society and community | May 13, 2026

Should you install flooring or drywall first?

When you're hanging drywall and installing new flooring, it's usually best to hang the drywall first and then save the floor for last.

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Moreover, do you install walls or floor first?

In new-construction homes where no flooring has been laid yet, this is the way it works: walls are put up first, then the floor covering comes later. When you run a floor sander around a room, there is the possibility of scuffing up newly painted walls.

Additionally, is drywall supposed to touch the floor? 3 Answers. Drywall should definitely not touch concrete as moisture will wick (ie flow up the surface as in a candle/lamp wick) into the drywall and encourage mold growth. For the bottom piece, you use a roll lifter under the drywall to lift it up and give you a tight fit to the board above it.

Consequently, can you lay flooring before drywall?

Best Answer. Install drywall on the walls before installing floor covering. This recommendation does not apply to subfloor.

How far off floor should drywall be?

Drywall has the most structural strength if these vertical seams are offset by at least 4 feet. You may need to use a foot-operated wallboard lift to lever the lower panels upward to snug them up against the top row of drywall.

Related Question Answers

Is drywall hung vertically or horizontally?

On commercial jobs, fire codes often require seams to fall on the entire length of the framing, so the drywall must be hung vertically. However, on residential jobs, the drywall on the walls is typically hung horizontally. For walls nine feet high or shorter, hanging the drywall horizontally has a number of benefits.

Do you lay flooring before cabinets?

If you are installing a hardwood floating floor (or any floating floor such as cork or laminate), you should install the floor AFTER the kitchen cabinets are installed. So, floors that are nailed (or glued) should be installed BEFORE the cabinets and floors that are floated should be done AFTER the cabinets.

Do you install doors before drywall?

Normally interior doors get installed after the drywall is hung, taped, and finished, but you also have the option to start hanging interior doors before drywall. One of the biggest advantages to installing them after drywall, is that your doors will stay cleaner and will be less likely to be damaged.

What goes down first carpet or hardwood?

Install hardwood first. If it is a site finished flooring the final coat could be applied after the carpet is installed. By installing the hardwood first the carpet guys will have something to finish to. They will want that, and any professional will understand how to work around a new hardwood floor.

Does flooring go in before trim?

Baseboards are often installed before flooring, since they must be finished in place with either stain or paint and this is much easier without worrying about staining the hardwood, tile or carpet.

Why is drywall installed horizontally?

Hides uneven studs – Hanging horizontally also allows the drywall to flow over the framing so that bowed studs create less of a problem. If the drywall were hung vertically and a seam placed on a bowed out stud, the seam would be magnified because of the bump in the wall.

Is hanging sheetrock hard?

Now a word for you rookies: Hanging drywall over your head is no fun. Drywall is heavy, awkward and hard to get into position. To make the job somewhat easier, make a “crutch” (Photo 3). To make it a lot easier, pony up for a drywall lift.

Do you install subfloor before framing?

If you use a product like DriCore for the subfloor, they even explicitly recommend you frame on top of their subfloor product. They do, however, recommend you screw the framing through the subfloor into the concrete with something like 3" Tapcons spaced every 4 ft through the bottom sill of the framing.

What comes first sanding floors or painting walls?

Assuming that you are getting the work done professionally, it is usually better to do most of the painting AFTER the flooring and most of the prep work BEFORE the flooring. The ideal is to first do any prep work to the walls – e.g.ripping up wall paper, sanding and patching walls, etc.

Does drywall have to end on stud?

Keep in mind that all pieces of drywall should begin and end on a stud. You should never have a piece of drywall overhanging a stud, or two pieces of drywall meeting in the open spaces between studs.

Is it OK to hang drywall vertically?

Hang the drywall vertically in rooms with high ceilings like foyers and open two-story living areas. But for the majority of rooms, including bathrooms, hallways, and areas where the walls are shorter than nine feet, hanging drywall horizontally is your best bet.

Do you put flooring down before drywall?

When you're hanging drywall and installing new flooring, it's usually best to hang the drywall first and then save the floor for last.