(BPT) – Let’s face it. No matter how careful you are, an active family can take its toll on the interior of a house – especially on the walls. Depending on the season or day of the week, your family may come home toting cross-country skis, throwing off wet raincoats or banging football gear against the wall.
The average buyer stays in a home for 13 years – long enough for kids, pets, and the rough-and-tumble of everyday life to scuff, scratch and dent even the best of walls. Everything from pool cues hitting walls to dragging luggage up a staircase can do damage without even trying.
Having the right drywall installed is your first line of defense. Whether you’re building a new house, remodeling an existing one or constructing an addition, you have drywall options to choose from and they’re not all the same. The key is picking the right drywall to start with and then matching it to the right location. To help your walls stand the test of time, TV host and interior designer Anitra Mecadon, the National Gypsum spokesperson for PURPLE high-performance drywall products, has the following advice about what to keep in mind when you’re choosing drywall. A minimal investment now in PURPLE drywall will add long-term benefits such as unparalleled resistance to moisture, mold, mildew, scratches, dents and the ability to reduce the noise heard between rooms.
Protect against mold and moisture
Your washer and dryer introduce water, moisture and heat into your laundry room, which means mold is a constant threat. Every room in the house can benefit from using moisture – and mold-resistant drywall.
Guard against scrapes, scratches and scuffs
Even though your playroom probably gets a real workout, you can still keep it looking like it never hosted anything more rambunctious than a book club. Choose a drywall with a tougher face like Hi-Abuse XP to protect your walls from scrapes, scratches and scuffs.
Reduce noise between rooms
When your kids are running around using their outdoor voices indoors, sound control is a must. If you’ve got a growing family, choose a drywall like SoundBreak XP that specifically provides noise resistance in the rooms where you need peace and quiet.
Put tough walls in tough places
A garage is the workhorse of the house. It’s home base for car maintenance, lawn care, sports gear and tool storage. Garage walls can really take a beating from car doors, lacrosse sticks, shovels and rakes. Install Hi-Impact XP drywall specifically engineered to be dent- and damage-resistant, so the walls can stand up to whatever life dishes out.
PURPLE high-performance drywall is easy to find at your local home improvement store because the color purple stands out in the drywall aisle. Look for more of Anitra’s tips on askforpurple.com, where she demonstrates how to install and finish walls in a step-by-step video series.
