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uses for construction debris?

1064 Views 7 Replies 7 Participants Last post by  ed/IL
i will be remodeling a room or two soon. i was wondering if anyone had ideas for the stuff i remove (sheetrock, etc)
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sheet rock has lime in it. I have heard of people spreading it in a field, but if its covered in paint that might not be a good idea.
If it's the same thing we call Gyprock over here then it also has gypsum in it. Gypsum can be helpful in improving the structure of some clay soils (say for house vegetable and flower gardens), and it wouldn't do any harm. I don't think paint would do any harm UNLESS it was old lead-based paint.
If you leave sheetrock in the weather it will crumble. I plan on dumping mine in some foundation trenches after I weather it for a bit.
Zack said:
If you leave sheetrock in the weather it will crumble. I plan on dumping mine in some foundation trenches after I weather it for a bit.
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I would advise against putting anything in or around a foundation of a house or other building that will rot or decay.

Later on there will be earth movements that could cause trouble, as the material changes it's form.

Dirt will settle in a little while but building material will take a lot longer and continue to decay and move for many years.

Anything that rots is not stable.
Hi gang,

As an old construction worker who has given this issue much thought, here are the objections I can offer. We all buy gypsum to help improve clay soils and make them more porous and improve fertility. So why not use scrap ****rock?

The answer lies in the manufacturing process. Not a thing wrong with the gyp itself, the problem is in the paper backing. As you all know drywall mud is water based and the gyp board gets repeatedly wet in the installation and finishing. To eliminate the problem of mould the paper backing on gyp board is treated with some mighty ugly fungicides. I've let that stuff sit out in the weather for literally years and the paper never seems to degrade. If you have any intent of natural or organic methods keep that stuff away from your fields and gardens.

Sad, but true, what a waste!

Bearkiller
at least i know that before i do anything with it. thanks everyone.
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