Drywall Installation and Repair in Holladay, Utah

The estimate is free, and you're under no obligation. Phone (801) 735-8491 or fill in the estimate form with the rooms involved, what happened to the wall or ceiling, and roughly when the house was built.

When Holladay's homes were built, and what that means for drywall

Census figures for 2020 to 2024 put Holladay at 12,545 homes, with a median year built of 1969. Of those, 5,991, close to half, date from the 1950s and 1960s, and about 69 percent were built before 1980.

The city's 2025 general plan reads the same way from the other end: most of Holladay's housing was built between 1950 and 2000, and only about 30 percent has gone up since 1980. The plan also notes that a single-family home in Holladay is nearly twice the size of the Salt Lake County average.

For drywall, that means many original walls that have settled and been opened for remodels. Big rooms and long hallway ceilings show every seam under a low lamp, so a repair has to blend with the whole surface.

Plaster, rock lath and early gypsum board in post-war ramblers

Holladay's general plan contrasts the varied houses of the Lakewood Historic District with the more uniform ranch-style homes built in the housing boom after World War II. The city's Historical Commission has identified 35 historic structures, 21 of them on the National Register of Historic Places.

Until the 1930s or 1940s, nearly every building got plaster walls, the National Park Service says, and by the late 1930s most house plaster was applied over rock lath, a gypsum panel with a paper face. A Holladay house from the late 1940s or early 1950s can sit on either side of the change to drywall, so check what a wall is made of before cutting into it.

Plaster over rock lath should be at least half an inch thick, and over wood lath it runs about three quarters to seven eighths of an inch. A patch has to match that depth, so new board is shimmed until it sits flush and loose lath is screwed back to the framing first. Straight cracks on an old plaster ceiling can follow the seams between rock lath panels, another weak spot the Park Service points out.

Testing older texture and patching compound before anything comes down

Utah's Division of Air Quality waives the asbestos inspection before a renovation only for homes of four or fewer units built on or after January 1, 1992. In Holladay, more than three in four homes were built before 1990, which puts most of them on the testing side of that line before old ceilings, texture or wallboard come out.

The division lists the white, popcorn-textured coating on ceilings among the places asbestos turns up in homes, and says regulators had banned asbestos from wallboard patching compounds by the early 1980s. The EPA adds textured paint and patching compounds on walls and ceilings to its list.

The EPA also says material in good condition that is left alone generally won't release fibers, while scraping, sanding and cutting can, and that a trained, accredited professional should take the samples. Once the results are back, the ceiling can be removed under the right controls or covered over.

When a basement finish or a wall change needs a Holladay permit

Holladay's building FAQ says renovations and remodels need a permit regardless of square footage, and it names basement finishes as an example. All structural work and some nonstructural work need one. The city's submittal guide exempts interior wall coverings such as wallpaper, paint and paneling. The same FAQ warns that unpermitted work can cause trouble when you sell, and may give an insurer a reason to deny a fire claim.

Applications are online only, with plans uploaded, and the city aims to finish a first plan review within 7 business days. Holladay enforces the 2021 International Residential Code with Utah's amendments, and these rules from it shape most basement finishes:

• Finished living space and its hallways need ceilings at least 7 feet high; beams and ducts may drop to 6 feet 4 inches above the floor.
• A basement with living space needs an emergency escape opening, and every basement bedroom needs its own.
• An enclosed closet under the stairs gets half-inch gypsum board on its walls, the underside of the stairs and any soffits.
• A remodel that needs a permit also brings the smoke alarms up to the rules for new homes.

Taking out a wall in an older Holladay floor plan

Whether a wall can come out depends on what it holds up. If it carries a floor or the roof, it needs a beam or header sized for the load, posts down to the foundation and a permit. Utah's air quality rules also call for a demolition notice when load-bearing structural members are removed, whatever the age of the house.

Once the framing is done, the drywall work is patching the ceiling where the wall stood, closing the gaps at the floor and side walls, and blending the texture across the old wall line so the change doesn't show.

The Wasatch Fault through Holladay and cracks after shaking

Holladay's general plan notes that the Wasatch Fault bisects the city from north to south, and it lists landslides in hillside areas among the city's natural hazards. Drywall is often where a house first shows movement.

Hairline cracks off the corners of doors and windows, or along a ceiling line, are common in older houses and usually cosmetic. Cracks that keep growing, doors that suddenly stick in their frames or a ceiling that sags call for a look at the framing or foundation first, since a patch over a moving crack just opens again. A cosmetic crack gets tape bedded in compound, coats feathered wide, then texture and primer to match.

Drywall questions from Holladay homeowners

Do I need a permit to finish my basement in Holladay?

Yes. Holladay requires a permit for remodels of any size and lists basement finishes as an example. You apply online with plans, and the city inspects the work as it goes.

Can a patch match the texture on a 1960s ceiling?

Usually. The pattern is tried on scrap board first, then the patch is primed and blended well past its edges. On a large ceiling with several repairs, re-texturing the whole surface can look better than spot patches.

How can I tell if my walls are plaster or drywall?

Plaster feels hard and cold, sounds solid when tapped and resists a pushpin. Drywall has a paper face, and you can often see its chalky gypsum core at the edge of an outlet box. The estimate visit settles it before any cutting starts.

Is it safe to scrape my popcorn ceiling myself?

Not before a test. In a Holladay house built before 1992, have the texture sampled by an accredited professional first. If the result is clean, removal still takes wetting, careful scraping and a skim coat before primer and paint.

What affects the cost of drywall work in Holladay?

Square footage, ceiling height, the finish level you want, any plaster or old texture to match, testing or a permit, and how easy the room is to reach. The estimate costs nothing and doesn't commit you.