Drywall – Stacking drywall sheets in the bed of a smaller pickup

drywall

I will be installing drywall in an out of state property and will be picking up from HomeDepot. I am planning out the trip and wondering how many sheets of drywall will be carried per load.

The truck I will rent is the "Standard Pickup" from Enterprise that says Nissan Frontier or similar. Looking at the specs of that truck we have

  • 44.4" "Cargo Bed Width between Wheelhousings"
  • 61.4" "Cargo Bed Widthat Floor"

https://www.caranddriver.com/nissan/frontier/specs

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Given drywall dimensions of 48" x 96" I'm presuming from those dimensions that we could lay the drywall not quite flat (since it's 48" vs 44.4" wheelbase) and just under three feet would dangle over the hatch in the back. Note that I am only driving about 8 miles so I can go slower/more carefully.

Any idea how many drywall sheets would stack that way? They are 1/2 inch each but then the hanging out back would likely limit the safe number. I am bringing truck straps to help out.

Note: this question is more aptly about hauling and delivery than drywall but I do not have the reputation to add new tags.

Best Answer

Most small trucks have indentations or molded rails at the same level as the wheel arches which accept crosswise two-by lumber for just this purpose.

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If yours doesn't, three simple platforms comprising said crosswise two-by and some legs should do fine.

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I owned a classic 'Yota during some of the years I was a home builder. This worked well. You can't put 40 sheets in a small truck anyway, so the platforms don't need to be very robust. I even carried a modern snowmobile on mine.

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