Sheet rock is heavy but awkwardly so. The weight itself I could handle but it’s spread over a four by eight foot sheet. Also, I didn’t know that they come in twos, hooked together on both ends to give them stability to move them. Our plan was to get enough sheet rock into the upstairs before winter really set in. This meant actually hoisting the sheet rock to the second floor.
First, we needed to find a trailer and where to buy the wallboard. Jer researched and found a place cheaper to buy the material and closer to where we are building. Second, we needed a trailer. Jer also found a trailer to rent but they didn’t take reservations. Off we went, early Friday morning, praying the trailer would be available and for there to be no rain.
Things didn’t go as planned. The trailer was broken but they were working on it. They weren’t exactly sure when it would be ready. Thank God, we found another place to rent from and it was half the cost. Yay! The downside? The rain was pouring out of the sky. Also, the trailer wasn’t one they could load using a fork lift. Jer and I hand-filled the trailer, two sheets at a time. Fortunately, the place we purchased from allowed us to back the trailer into their warehouse and even helped us cover it with plastic and our tarp. We needed it because the load was going to have to sit outside over night.
Originally, we brainstormed on how just the two of us could get the sheet rock to the upstairs. I suggested making a ramp where I could push it up part way to the deck, while Jer grabbed, pulling it up the rest of the way. Then he could stack it in the house. Thankfully, Nick was able to round up a few more men in the area to help us, along with a friend of ours, who spent half a day of driving just to help for an hour. The rain did stop, and the men did end up using a ladder as a ramp to lift it to the men upstairs.
We put up our first pieces of sheet rock that day. Of course, we picked the hardest place to start but hey, we are doing it… slowly but surely.
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