My shop is as far as I can go without the walls being rocked. it's insulated and wired, and once the rock is up and finished I'll be able to add heat, insulate the ceiling, and install the DC...then move in. But so far I've called 7 contractors to get the drywall done (one just yesterday, so they don't count in these stats). 2 showed up to draw up an estimate, the last one over a week ago and the first one about 3 weeks ago. Nothing yet. One took some preliminary info and said he would stop out to look things over, still haven't heard from him. Didn't get call backs from the others. I noticed these guys are very suspicious when they do call back, sometimes making me think they didn't want to do a job that might involve work (just my impression). I'm busy on the yard right now so it's not holding me up, but I am staring to wonder if I'll be able to get it done this summer.

Edited April 29, 20179 yr by Fred W. Hargis Jr

Well that sucks!

 

I have a friend who has a very small contracting business. He told me he was contacted by "Home Advisor" about listing his business. Maybe they have someone like that in your area.

that so hard to accept...

For my area both Home Advisor and Angie's List is on the fringe of starting up. I may give them a look though, but still I've found several possibilities....just no one willing to do it (or so it seems at the moment). I can understand their busy season is here, but it sure is frustrating.

 Hey how about buying one of those crank up sheet rock holders and do it yourself. 

    I guess when a person hires someone to come to his home and do some work he is grateful it is getting done by skilled labor. Even though you pay for the finished job, you thank the people for coming out and doing something you wouldn't do if your life depended on it.

  But now it seems the skilled labor is looking for the easiest job for the same amount of money. 

The supply and demand is out of whack just a little in favor of the skilled.

 

After I got married I decided I couldn't afford or depend on a strangers doing something I could learn to do myself. Texas was always good to the home owner. So far I don't need a permit every time I go in and out the front door...

  We went to a free supper last night furnished by the insurance company who we use to insure the cars and home and a few other things, we were one of the 15 who names were drawn for the 50 dollar bills for coming for the free food. One of the guys sitting at our table said he is a comptroller by trade and is loosing his job. He also mentioned he does not own a hammer , or saw or lawn mower or water hoses or screw drivers or anything to do home repairs or car repairs or anything and ordinary guy can do...I have never been around someone like that... Strange....HOBBIES.... he said, whats that!

Not an option to do it myself. I did that for my last shop 6 years ago and landed in the hospital with a torn rotator cuff. That aside, every time I try to finish drywall I impress myself with just how really bad I am at doing it. the cuff had already been injured for years, but throwing the sheets around onto the lift (10'x 5/8" for the ceiling) made it so bad surgery was the only option. This is a much larger job, no way I'll try it. Rest assured, hiring out work is something that only occurred late in my life, I had always tried to do everything myself until I turned 60 or so. To be honest, a lot of the contractors around me are DIY types who got laid off during the recession and decided to hang out a shingle for whatever they though they could do. That's especially true of some who call themselves "electricians", but it happens in almost any field. Even so, hiring someone (even if it's just one the DIY converts) is the only way this shop will get done.

Fred, I used this service a few months ago for tile installers, and we are very happy with our end result, these folks want to work, and they range from unlicensed handymen to fully licensed contractors, they are on a review system, you can look up images of their work, and you can see reviews by their past customers. Enter your project description and you'll get replies with estimates and references.

https://www.thumbtack.com/

 

From a vendor standpoint it's a great tool as well, our oldest daughter advertises her Violin Lessons on this application, and she has gotten customers and serious customers at that.

So if you all want to advertise your services on Thumbtack, based on the experience from our daughter, it's a great way to get your services out there.

If you do it yourself, I believe HD rents those crank up sheet rock holders. It's still a 2 man job. With the housing boom that's going on, it seems that all contractors are really busy these days. 

Hope you can find your resource soon. 

I am no expert but many years of weekly volunteer working at Habitat for Humanity construction projects provided lots of experience in hanging drywall. Hanging the drywall is relatively "easy", skill wise if you have some buddies to help. I'd get about 4 helpers if you can swing it. A drywall lift helps especially with the ceiling if you have limited amount of labor. Probably can rent one at HD or other tool rental places. I'd leave the finishing to the experts.

You mentioned walls but I presume you are rocking the ceiling as well. If so, is your roof support rafters or trusses? If trusses, do you have any interior walls? If so, be aware of truss lift issues when fastening your drywall to the ceiling near the interior walls. If the drywall installer doesn't understand truss lift, get another one.

Yep, trusses on 24" centers. One partition wall, fastened with rafter clips for the movement problem. I agree hanging is easy, other than swinging the rock around, but finishing is the real work and I'm having a problem finding someone to do both...I'm pretty sure I'd never find someone to just do the finishing.

Man o man Fred. Sure hope you find someone...or 3. If I were closer, I'd come over and help you......supervise. My bones, belly and bursitis precludes anything else.

Edited April 29, 20179 yr by Gene Howe

Let's have a barn raising in Wapo?

[lessee,   Ohio; far enough]  Gee Fred if you were closer, I'd run right over.  I hear drywall skills are scarce everywhere; the people who did that all went home.  Have you tried Home Depot?  They have listings of handymen, and drywall isn't that tough once you get some basics.  Thinking of HD, have you considered the parking lot?  Drywall, mud, and paint seem to all be skills that, uh, "parking lot people" have.  Toughest part of drywall is carrying it into the building.  And then lifting it in place.  And I was ok with the screwing, but no talent at all for mud.  But from my experience "two men will rock you". 

The scarcity of labor for this task has many underlying reasons, as PeteM stated, the folks who do this type of labor are heading home. The downside, the consumer is feeling it, in scarce manpower, and higher costs. The upside of this, native labor will see their true worth in higher wages and more work. After it all settles down, we should see a nice medium. It may take awhile though as our nation has virtually stripped away trade education at the K-12 levels and pushed our youth into office jobs and thumbed their noses at the trades as being knuckle dragging work, the ignorance and condescending tone our leaders in education towards skilled labor and the value and true worth of it, has always irked me to no end.

We are feeling it now, but in the long run, native labor will benefit in better wages and a higher quality of living.

@Fred W. Hargis Jr...man Fred, not that I don't believe you 'cause I do, but I would think anyone worth their dry-walling salt would jump all over your project...open expanse, concrete floors, only the single partition wall; couldn't be any easier hanging and finishing environment than that. The only negative I can think might be is the 10' ceiling height, but even that is a no biggie compared to some vaulted work these guys contract.

 

Any chance your local High School has a cooperative Building Trades class or do you have a local Community College site with a building trades program? The one in our area sometimes will take on projects like this (for a reasonable fee) to give the kids additional opportunities.

 

I'm sure you've already thought of this, but with the challenges you've been facing, make sure you get in writing the sq ft cost to hang & finish, proof of liability insurance and guaranteed finish by date. While you shouldn't have nearly as much, make sure whomever, doesn't toss scrap pieces down wall cavities. Along the same line who is responsible to dispose of scraps. FWIW, my $.02.

Edited May 2, 20179 yr by Grandpadave52

Excellent advice Dave. Applies to any contract work, too.

Good thoughts there in @Grandpadave52 's reply

That is good advice, Dave, It's become an automatic when I ask for work to include a "clean up and dispose" clause. (learned that the hard way). Interesting though about the trade schools, we do have a good one nearby, maybe I'll contact them and see if they have an interest. Meantime I'm still waiting to hear from the last drywall guy I called (last Thursday).

I think Keith is spot on Fred.  Have a drywall party.  I'm close enough.