Drywall – Should drywall be hung horizontally or vertically

I don't have any experience with boxes, but have quite a bit with the 5-gallon buckets of compound. Without knowing much about how those boxes seal, I'd recommend going with a bucket- the buckets/lids seal air tight which is important for keeping the mud from drying out. The other thing I'd recommend- every time you close the box or bucket, put a piece of plastic sheeting over the top of the mud. This traps the moisture in against the mud, and prolongs its shelf life. The buckets come with a round piece of plastic sheeting on top of the mud- I just fold it in half (to keep any bits of mud stuck to the plastic from being exposed to air) then when I am done for the day, unfold it, and put it back on top of the mud in the bucket.

The cost of prefinished wall paneling can vary wildly. Cheap 3/16 inch fake wood or patterned panels can cost around $10 per panel. A decent real wood veneer can soar to $40 each.

It is common practice to put paneling over drywall. Two main reasons for that are fire rating and ability to spread adhesive evenly so panels don't bulge between studs. There is no real R-value advantage. If anything, if paneling is not installed over drywall, the seams can be a source of air infiltration, negating any insulation value.

As a comparison, my drywall subcontractor charges me an average of $45 per sheet for 12 X 4 foot 1/2 inch rock, hung, taped, mudded, and sanded paint ready. This is really competitive with decent quality paneling, especially if you figure in a drywall untaped backer. If you do decide to go with prefinished panels, be sure you really like it, because you're gonna be looking at it for a long time! LOL