Vapor barriers & firecore vs mold sheetrock

[TreeWolf]

Working on building 1-2 permanent growing rooms in a 10' x 19' space, which will require building at least one new wall, may just use panda to separate flower/veg at first until we settle on some room sizes.

This is in our garage which is already semi-finished with drywall. Not sure if it would be worth ripping out the regular drywall and using mold proof kind instead, or even the firecore type that's extra fireproof? Definitely going with AFCI breakers and other safety measures so maybe mold is a bigger enemy than fire?

I'm also not sure about vapor barriers, don't they normally go on the outside of the house under the siding? Seems like with all the extra humidity we'll be pumping into the room for years and years maybe some extra tyvek might be needed inside as well? I can't remember was Mike Holmes always says as far as if they go on the warm or cool side etc.

Environmental factors - we are on top of a mountain in Colorado so we have low humidity year round outside, cold temps and a big drop in temperature each night even in the summer.

 

[Morcheeba*]

im not sure what surface you are treating but there are fire retardants that also include mold inhibitors.

two companies i feel has the best products on the market due to their non toxic formulation as well as easy to apply. they both will bring materials up to a Class A fire rating.

No-Burn Mih

or

Flame Stop II

these are for wood but they have stuff for fabrics and paint additives.


peace

 

[TreeWolf]

It's all just uncoated drywall (including the ceiling), but a concrete floor. Just coating the existing drywall sounds a lot less of a PITA than replacing it though, thanks! I'm sure this is overkill but we do sleep above this area, not to mention living in the woods with a high fire risk a good half of the year.

 

[jonesb]

here is a moisture barrier paint

https://www.sherwin-williams.com/painting-contractors/products/catalog/moisture-vapor-barrier

 

[ronbo51]

cover the walls with panda and control your environment to keep humidity in check

 

[RB56]

You can also put new drywall over old to better bock noise. Better still if you use Green Glue between the layers. Two layers will also help with burn through.

 

[queequeg152]

vapor barrier 101:

hot hot humid out side = vapor RETARDANT aka WRB outside.

hot humid inside?( aka heating climates) = vapor BARRIER inside.

vapor barrier paint is kinda wonky... you can get high solids alkyld primers that do the same job with 2 coats... or 1 coat primer and 1 coat of high solids alkyld paint.

acrylic primers and paints are a little better i think? but high quality acrylic paint is literally 60+ bucks a gallon.

i tried to buy the benjamine moore vapor barrier paint and was told it would be like 2+ weeks to get it. i never got a price on it though... its possible its cheaper than 2 primer coats, or 1 primer 1 paint coat.

also i highly suggest you get on buildingscience.com for all your vapor barrier questions.

 

[Rider420]

cover the walls with panda and control your environment to keep humidity in check

What he said! Get a good dehumidifier unless you want mold in your buds never mind the walls.

 

[TreeWolf]

Thanks for all the advice everyone. Trying to get this wrapped up soon so a friend doesn't have to sleep on the other side of some panda from our temporary setup over Thanksgiving. Already had to make my mom do that recently which she was surprisingly OK with, yet she still refused to smoke with us!

 

[coldcanna]

Generally they put tyvek on the outside of your exterior sheathing, then sheathing, then insulation, then poly vapor barrier, then sheetrock if you're working from outside to inside.

I wouldn't bother taking out old rock just to put in green board, use a quality washable latex paint and be diligent cleaning it (like any grower should be anyway) and you won't have any issues with mold.

Panda is cool as a short term thing, once you get a few holes in it though moisture and mold will be a problem behind it.

 

[jaybodankly]

Commercial kitchens to clean rooms use FRP panels. Fiber Reinforced Plastic. Comes in all colors, durable, hygienic. 4'x8' is $32 @ Low Depot or a dollar a sq/ft.

 

[Can of Bliss]

Commercial kitchens to clean rooms use FRP panels. Fiber Reinforced Plastic. Comes in all colors, durable, hygienic. 4'x8' is $32 @ Low Depot or a dollar a sq/ft.

Good call. I have pressure washed that stuff (installed over sheet rock) weeky when I worked in food manufacturing. It's good stuff. They make strips to cover the seams and caps to cover the screws. I'm sure a good bead of caulking would be more than enough for this application.

 

[jaybodankly]

Putting panda on unpainted sheetrock is not a good idea. The sheetrock needs paint to seal it otherwise it is a big sponge.

 

[Rodehazrd]

Putting panda on unpainted sheetrock is not a good idea. The sheetrock needs paint to seal it otherwise it is a big sponge.

I never thought of that just starting to replace my panda walls with sheetrock I'm gonna make sure to get a good finish coat on there. Although now I struggle to reach 50% humidity.
RH

 

[HazyBulldog]

All sheetrock has a fire rating when taped. 1 hour. No need for green board, just seal it with a good primer and paint. Flat white paint, then run a strip of panda at 4ft if needed.


old thread, most likely taken care of.

 

[queequeg152]

i think you should clarify... the super lightweight drywall has a lesser fire rating. its air entertained and has some lightweight admixtures added in.

also the fire rating is for both sides, not one side as is the case i suspect- with alot of these grow rooms.

there is a product called firecore, or firecode? its 60 minute rated 5/8" drywall.

it weighs more than the moon though. literally like... 80 lbs per panel. i put that shit in my moms M. bath ceiling.

its really nice drywall though. cuts well, very very strong, but unless you are jacked as fuck you will need helpers to put it up.

 

[HazyBulldog]

Put up miles of 5/8" board....... Man up. Commercial guys will laugh at you

You are right however, 5/8 board gives the hour fire rating. Only needs to be taped and sealed on one side to achieve one hour rating.

 

[queequeg152]

lol yea you are probably right. its just so fucking cumbersome.

i can get sacks of cement onto my shoulder all day long, but my arms reach is only like 44 inches? i can MOVE 5/8" sheets, but i cant get them onto the lift by myself. maby my technique was/is bad...

 

[Bobby Boucher]

I've had to unload stand up and install dozens of 16' 5/8th panels by myself @ 140 lbs a piece, and I only weigh 160. Not really that bad. Impossible without proper technique, though. I had to be shown how.

Commercial dudes apparently don't believe in "help". Each dude has his own lift and carries his own panels. I've offered to help little guys carry those big panels and gotten laughed at.

 

[HazyBulldog]

yea, help gets in the way while sheetrocking. I used to hang 16' 5x8's all day long by myself, no lift. I out weigh bobby by 70 lbs or so, 6' tall. (fatty!) Ever try to hang sheetrock to the ceiling in a commercial building, above grid height? Having to work all that around ducts, electrical, ext is a pain. One building I was working, that was all I did for a couple months, all night work because you were imposing on two different tenets in most cases. Security issue, they were having people jump over the walls from boarding offices and stealing computers and stuff.

Now the fire core board for fire shafts....... 1"........ FML.

Or the 1" thick carbon fiber board in the Department of Justice....... We had to line the entire weapons room with diamond mesh, covering carbon fiber board used to stop bullets. Like Kevlar, but much stronger. Each piece was 4 x 8 but weighed in at 260 lbs. That had to be fastened to the floor, walls and ceiling. Holy crap that job sucked. Plus, cutting it was a nightmare. Had to wear a full on Breaking Bad suit, ruined the fountain with all the dust. It was a nightmare.

This is why I laugh when people complain about little things. Like not showing up to work for a week because of a cough. Or a little injury. Shoot, I was lifting this crap daily for 15 years with a broken back. It hurt, but I gotta feed my family right?