Drywall over thermopan

TimothyDIY

I am finishing my basement and we are going to be drywalling right to the floor joists. My question is whether I should remove the thermopan for the cold air returns or leave it in place. I am worried if I leave it in place you will see it after the drywall is up. Thanks for the help in advance.

stayinhomewith6

Bumping up because I'm wondering the same thing. I'll probably end up removing the Thermopan because it sure seems like it would cause the ceiling to be obviously uneven.

joecaption

I'd leave it in place and shim the joist so there was 0 contact with it when installing the rock.
It's very common to add strapping to the bottoms of the joist instead of attaching to them.

masterofall

If I'm right the thermo pan is only 1/8 thick so who is going to notice that?
Wood floor joists before I joists will vary by more than 1/8 from joist to joist and wall studs will vary more than that with crowning

bjbatlanta

The pan material itself isn't generally a problem. If it was installed with the screws HVAC guys normally use, that might be an issue as they hang below the joist 3/16" to 1/4". I assume that's what you're worried about. I normally change out the screws with some flay head wood screws before I hang. That should solve the problem....

__________________
If you can read this, thank a teacher. If you can read this in English, thank a soldier. Support our troops.