Customer Reviews for DRICORE SMARTWALL 4 in. x 2 ft. x 8 ft. All-in-One Wall Panel with Electrical Box

This is a GREAT way to go if you don't want to bother with all the framing required for a typical stick build. After the first few panels it went up really pretty fast. Most of the time is spent getting the top and bottom stringers figured out (doing it by yourself). It would go much quicker with an extra set of hands. Would give it 5 stars if you can find 5" screws, though I think 5-1/2" screws would be more appropriate. Home Depot doesn't carry 5" screws, and while DRIcore claims they do on their website, I could not find anywhere to purchase them. Subsequently I used 4-3/4" screws, and ran into issues securing the top of the panel. Other than that the panels finished easy, and look great. Haven't painted it yet to determine if any of the seams will be visible, but based on current finish I suspect not.

The DRIcore wall panels are in general a good product. There are some issues you need to be aware of if your going to use this product. I installed about 30 of these panels by myself. While it would be easier with two people they are light enough to be handled by one. They are easy to install but finding the 5" screws for the top is impossible. I'm not sure why Home Depot doesn't carry the installation hardware kits and no building supply store in my area stocks 5" screws. I did find 6" screws and they did work okay. One tip, drill the pilot hole through the wood edge large enough that the screw just fits through it. Screws this long are hard to drive without stripping them and you will want them to just counter sink into the drywall surface. The biggest issue I had with the product was delivery. Having them delivered to my house without the use of a forklift was a problem. It took many phone calls to set up a delivery time because the delivery company had to send a lift gate truck and 2 employees. I split the number of panels I needed in half and had them delivered several weeks apart. With both orders some of the panels arrived damaged. Most of the damage was minor and I was able to work with them but one was so bad I had to return it to my local Home Depot store and reorder the panel. The product is direct shipped from the manufacturer so those issues are not the fault of Home Depot and in fairness to them the worked with me to solve the issues I had. Tip number 2: use the seam filler product they recommend. It's more expensive than drywall mud but is easy to work with and it performs as advertised. The panels are thick and with the offset from the wall due to the 2"x2" track system you will have to be creative in some situations, not a big deal just be aware. I would use the product again.

$340 for 2 for an 8ft run? When I can stick frame + 2" foam + drywall for <$100. No thanks

Excellent product. Should be shipped better though with more protection as the panels were quite banged up

The "LEGO" blocks of dry-walling! I'm using this in my basement and it's been great because: #1 I wanted to finish the basement walls a little at a time and not all at once as with normal dry-walling; #2 There was almost zero dust! I have electronic equipment and didn't want it effected. #3 Very fast assembly time! Now, the delivery service used by Home Depot in our town ( "Estes" delivery ) was terrible and didn't have the faintest idea of how to deliver these 8' x 2' panels. I will never use them again!!

Rating provided by a verified purchaser

Insulation made a significant difference. Very easy to install. Worked great for my basement.

I have a dry basement with 8' poured concrete walls and I installed so far around 35 panels, around 75% done including some corners. I researched this product versus framing and traditional styles as well as some other engineered systems. I found that while fairly expensive, this is the best option for me in terms of overall time, quality, and the insulation I am getting out of this. I only work on this myself and can see how this would have been a much harder project if using full-length drywall board, etc. and having to maneuver these into place alone with the tight basement/hallway I have. I followed the installation guide but chose to put 3 levels of pressure-treated 2x4's in: one on the floor, one at 46" and another at 76" and chose to not use the top stringer attached to the floor joists, plenty of support. I fastened the 2x4's to the wall and floor with Tapcon screws, I did order 5" screws for the wall fasteners as recommended. These walls are more than strong enough, I can lag into the 2x4's if needed for hanging any future heavy fixtures no problem. The joints look pretty clean due to the tongue and groove system, electrical went very smoothly.

Amazing product!!! Easy to work with.

Very easy to use

Greatly made will use again

I installed the panel by myself with no problems. The panels were expensive but it was worth it for the time saving.

They are very easy to install on standard, full height walls, without any interruptions. There are additional challenges when the foundation walls step down as in a walkout basement. I would also suggest installing a horizontal support board halfway up the panel, otherwise the panels have some flex.

Some damage and covered with cement splatter

ordered 60 plus panels, several were damaged and a few were 5 years old! not impressed at all, and very disappointed!!!

Panels were as advertised, easy to install

Very easy to install and nice result.

In April 2017 I used the smart wall system to finish the exterior walls of our basement refinishing project. I did the work solo and found this to be a great system. The panels only weigh about 35 lbs. but are quite large and cumbersome. I started with the Dricore flooring panels. I highly recommend them. It helped insulate the cold floor and was perfect for the carpet we put in later. It also provided a easy to attach surface for the bottom row of 2x2s that support the wall. I watched the videos both on amazon on the Dricore website. What I would liked to have was a elevation plan of the installed panel so I could be sure on the distances they show in the videos. In the end I screwed 2x2s along the top wall a couple of inches from the wall as recommended in the instructions. Had I known better I could have easily come in about a 1/2 inch instead and saved 1 1/2 inches for the finished room. It might not sound like much but it adds up. I had very straight concrete masonry walls so I did not need two inches of relief for the possibility of wall obstructions. If you were putting this on a finished framed wall, you could like screw it directly to the wall with five inch screws. The wall system is well constructed. I had a few blemishes from the transport but all were easy to repair. Once you have your top and bottom 2x2s the installation is pretty quick (except of electrical). A note about running electrical. The included boxes are fine. You have to punch out the holes and you cannot use a wire clamp so I settled for plastic bushings. The problem was the bushings, designed to protect the wire from the sharp edge of the metal box, don't stay in place. In the end I kinda ignored them. On the first wall I took a 14 gauge romex three wire and feed it from box to box till I reached the last box. Opps. It was a royal pain to pull wire into each box. For me they just did not smoothly guide through the predrilled channels. It was a huge struggle. On the rest of the walls I ran a wire to the next box and pulled it into the room for later termination. I than started a new wire between that box and the next. Much easier to do it in sections rather than one continuous wire. I also ran speakers wire for 5.1 surround and a HDMI cable plus another duplex plug for a projector. I found it easier to cut through the four inches of the panel and save the bit I cut out. I ran a wire behind the wall and feed it though the opening into a new electrical box set in the hole I made. I than took the cut out part and jammed it behind the box to restore some the the insulation. The was easy and worked well for my wall sconce lighting as well. I finished the rest of the interior walls with conventional framing and drywall. The two systems integrated perfectly. I used the Dricore compound on the gaps between their units. It was fine and left a good result. I think regular compound would have worked nearly as well. Add trim on the bottom and the basement looks great. I would definitely use this system on any exterior basement wall.