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I have googled, but wanted to get some dialogue on this.
This has happened in several rooms in our house- about 4 screws per room. We just had it repaired and they are popping again. I know this was not the first repair- you could tell it was repaired prior to our repair. Is it the wood that these screws are getting screwed into that causes this? The last drywall guy felt he very much secured the drywall and nothing should happen..but here we are again. What is the best way to get this to stop happening? It does happen on vaulted ceilings only for the most part. There is one vertical wall that I do see it happening on, but it's not as fast as the vaulted ceilings. I know that issues occur when drywall is not the way is supposed to be- flat or straight up and down. But it's not happening in every single room with vaulted ceilings.
Vaulted ceilings are notorious for nail/screw pops- the reason is because they are constantly moving. They move due to expansion and contraction given the temperature of the day; and they also move due to prevailing winds.
Eliminating all movement is all but impossible. Significantly reducing movement involves several things. The most important of which is done PRIOR to drywall. After-the-fact, is pretty much non-existent.
Those items that can reduce the flex are collar-ties in the right position, an appropriately sized ridge beam, lateral rafter blocking, continuous 2X6 studded end wall, and venting throughout the entire roof.
Almost sounds like part of the vault did not get any lateral bracing at all. Might see if you can find an old time craftsman to look at the framing in the attic. I'd just about bet that the bracing is either missing or not right. The vault, if done correctly, should not move. Assuming you live in Austin, there's not a lot of telling. I've seen vaults put up in Austin with no ridge block, no squash block, no laterals, no blocking or bracing at all. They assume the decking will hold it in place. No, really!
How old is the house?
I had this issue in my last house, which started when it was about 18 years old. It is often caused by wood shrinkage/expansion with the temperature and humidity changes through the seasons and over time some will 'pop', sometimes leaving a rust-colored stain on the surface. A vaulted ceiling, while insulted in the spaces between the drywall ceiling and the roof sheathing, is subject to more changes in temperature/humidity than say the walls to your bedroom, which will stay a more constant temperature.
Some of them might not had been countersunk correctly (meaning the nails/screws are "sunk" slightly below the surface of the drywall when being installed). The 'popped' screws/nails can also occur where there is much vibration, like on a staircase or around an HVAC unit.
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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This is made worse by a very wet winter, very dry/hot summer, improper soil engineering when the home was built, earthquakes, a lot of activity in the room above, or green wood used in the walls, joists and rafters. It can even be poor workmanship, if the screws hit the edge of the wood rather than near the center. There is no easy solution, but I'd use longer screws, and sink them a bit deeper into the drywall.
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