Wall Coverings

Basics

• A general term for materials used to:
  • Make structural walls more aesthetically appealing
  • Increase Insulation (Sound, Thermal...)
  • Make adding temporary fixtures easier (Cement Block Screws vs a Nail for hanging photos etc)
• Examples Include:
  • Carpet (Think of that grey/black carpet used to cover the insides of vehicles etc
  • Plaster Board
  • Paneling (Wood, Plastic, or Composite)
  • Some sort of Engineered Wood product such as Homasote , Masonite, etc

Most Common

Plaster Board

• Most USA Homes use "Drywall" which is a Plaster Board sometimes with fibers and Flame Retardant
• This is often made with
  • Pulped Paper Recycling
  • "New" Gypsum Powder
  • Recycled Gypsum
  • Other additives
• Mostly renewable?
• Also gypsum seems to be VERY common and mined in quarries
• Main issue with drywall seems to be it is hard to produce small scale?
• It is fire-resistant (need to get more hard info)
  • Hard to tell as it is often used with wood framing, and has paper backing on both sides

Simple Washes/Paint

• A Thin Coat of Plaster, or Paint
• Improves aesthetics, doesn't add much else, but is easy to do
• Would make nails still not very practical (need to dig for info)]

Engineered Wood

• Would easy to make small scale, main issue is Flammability
• MAY be able to use some sort of Flame Retardant in the mix?
• Also would work well with other needed workflows:
  • Paper Recycling
  • Pulp Compression Molding

Internal Links

• Cement Board (See Also/Merge With "Plaster Board" once that page is made?)

External Links

• The Wikipedia Page on This Category
• On the difficulty of hanging things in masonry walls (also goofy bit on euro stuff)