WillShields

Thanks very much for the advice, folks. A stapler sounds like it's a route worth pursuing. Very generous offer, Peter, but unfortunately while I'm currently sitting the plague out with my family in London the build is in SW France, so probably better to get one there. Having used a DeWalt cordless nail gun very successfully on the interior and exterior battens, I'd love to find a stapler that didn't need an airline - anyone come upon one with the power to get through the Fermacell? Apparently it would have to be the equivalent of a pneumatic gun operating at 7 bar. Otherwise I'll bite the bullet and go with air. As to the weight, in France the boards are available in 12.5 x 2500 x 600 size, which is quite manageable in terms of weight and dimensions, and if necessary can be cut in half for even more convenience when doing tricky bits at height.

I am DIYing it, but so far I've DIYed most of the house except for the oak frame and SIPs, so I'm reasonably hardened. I've put up 400m2 of Knauf Aquapanel outside, which is not dissimilar to Fermacell, but I got very bored towards the end. I like Fermacel for its strength and solidity (my previous build has it, although I didn't install it myself) and I'm better at screwing than plastering. I'll have some help from someone who has fitted it before, but they used an air stapler, which is noisy and a pain to lug around, so I'm hoping to streamline the process.

Very helpful post from PeterW. I'm about to line our new house (walls and vaulted ceilings) with about 700m2 of Fermacell, and I'm struggling to decide on the fixing method. Do I buy a crown stapler for speed and the minimum filling afterwards? Is there a cordless battery stapler with the oomph to get through 12mm Fermacell? Should I use divergent staples? (My other tools are DeWalt, so ideally something from them). Or do I go for a collated screwdriver and Fermacell screws - slower, more filling, but possible more secure? I'm only going to do this once in my life, and I want to get it right.