Do Not Use Sheet Metal Screws In Drywall

Drywall screw heads are especially prone to cleanly breaking off leaving the shaft section embedded in your wood.

Do not use sheet metal screws in drywall.

Start on one end then fasten across the center and then the far end. Do i need to use a drywall gun. When set correctly the gun will disengage when the proper depth is reached so you can push as hard as you want without damaging the drywall. The best way to ensure this result is to use a screw gun with an adjustable setting.

This could lead to a major loss of money. A drywall screw gun is mandatory if you want to install drywall to metal but not for other projects. Drywall screws tend to be brittle. Building codes for drywall screws require them to be sunk into the drywall without breaking the paper.

Unfortunately if you were to just drive a screw into drywall the brittleness of the drywall material wouldn t allow the threads of the screw to fully bite into the drywall making the holding strength of the screw pretty weak overall. Concrete and masonry screws must be pre bored. Yes i ve seen drywall screws used to hold down thresholds but they will fail. No woodworker would ever use drywall screws for fine building.

First do not use too many screws. When fastening drywall to walls i attach the drywall with two fasteners every 16 inches in the field and one every 16 inches on the edges. Work across the panel lengthwise. No a screw directly into drywall will not hold.

This is where drywall anchors can save the day. Metal screws are usually galvanized and some have self boring tips. They are either treated or coated and hardened. No screw extractor can remove a headless screw.

You need to use some type of picture hanging hardware to hang a heavy picture securely. Ceilings are fastened 12 inches on center. Rather than bending they can snap. It will just pull right back out sooner or later.

Some do it yourselfers use drywall screws for one unintended purpose.