Expectations differ from one to another. The decisions we make throughout our lives are those that most define us. If you have a strong interest in a certain topic, you should consider pursuing a professional career in that sector. If you want to be a drywall installer, you may achieve professional success by pursuing your dreams in that sector. Whatever subject you are enthusiastic about, you must be aware of the most efficient methods for advancing your career in that sector. The main focus of this essay is on how to become a drywall installer. We are positive that this article will undoubtedly provide you with a thorough grasp of how to become a drywall installer.
Drywall Installation and Finishing Paperback – March 1, 1993
The author of this book is Karen Goad. With the instruction of this book, you would be able to put up and finish ordinary drywall, fire-resistant drywall, or waterboard quickly and efficiently. Perfect joints that produce a smooth surface, appropriate placement of door and window openings, working around stairs and repairing cracked or damaged drywall are all explained comprehensively in this book. And this explains the quickest and easiest ways for completing walls and ceilings, from taping to sanding to texturing. Therefore, this becomes a must-read for you.
What do Drywall Installers do?
A drywall installer is a professional who measures, cuts, and creates interior walls for home and commercial building projects using drywall. The primary responsibility of a drywall installer is to prepare drywall panels for installation. This involves taking measurements and cutting panels, delivering drywall and equipment to project locations, putting up the panels, repairing nail holes, applying tape and sealing compounds, and sanding the joints to prepare for painting.
You must be able to move large objects, do repeated physical tasks, and spend most of each work shift on your feet. While you can work as a freelancer, the majority of drywall installers start their careers with a construction firm.
Ultimate Guide to Drywall: Pro Tips for Hanging & Finishing Paperback – October 1, 2005
This book is by John D. Wagner. The illustrator of this book is Clarke Barre. And this book will educate any reader on how to install and repair drywall. This takes you through the steps of measuring, cutting, installing, and finishing drywall ceilings and walls with 445 comprehensive illustrations and pictures. The book includes more complex subjects like applying drywall on curved walls and putting drywall over steel studs, in addition to typical drywall procedures. Corner treatments and specific equipment for drywall installation are also discussed. You can get the inside scoop on dealing with drywall with expert advice from drywall installers if you go through this book.
Working Conditions of a Drywall Installer
Drywall installers mainly work indoors. Notwithstanding, the job necessitates a lot of physical exertion. Workers are required to stand, bend, or reach for most of the day. And they often move and manipulate heavy wallboards. Hence, there is no doubt that this is obviously a physically demanding career. And the work schedules for drywall installers would mostly be full-time.
Black & Decker Working with Drywall: Hanging & Finishing Drywall the Professional Way Paperback – December 1, 2009
When the walls and ceilings are painted, it is untidy, laborious, and even little flaws become visible. Working with drywall provides a new perspective on a dreaded but necessary chore. This book goes beyond the fundamentals of drywall installation to expose all of the secrets of professional drywall installation. Hence, this would be a useful book for anyone who wants to be a professional drywall installer.
Do Drywall Installers make good money?
Drywall installers do make good money. According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, here are the stats. In May 2020, the average yearly pay for drywall and ceiling tile installers was $47,460. Half of the employees earned more than that amount, while the other half earned less. The bottom 10% made less than $29,890, while the top 10% earned more than $85,070.
As you can understand, this is a decent income. So, there is no doubt that by becoming a drywall installer, you can make good money. Furthermore, if you start your own business and develop it, you may be able to make staggering amounts of money as an employer employing other professionals as well.
Complete Drywall
This book by Stanley tells you everything that you need to know about installing drywall. Basic drywall planning, selection, cutting, hanging, taping, and sanding procedures are all in this book. Also, you can get to know about all the professional tips for drywall installation if you go through this book. Due to all these positives, we strongly think that this book would be an invaluable resource to anyone willing to be a drywall installer.
How to be a Drywall Installer?
Alright. Now, let us look into how to be a drywall installer.
- Get a high school diploma or an equivalent
- Follow an apprenticeship program
- Work as a professional
- Advance to higher positions
Basically, these are the steps to becoming a drywall installer. If you follow these steps correctly, you would also be able to be a drywall installer. But do not think that you know how to be a drywall installer now. You just know the steps to be a drywall installer. But you do not know it comprehensively. In order to get to know that, you have to read the next part of the article.
Drywall: Professional Techniques for Great Results Paperback – January 8, 2008
The author of this book is Myron R. Ferguson. And this book explains all about this job starting from the basic level up to the complex level. So, we are pretty sure that this would be so informative to anybody having an interest in this field. Further, this has received good ratings and reviews on Amazon as well. All these factors make this book a good one.
1. Get a high school diploma or an equivalent
For any employment, a high school diploma is most likely necessary to begin. Even though you will not receive any special training for the profession, a high school diploma is necessary for employment most of the time. Notwithstanding, there are no educational prerequisites for becoming a drywall installer. Besides, the majority of companies prefer to recruit individuals who have a high school diploma or an equivalent,
With a high school diploma, you can get a foundational understanding of the majority of academic areas if you graduate from high school. Graduation from high school, in particular, indicates that you have a fundamental understanding of arithmetic, science, reading, and writing. You do not have to be an expert in any of these, though. All that is necessary is a working knowledge of them.
For employees commencing an apprenticeship, a high school diploma or equivalent is usually necessary. Here, what we mean by an equivalent is a GED or a General Education Development test. It is also an acceptable form of qualification as it also implies that you have the right amount of fundamental knowledge.
In addition, it is not just the knowledge that matters. In the current world, having good people skills is immensely advantageous and beneficial. And surely, you can improve your people skills big time during the time of your high school graduation. So, although this may not be a formal educational requirement, it is better to start with this step.
2. Follow an apprenticeship program
In the previous part, we told you that it is very important to have a high school diploma although they are not mandatory. And we also told you that they are necessary in order to complete an apprenticeship program. Yes, the very next thing you should do is completing an apprenticeship program.
Apprenticeship programs for drywall installers are sponsored by a few organizations, including the United Brotherhood of Carpenters, the International Union of Painters and Allied Trades, and contractor associations. Apprenticeships generally span two to four years and include on-the-job training with technical education.
During this period of time, you would be able to master the art of this trade completely. And most importantly, you would be able to learn this trade from those who have mastered the trade perfectly and have a vast amount of experience and skills. So, there is no doubt that even you would be able to master the trade eventually.
However, during the apprenticeship, you cannot engage in the tasks on your own. All the time, you will be under the direct supervision of senior employees. That is because there is no chance to make any mistakes in a field like this. However, as you are new here, there is a possibility that you might make a certain amount of mistakes. Of course, you can learn from those mistakes. But there should be someone to correct at the point you make it because the task that you are carrying out should consist of professional quality.
3. Work as a professional
In general, now, you know how to be a drywall installer. If you follow the above steps that we told you on how to be a drywall installer, in this step you can become a professional. And importantly, you can call yourself a professional drywall installer.
When working as a professional, it is not merely the knowledge of the trade that matters. And it is not just the skills you have that matter. There are lots of other things. You must be a responsible employee with proper professional behavior. Without proper professional behavior, it is actually hard to survive in an industry like this.
So, you need to build good interpersonal relationship skills and you need to develop day by day all your people skills just like your professional skills. This way, it would be easier for you to advance in the industry as well.
4. Advance to higher positions
Supervisors, general superintendents, project managers, and estimators are all options for drywall installers to advance to. After acquiring expertise in the field, workers may decide to establish their own firm as well. But here, you need to have a proper business mindset. And you need to have good management skills. Do not worry, with the experience that you can gain while working as a professional drywall installer, you can surely move up to great heights like that.
Workers who join a union may be able to improve their careers inside the union, such as becoming the business manager for a local chapter or an apprenticeship program teacher. Of course, there are plenty of pathways to follow. However, now that you know how to become a drywall installer, you can simply rise to the top. This is just a matter of time and experience. However, it is pretty certain that you would be able to rise to the top surely if you can persevere till the end with dedication and commitment.
What are the Qualities a Drywall Installer needs to have?
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics highlights a set of important qualities that you would need to have if you need to engage in this profession. Let us take a look at what they are.
- Ability to work at heights
- Attention to detail
- Balance
- Dexterity
- Math skills
- Physical stamina
- Physical strength
Of course, to be a better professional, you need to have these qualities. Otherwise, you would not be able to excel in this field.
1. Ability to work at height
In this industry, you would have to work on ladders, scaffolding, lifts, or stilts. If you are reading this article on how to be a drywall installer, make sure that you have the ability to work at heights. If not, it is unfortunate that you are not the type who is suitable for this profession. You would have to move to another industry if you are not able to work at heights.
In fact, this is of immense importance. How can you say no to a particular task that you have been assigned to do? You must complete it, right? And what if you cannot work at heights? Well, this would turn out to be a big problem. Hence, you need to make sure that you have this ability.
If you suffer from vertigo, or if you have acrophobia, you must seriously take that into account. There are possibly two options. One is that you can somehow eliminate the fear in you. And the second is that you can think of a different career option. That is up to you to decide on what is best for you.
Working at Height Paperback – May 1, 2001
This pocket-sized handbook of 164 pages is a perfect guide for you to practice safety while working at heights. This book even goes to the extreme of working at a very high level. Drywall installers may not have to work at such heights. But yet, this would be so helpful. This is intended to provide a thorough review of current techniques and equipment for safe and effective working at height. The book is meant to be used in conjunction with formal training rather than as a replacement for it.
2. Attention to detail
Another important quality that a drywall installer should have is the ability to give proper attention to all the details. Drywall installers, of course, must pay close attention to every aspect. In fact, a drywall installer must pay great attention to even the tiniest aspects while on the job. The most fundamental things that you forget to consider are sometimes the most significant. It is likely that neglecting to take them into account will have a negative impact on the project’s final outcome. Because of that, you must surely have the ability to pay attention to detail.
Obviously, precise measurements are of vital importance. It is with those precise measurements that you can do all other tasks that you have to do. You must keep this in mind.
Improve Attention To Detail: A straightforward system to develop attention to detail in yourself, employees, and across an organization. Paperback – April 17, 2019
In a job like this, paying attention to even the tiniest detail is important, as you probably well know. We are confident that you will benefit from this book. Chris Denny is the author of this book. You will discover advice on how to increase your attention to detail in this book. As a result, we strongly suggest that you read this book. The book’s readers were happy with what it had to offer. This book has gotten positive ratings on Amazon as well. As a consequence, you can be assured that this is a worthwhile read for you.
3. Balance
Under the section of being able to work at heights also, we mentioned that it is important that you do not get vertigo. What if you lose your balance when you are at height? That would end up in a tragedy. Stilts are commonly worn by drywall workers. Because of that, you must be able to move around and utilize tools without losing your balance.
The Book Of Balance: Rehab Secrets To Improve Your Balance And Decrease Your Risk Of Falling. Kindle Edition
There is no doubt that you should have proper balance in a profession like drywall installation. Of course, we explained that to you. The author of this book is Lex Ganzales. And we think that this book would be so helpful to you to improve your physical balance while at work if you lack it by any chance.
4. Dexterity
Dexterity refers to the skill that a particular individual has with regard to performing particular tasks with the use of hands. And of course, drywall installers have a lot of things to do with their hands. Further, there are plenty of hand tools that drywall installers have to make use of, in their profession. Hence, we advise you to improve your dexterity if you think that your dexterity is not at a level that is highly satisfying.
5. Math skills
As a drywall installer, you may have to make certain measurements. And next, you would have to decide on the quantity of some material that you may need. However, if you are not good at even the basics of math, you would not be able to figure it out. Therefore, it is necessary to be good at maths.
Nevertheless, we are not telling you that you need to have knowledge of complex and advanced mathematical theories and concepts. You do not have to know calculus. It is just the basics and fundamental principles that you need to know. In fact, there is no need for a drywall installer to be a math prodigy. If you are that good at math, you can perhaps advance in that career. However, fundamental knowledge is required.
Applied Construction Math Trainee Workbook, Paperback 1st Edition
You can do this trainee workbook if you feel that you need to improve your skills in math for your profession. As we told you before, it is pretty important for professionals in this sector to be sound in basic math skills. And we think that this would be a great help for you if you hope to improve your math skills.
6. Physical stamina
Stamina is the ability to maintain a high level of physical or mental activity for an extended amount of time. Working as a drywall installer demands a high level of physical exertion. As a result, physical stamina is certainly crucial. And the majority of what you would have to do would be repeated actions. And you may have to carry heavy materials as well. Therefore, even if you lack physical stamina, you may live in this field. It is that important. Because of that, if you believe your level of physical stamina is insufficient for this industry, you must take the necessary steps to enhance your physical stamina.
7. Physical strength
Drywall installers must be physically robust in addition to having physical stamina. Your abilities and skills in this profession would be of little value if you lack physical strength. In this job, you would have to lift a variety of heavy materials as we told you previously. Being physically healthy and strong is essential. But how can you avoid this difficulty if you wish to work as a drywall installer? One of the most effective ways to address this issue is through strength training. Strength training may certainly help with physical strength growth. This is really beneficial to your career.
Science and Practice of Strength Training Hardcover – April 9, 2020
Vladimir M. Zatsiorsky, William J. Kraemer, and Andrew C. Fry are the writers of this book. As you are well aware, drywall installers require physical strength and fitness. This implies that you must be physically capable of doing your duties. This is an excellent book to read if you wish to improve your physical strength. It has also received positive reviews and ratings on Amazon.
Conclusion
This article focused on how to be a drywall installer. And we think that this was probably a pretty interesting read for you. All the same, if you wish, you can read about how to be a plumber, electrician, mason, HVAC technician, ironworker, glazier, solar installer, boilermaker, painter, and so on. We wish you good luck in your professional career!
