The Drywall Takeoff Checklist: 40 Scopes That Fall Out of Bids

Board & Finishing

• Ceiling board counted separately from walls (different rate, sometimes different board)
• Type C where listings require it - not silently substituted with Type X
• MR board at every wet-adjacent wall, cement board behind tile
• Abuse/impact board per room schedule, not just corridors
• Level 1 fire taping in concealed rated spaces
• Level 5 triggers: gloss paints, wall-wash lighting, critical corridors
• Control joints per spacing rules and details
• Specialty trims: reveals, zip strips, expansion joints

Framing

• Deflection track at every structure termination - and its leg depth
• Gauge changes at height: check sections against the "typical" callout
• Jamb and king studs at every opening, sized per hardware weight
• Kickers and bracing at soffits, high walls and furred conditions
• Backing for casework, rails, TVs, toilet accessories, signage
• Radius walls and their flexible track
• Cold-rolled channel and bridging where heights demand it

The Scopes That Hide in Assemblies

• Resilient channel - spacing and extent per the tested assembly
• Sound batts in demising, offices, restrooms, bedrooms per wall type
• Mineral wool where listings require it over fiberglass
• Acoustical sealant at rated and sound partitions, both sides
• Putty pads at boxes in rated walls
• Head-of-wall firestopping by LF per rating
• Perimeter fire containment at curtain wall slabs
• Shaft wall at every elevator, stair and chase the sections reveal

Sequence & Site Scopes

• Prerock behind tubs and at plumbing walls - separate mobilization
• Draft stopping and fire blocking from the code sections
• Demo and patching on renovation work
• Temporary partitions and protection where phasing demands
• High-lift or scaffold conditions priced as their own labor
• Exterior sheathing scope boundary - stated, not assumed

Paperwork

• Every addendum incorporated and noted
• Alternates priced separately, exactly per bid form
• Assumptions and exclusions in writing
• Spec sections read: 09 21 16, 09 29 00, 07 84 00, 09 51 00

Every takeoff we deliver runs against this list before it leaves our desk. If yours don't, borrow our process.