Can I fix the top of a partition wall into plasterboard or do I need to fix it to joists?

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uptown47

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Hi all,

My missus wants the living room separated from the stairs to help keep heat in (and save on ridiculous energy bills in the winter) so I want to build an internal partition wall with a door in it.

It's a concrete floor so I'm happy fixing the bottom part of the partition wall to the floor.

However, I need advice on the top part of the partition wall? Does that just fix into the ceiling plasterboard? Or do I need to lift the upstairs floor and put in another joist for it to fix to? The joists run in parallel to the top of the proposed partition wall.

Part of me thinks that fixing it to plasterboard and then using the verticals to support it (and then putting noggins between the verticals) will be strong enough but wasn't sure the 'correct' way of doing it? It will be a nightmare to lift the floor upstairs as it crosses two rooms.

Thanks for your advice :)
 
Put a joist in, plasterboard is not sufficiently strong enough to accept the fixing required.
You may as well just try and use PVA glue for all the good plasterboard will be :)

Let the nightmare begin...
 
uptown47 said:
Hi all,

My missus wants the living room separated from the stairs to help keep heat in (and save on ridiculous energy bills in the winter) so I want to build an internal partition wall with a door in it.

It's a concrete floor so I'm happy fixing the bottom part of the partition wall to the floor.

However, I need advice on the top part of the partition wall? Does that just fix into the ceiling plasterboard? Or do I need to lift the upstairs floor and put in another joist for it to fix to? The joists run in parallel to the top of the proposed partition wall.

Part of me thinks that fixing it to plasterboard and then using the verticals to support it (and then putting noggins between the verticals) will be strong enough but wasn't sure the 'correct' way of doing it? It will be a nightmare to lift the floor upstairs as it crosses two rooms.

Thanks for your advice :)
Click to expand...
You don't actually need a ceiling fixing as long as the wall abutting studs are secure. For peace of mind run a couple of beads of polymer adhesive along the header before you trap it against the ceiling. Mark the ceiling first so that you don't smudge gear everywhere. Don't make your centre studs overly tight - snug will do.
 
mattylad said:
Put a joist in, plasterboard is not sufficiently strong enough to accept the fixing required.
You may as well just try and use PVA glue for all the good plasterboard will be :)

Let the nightmare begin...
Click to expand...

Thanks for that. There's going to be vertical studs holding it up and both sides will be fixed to walls. There seems to be mixed opinions on this but I'll see if there's any way of strengthening the installation up. Thanks :)

noseall said:
You don't actually need a ceiling fixing as long as the wall abutting studs are secure. For peace of mind run a couple of beads of polymer adhesive along the header before you trap it against the ceiling. Mark the ceiling first so that you don't smudge gear everywhere. Don't make your centre studs overly tight - snug will do.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the advice. Much appreciated. The two walls either side are fully secure. I'll make sure I put the adhesive on. Cheers :)
 
Once you've built it, if it does get a wobble on chop a couple of holes in the plasterboard ceiling and put a couple of blocks in to fix the head to (you'd struggle to get nogs in with the headboard in the way).
Probably won't need it if you get the verticals and the glue right, plasterboard is quite strong within its plane
 
A frame can be interference fitted (contact engineered) to fill the gap exactly.
onceyou have other studs and noggins fitted, use 8x4 MDF to clad the wall then plasterboard
add insulation more for noise than heat.

you will end up with a very solid frame that won’t shift.
we build a lot of similar for temporary events.
 
Tigercubrider said:
A frame can be interference fitted (contact engineered) to fill the gap exactly.
onceyou have other studs and noggins fitted, use 8x4 MDF to clad the wall then plasterboard
add insulation more for noise than heat.

you will end up with a very solid frame that won’t shift.
we build a lot of similar for temporary events.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the great advice. Cheers :)
 
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