# How Many Sheets an Hour



## HHP

Hello! Good Morning and God Bless everybody! I have a couple questions to ask regarding hanging drywall. I'm in the painting business and usually I get a drywall repairs or a couple of drywall sheets to hang and from time to time a full room to finish. But, lately I've been getting more drywall jobs so I'm starting to bid on them more. The thing is, I've never timed myself hanging, mudding and finishing drywall. I'm quick at it and do a professional job. My questions is! 

(1) How many sheets per hour should I or two man crew be hanging at a nice steady pace? :help:

(2) How many days should it take a two man crew to hang, let say, 50 to 150 sheets? :help:

(3) Also how long should it take to mud and finish them on a nice day with good dry time? :help:

(4) Ok! Lets say I'm going a bedroom (12 x 12) with 8' ceiling. 12 x 8 =96, 96 x 4 = 384, 12 x 12= 144, 384 + 144 = 528 sq. ft., 528 sq. ft. / 32 sq. ft. =16.50 sheets. With me doing it solo or with a two man crew. How long should it take to hang, then mud and finish? :confused1:

I appreciate all the input I can get :thumbsup:.


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## MrWillys

8' ceilings should be right at 2000 sq ft for 1/2", and 1500 sq ft for 5/8" per man per day. Or, 250 sq ft for 1/2" and 187.5 sq ft for 5/8" per hour. NOW, we have difficulty factor to further reduce these numbers. Small job should add 1 to 2 hours for hanging and taping each. 1 hr to stock, 1 hr to clean up, and 1 hr for dump. Add in material costs, dump fees, and 5% profit, and 10% overhead. My hourly wage would include all employee costs such as workmans comp insurance, and unemployment if applicable.


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## HHP

Ok! So let me see if I'm understanding correctly! So for 1,500 sf. of 5/8 sheets divided by 32 sf. is 46 sheets per man?


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## MrWillys

HHP said:


> Ok! So let me see if I'm understanding correctly! So for 1,500 sf. of 5/8 sheets divided by 32 sf. is 46 sheets per man?


Keep in mind this is production drywall. He starts at 7 am and stops at 3:30 pm with everything 8' high, and what I call basic Bob with no intricate work like radius', arches, and or cut up tedious work.

If it were tenant work (metal studs) standups it would drop to 800 to 1000 sq ft per man day, and could drop from there dependent on difficulty. Honestly, and estimate is just a wild azz guess, or the WAG method. Look at it and say how long will this take me, and don't forget incidentals like stocking and cleanup.

I started in houses where we had to get 44 12's per man per day, or 88 as a crew to make wages. If we hung more we got paid more. It's all got to be put in perspective, because I've been on jobs where walls are filled with pipes and it takes 2 guys all day to get 10 sheets.

Honestly, we would hang a house with 4000 ft of board in less than 6 hrs. that paid 8 ea. I doubt at 54 I could do it today.


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## Bazooka-Joe

Tape 1000 sq a 8 hr day finished, divide hrs to compare, if you cant finish that amount per day forget Tape n that is average, mind you for $1000 dollars a day Bazooka Joe and Moe could teach ya Call 1800Mooredrywall


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## gordie

Well these days when hanging you get small cut up walls, utility rooms, underneath stairwells crap like that all through a home. So 1000 to 1500 sq ft per day is great no one will be disappointed with that . the harder the job the higher the price and usually the easy lower paying work can be a lot better buy the end of the day. but unfortunately where im located its all vaults, barrels, rounds, and huge window walls .The rates are great but u don't start boarding half the time until your 12' up .I've been walking with crutches all week cuz I was too stupid to check my plank on my 6' ers down I went brused my heel real bad


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## moore

Hope she heals up for you Gordie !


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## gordie

I'm down to one crutch now had to finish the guest house and garage on two crutches though lol . Im just resting now, starting a read big project on Monday should provide the lions share of my work this year. And the job is going completely to me and my bro the drywall co that bid the job only gets taping we worked for the developer on there last two big projects so the board goes to us haha:jester: love cutting out them greedy middle men


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## moore

gordie said:


> I'm down to one crutch now had to finish the guest house and garage on two crutches though lol .


Your a tough bird Gordie !! :thumbup:


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## Bazooka-Joe

gordie said:


> I'm down to one crutch now had to finish the guest house and garage on two crutches though lol . Im just resting now, starting a read big project on Monday should provide the lions share of my work this year. And the job is going completely to me and my bro the drywall co that bid the job only gets taping we worked for the developer on there last two big projects so the board goes to us haha:jester: love cutting out them greedy middle men


hear your angle Gordie but when dwc s go missing it throws screws in the mud, then the General starts to break down and hires direct, I hope you run contract rate,

kinda wondering seen how we havent heard from u in a bit and this is where you let out your frustrations, anyway your bruised big Toe aint that way from kik n someone is it


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## gordie

actually me and the dwc get along pretty good we had the same arrangement on the last build the developer did. We both charge the same per foot price he just adds for bead and I add to build bulkheads and fire rate I tape all the fire rating myself.
We both agree it will be the best job we do all year the only change from this development from the last is instead of building two towers they are building a variety of storefront town houses and I believe some stand alone houses the land is all theres .So this time I have to be able to fill in the gaps between fazes. 
Ive recently been working with a couple smaller dwc's that hire me to do huge homes with many customes involved they pay pretty good as well because they do the taping themselves and have a very good name so im just happy I don't have to work for the big guys anymore the guys who make all the money for ordering supplies and offering extras off our hides .:thumbsup:


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## DSJOHN

HHP said:


> Hello! Good Morning and God Bless everybody! I have a couple questions to ask regarding hanging drywall. I'm in the painting business and usually I get a drywall repairs or a couple of drywall sheets to hang and from time to time a full room to finish. But, lately I've been getting more drywall jobs so I'm starting to bid on them more. The thing is, I've never timed myself hanging, mudding and finishing drywall. I'm quick at it and do a professional job. My questions is!
> 
> (1) How many sheets per hour should I or two man crew be hanging at a nice steady pace? :help:
> 
> (2) How many days should it take a two man crew to hang, let say, 50 to 150 sheets? :help:
> 
> (3) Also how long should it take to mud and finish them on a nice day with good dry time? :help:
> 
> (4) Ok! Lets say I'm going a bedroom (12 x 12) with 8' ceiling. 12 x 8 =96, 96 x 4 = 384, 12 x 12= 144, 384 + 144 = 528 sq. ft., 528 sq. ft. / 32 sq. ft. =16.50 sheets. With me doing it solo or with a two man crew. How long should it take to hang, then mud and finish? :confused1:
> 
> I appreciate all the input I can get :thumbsup:.


From an old-timer--chiming in--after 33 years I retired [only part time jobs that suit me now] We[myself and employee] averaged 80-100 sheets a day on custom homes for years[installing] Many homes were 250-300 sheets , and they were finished and primed in 4-5 days . So we were hanging and finishing these in 8-9 days depending on many factors---To answer your questions in simple terms , a sliding scale of #of sheets you can handle on a regular basis per day to your daily wage you need to earn. None of us are going to charge out our normal sft prices on 30 sheets as we would on 130, my personal preference was 80 and above was my normal square ft pricing and as the sheet count lowered my soft # went up----Say 100 sheets at 4800 sft x $1,50 = $7200--- 10 sheets at 480 sftx $1.50 =&720------I,m not buying material hanging it and finishing and priming for that number--- Same as going into a home to install over old plaster ceiling [12x12] 144 sft @ $150=$216 not going to work----So you need to factor your own daily wade int those small jobs-overhead -and profit---Good luck----Oldtimer DSJOHN


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## chris

http://youtu.be/fQzcu0stXzI Pretty cool video, never knew there was a drywall olympics


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## super rocker

Where was the real Speedy Gonzalez? We know the brown skin boys are faster and more meticulous.:thumbdown:


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## Dumb Drywaller

super rocker said:


> Where was the real Speedy Gonzalez? We know the brown skin boys are faster and more meticulous.:thumbdown:


Not enough room for three hangars in those tiny cubicles. :whistling2:


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## moore

chris said:


> http://youtu.be/fQzcu0stXzI Pretty cool video, never knew there was a drywall olympics


All three were white boys...that impressed me. Man. You put those three together you will have a nice hanging crew.


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## evolve991

Not bad but more real world needed....like a faceful of itchy....imperfect sheets to be set aside.....c'mooooon


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## Justa Hick

my fast crews used to hang 100 sheets per man per day. would work footage only. Union used to say 30 sheets per man per day.


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## moore

Justa Hick said:


> my fast crews used to hang 100 sheets per man per day. would work footage only. Union used to say 30 sheets per man per day.


Your fast crews use to hang 100 sheets per day . 100 sheets per man ? 

I'm guessing there all dead.. Right?


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## super rocker

moore said:


> Your fast crews use to hang 100 sheets per day . 100 sheets per man ?
> 
> I'm guessing there all dead.. Right?


Or invisible.:thumbup:


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## Justa Hick

close to retiring. that was in early and mid ninety. they simply did not go to work to shot the breeze and joke around. they had a system nailed down. when they called out measurements you never heard the cutter keep asking what direction is than? they measured every room/bathroom in the same order every time. they did not have to measure every direction on every bathtub in an apartment because 100 bathtubs in a 100 unit building are all the same. they only called out if something changed.

Was the work perfect? no. there was a bit of prefill to do, but these were volume units. they could slow down and do a nice when needed. The opposite end of the scale; Once watched a 'slow' crew for a while. their boss spent half a day with them when just hired. three guys hung a 4x4 foot piece on a short wall top. two guys held the sheet up until the third guy finished, yes finished putting all the screws in. If you under stand the work and have a system then you know the sheet will stay up with one or two nails in in it and the other two guys should have been measuring the next wall. 

yes per man per day. used to get crappy quad two and three story town homes. little rooms of 10-6 long walls with 12 foot sheets stocked in them taking up the whole floor at criss crossing angles. Every sheet needing cutting. double lid every where. they stocked 5 x floor. 1000 feet of floor took 5000 feet of rock. the units stocked with about 120 sheets per unit. four guys hung put i a long day, one guy came back the next day to finish screwing off garages, odds and ends etc. he finished before noon. those were crappy units.


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## bryonbuzz

*how many sheets*

whats important is not how many sheets you can hang but how are you transporting it are you breaking the corners , would you like a place to lay it out cut it and store it and still have access to the tools inside your van . If so sounds like you need a set of cargo rackz . Cargo rackz are the easiest . fastest way to haul , store and work on materials like drywall , plywood , doors and lumber . Even in bad weather cargo rackz work great with a cover with Velcro ends your material is safe and dry. and all those tools inside your van, you have full access to all of them . Now lets recap haul , store, work on , fast , access to the tools inside , and any weather you just cant beat cargo rackz :thumbsup::whistling2:


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## embella plaster

Hey buddy i am from aus so we measure our rooms generally 2.4m ceilings 2.7m ceilings and 3.0m ceiling heights so not to sure on all yall measurments but when your learning how to quote on drywall without losing i believe you should start quoting on an hourly rate that way you wont get a big shock at the end of the job and eventually you will work it all out at a metre or square foot rate but as gordie said cupboards and walls with heaps of details or cuts can change everything


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## endo_alley

I have never seen the production rates you guys talk about. Around here in western Colorado, I rarely see hangers hanging more than 25 sheets per day per man. And even then they say they don't have time to shim the walls and ceilings.


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## eastex1963

Tons of replies with tons of different answers. The OP probably knew this thread would cause debates......Just thought I would add to the chaos, lol...3 man crew, all experienced, all 52+ yrs old.......125 12's in 6 hrs. Residential, hanging lids, walls, closets as we go......And yeah, I feel it....every night and most morning till I get the kinks worked out. lol.


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## moore

eastex1963 said:


> Tons of replies with tons of different answers. The OP probably knew this thread would cause debates......Just thought I would add to the chaos, lol...3 man crew, all experienced, all 52+ yrs old.......125 12's in 6 hrs. Residential, hanging lids, walls, closets as we go......And yeah, I feel it....every night and most morning till I get the kinks worked out. lol.


That's a fair shake for three ole farts!! :yes:


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## gordie

We board with all diferent sized sheets 8',9',10',12',14' and 12'by 54" for 9' houses .
All boarding situations are different u obviously will charge a higher price for teadious, difficult, or dangerous stuff so those days give a different sence of accomplishment.
That said my best day on 8' condos 2200 sq' my worst yesterday .Installed two bedroom lids 6 12'ers total the weather is fu#$ing awesome went wacked a couple balls at the range and polished off a couple 8 packs :drink: 
a crap I think I put that in the wrong order:jester:


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## gordie

o yea I shouldn't brag the day was from 7am 2 7:30 pm

Yesterday to install or hang 2 lousy lids drink beer whack balls, drink more beer enjoy kick ass day took tell 9:30 :yes:


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## 800PoundGuerrilla

How many boards must a man put up, before he's considered a man ... the answer my friend is blowin' in the wind ... the answer is blowin' in the wind.

I look at it a little differently ... 480 minutes in an 8 hour day ... that's 28,800 seconds. The driving force for me was how much did I want (need) to make in a day and how could I make every second count ... 

I was always a believer in mind over matter ... if you are mindful, it matters ... actions being the product of thinking ... form following function. So, I set the bar high ... 3000 SF/day. Did I get that everyday? Hell no. But because I had my mind set on that number ... on making $200/day (back in the late 70s early 80s) ... I got close to that. I used the same logic when taping and finishing ... continuously trying to figure out how I could make every second count ... to turn $200/day into $300/day ... then $400/day ... then $500/day ... and so it goes.

The cost of living has changed ... (want and need are now 5 times what it was back then)
Jobs have changed in the way that they run them (schedule them). Attitudes have changed toward mechanics (commodification nation).

Thinking has become more important than ever.


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## tjetson

crazy most i can hang a day is about 20-25 sheets perfectly with a helper


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## endo_alley

800PoundGuerrilla said:


> How many boards must a man put up, before he's considered a man ... the answer my friend is blowin' in the wind ... the answer is blowin' in the wind.
> 
> I look at it a little differently ... 480 minutes in an 8 hour day ... that's 28,800 seconds. The driving force for me was how much did I want (need) to make in a day and how could I make every second count ...
> 
> I was always a believer in mind over matter ... if you are mindful, it matters ... actions being the product of thinking ... form following function. So, I set the bar high ... 3000 SF/day. Did I get that everyday? Hell no. But because I had my mind set on that number ... on making $200/day (back in the late 70s early 80s) ... I got close to that. I used the same logic when taping and finishing ... continuously trying to figure out how I could make every second count ... to turn $200/day into $300/day ... then $400/day ... then $500/day ... and so it goes.
> 
> The cost of living has changed ... (want and need are now 5 times what it was back then)
> Jobs have changed in the way that they run them (schedule them). Attitudes have changed toward mechanics (commodification nation).
> 
> Thinking has become more important than ever.


I salute you dude! 3000 sf is well over 60, 12' sheets, a day. I've never met anybody even come close to that. Half that many sheets maybe a handful of times in 30 years.


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## longhornbuilds

I plug in 200 SF of basic 5/8" install per hour, for one experienced hanger, and a helper. Basic commercial applications. The higher the wall, the less production though. Might seem low, but it accounts for break time, lunch, and other possible variables. That keeps me pretty accurate, and competitive in my area.


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## Bazooka-Joe

super rocker said:


> Where was the real Speedy Gonzalez? We know the brown skin boys are faster and more meticulous.:thumbdown:


seed 2 speedy Gonzales, they made casholas and tell ya the work was mint, slamming power drink through the day, they exist just some are good but just got through some of their work last month hangers I mean, cost me man did it cost me, at the point where I back charged for extra time, cant take it anymore, first back charge ever


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## Bazooka-Joe

gordie said:


> o yea I shouldn't brag the day was from 7am 2 7:30 pm
> 
> Yesterday to install or hang 2 lousy lids drink beer whack balls, drink more beer enjoy kick ass day took tell 9:30 :yes:


now I see why ya dump your weekload here Gordie


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## moore

johnmeto said:


> Tape 1000 sq a 8 hr day completed, partition hrs to analyze, in the event that you cannot complete that sum every day overlook Tape n that is normal.


Are you Joe's Brother?


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## gordie

The good boarders I mean really good boarders are the ones that finish:whistling2:


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## moore

gordie said:


> The good boarders I mean really good boarders are the ones that finish:whistling2:


That's not true.


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## Mudstar

moore said:


> That's not true.


That's the truth ! believe in *gordie*


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## MrWillys

gordie said:


> The good boarders I mean really good boarders are the ones that finish:whistling2:


I guess I'm no good then?


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## Tapeslamr79

My dad's 61 and we hang 10 -12 -12' an hour


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## james_mke_87

Your crew could hang 100 sheets per man per day?!? Now that's absolutely cruising on a project. Where did you find guys that can work like that??


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## Muddobber

Typically two good hangers can hang 100 brd a day. Two good finishers can finish that amount in 3-4 days. Allowing for drying time…


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## Mjaw

james_mke_87 said:


> Your crew could hang 100 sheets per man per day?!? Now that's absolutely cruising on a project. Where did you find guys that can work like that??


He found them at The Super Friends Hall of Justice.


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