2026 Sheathing Guide • Family-Owned Since 1970 • CSLB #265709
DensGlass Installation
DensGlass is exterior gypsum sheathing. Gold face, fiberglass mat, outside the studs — behind the weather barrier and the cladding. It is not a shower panel and not a painted interior wall.
What We Hang
Ron Hogan Drywall hangs DensGlass on exterior walls, soffits, and commercial shells when the drawings name it. Wood or metal framing. Fastener pattern from the manufacturer and the assembly — not a living-room screw schedule.
Family-owned since 1970. We leave the wall ready for wrap and cladding unless those trades are in the written scope.
DensGlass Is Not DensShield
DensGlass — exterior sheathing under siding, stucco, panels, or EIFS. Needs the weather-resistive barrier the code and cladding spec require.
DensShield — interior tile backer for showers and wet walls. Wrong panel on the outside of the building. DensShield page →
Jobs We Hang DensGlass On
Exterior walls
The usual spec: rigid gypsum sheathing on the outside of the frame, then wrap or fluid-applied barrier, then cladding.
Soffits and boxed eaves
Exposed underside of an eave or soffit when the drawing calls for fiberglass-mat sheathing instead of interior board.
Commercial and TI shells
Storefronts, offices, and build-outs where the envelope spec names DensGlass or DensGlass Fireguard. Commercial →
Not these jobs
Shower tile. Painted bedrooms. A substitute for plywood where the engineer required wood. Below-grade walls.
DensGlass vs Interior Board vs DensShield
| Question | DensGlass | Interior drywall | DensShield |
|---|---|---|---|
| Where | Outside the frame | Inside the house | Interior wet tile walls |
| Face | Fiberglass mat (gold sheathing) | Paper | Coated glass-mat toward tile |
| Next trade | WRB and cladding | Tape, texture, paint | Tile setter |
| Do not | Paint it as a bedroom or tile a shower on it | Use it as exterior sheathing | Hang it under siding |
If the sheet says DensGlass, it stays outside. Board picker →
How We Install It
1. Read the assembly
Thickness, Fireguard or not, wood or metal, fastener type and spacing. Guessing is how inspections bounce.
2. Hang tight and flush
Joints staggered. Fasteners snug to the mat — not countersunk like interior drywall. Edges off grade as the spec requires.
3. Protect openings
Windows, doors, and penetrations need flashing from those trades. DensGlass is the substrate, not the window package.
4. Hand off the envelope
Wrap, fluid-applied barrier, or the WRB the cladding manufacturer wants. Then siding or stucco. That is usually not our hang.
What DensGlass Does Not Do
Replace the WRB
It is a substrate for wrap, fluid-applied membranes, and similar barriers. California cladding jobs still need the barrier the code and the siding maker require. DensElement is a different GP system if the spec names that instead.
Live outside forever uncovered
GP rates it for limited weather exposure during construction — not a finished exterior. Cover it. Do not let water pond on sloped or soffit panels.
Nail siding to the sheet only
Cladding fasteners go through the sheathing into framing. DensGlass is not a nailing base by itself.
Make the house fireproof
Fireguard panels belong in a listed assembly. The stamp plus the drawing — not “gold board on every wall.”
Not on This Page
We will not sell DensGlass as a shower backer, a painted interior finish, or a wildfire / insurance upgrade by itself. Paper-faced interior board does not belong on the weather side of the studs. If the drawings say plywood shear, that is plywood — not a gypsum swap we invent. Interior hang →
Need DensGlass on the Building?
1. Send the Spec
Text (925) 791-9099 the city, drawings, and square footage.
2. Clear the Scope
Sheathing only, or sheathing plus interior drywall. Wrap and siding stay off the bid unless you ask.
3. We Hang It
Licensed crews. 12-month warranty on our work.
DensGlass FAQs
What is DensGlass?
Fiberglass-mat gypsum sheathing for exterior walls and soffits. It sits on the outside of the frame, behind the weather barrier and the cladding. Often specified as DensGlass Gold.
Is DensGlass the same as DensShield?
No. DensGlass is exterior sheathing. DensShield is an interior tile backer. Same manufacturer, different panel, different wall.
Can I paint DensGlass and use it as an interior wall?
No. Inside the house, hang interior drywall and finish it. DensGlass is sheathing.
Do you install housewrap and siding too?
Only if it is in the written scope. Most jobs are sheathing for the next trade.
Does DensGlass replace housewrap?
Not by itself. It is a substrate for the WRB the code and cladding spec require. If the drawing names DensElement or another integrated barrier system, that is a different product.
Is DensGlass the same as greenboard?
No. Greenboard is moisture-resistant interior gypsum for humid painted rooms. Bathroom board →
Can DensGlass go behind shower tile?
No. Use DensShield or the tile backer on the spec. Exterior sheathing does not belong in a shower.
Hang the Sheathing the Drawings Call For
Call the family-owned Bay Area crew that has been hanging walls since 1970.
Call / Text (925) 791-9099