remove the trim.

∗ To begin to remove the drywall you should use a pry bar that is both thin and easy to handle. Begin at the edge of the wall or the area where you removed the trim. Put the pry bar right above a nail and pull the drywall board towards you. Keep doing this until the drywall is loose and after it is remove the nails. You can use the claw of the hammer if the pry bar you are using does not have a nail-removing slot on the end. Try to take out as many of the nails in the drywall as possible.

∗ If it is possible tap on the backside of the drywall using a hammer. This can
help the drywall become loose without it breaking into many small pieces, which will produce more dust. The larger of pieces of the drywall you remove the less dust there will be. When you remove the larger pieces of drywall the smaller pieces, which are near the nails, are easier to get to.

∗ If you cannot reach the backside of the drywall break a small hole into it using a hammer. Do this close the edge of the drywall but not near the nails. After the hole is made reach in the hole with your hammer and tap on the backside of it in order to remove it.

∗ After you have removed all the drywall remove all he nails that are in the studs. You can use your pry bar, if it has the nail removing slot, or the end of a hammer. When all the drywall is removed take it out of the house as soon as you can in order to reduce the amount of dust in the room.