Many times as a homeowner you’ll come across the need to fix a part of your wall. With kids, pets, and everyday life your walls will suffer some wear and tear. Sometimes enough to need some repair.
For those inevitable moments where you bumped the wall or even have larger damage, we have created a simple to follow guide to get your wall back to looking brand new.
To start off here are some materials you will need:
- Fiberglass Tape (Types of Tape)
- Quick Drying Drywall Compound (Types of Drywall Compound and their Function)
- Regular Drywall Compound
- Basic Hand Tools for Plastering
- Pan or Bucket (any container to mix drywall compound)
- Sanding sponge or Pole Sander (Sanding)
If the size of the damaged area is larger than a standard outlet you will need a couple of more things.
- Piece of drywall slightly larger than damaged area. (preferably rectangular in shape)
- Wood (2 Pieces thick enough to hold screws)
- Drywall Screws
- Box/Drywall Knife
- Power drill
Great, you’ve gathered everything you need to repair your wall! Before you start make sure the area where you’re working is protected and any objects or furniture you’d like to keep clean, are covered. If you only need to repair a small hole skip ahead to continue with our guide. If you have a larger area to replace , get your power drill, screws, wood and drywall piece ready.
1. Take larger piece of drywall and place it on top of damaged area so that it is fully covered. Trace around this piece with pencil.
2. Cut out where you drew the line so you have a clean, clear rectangular hole
3. Place a piece of wood longer than the hole in your wall near one edge (vertically or horizontally, your preference) such that half is behind the wall and half is exposed and the ends extend further than the opening, overlapping your drywall.
4. Drill in a screw at one end fixing the wall and the wood, do the same at the opposite end to fully fix the wood to the wall.
5. Repeat steps 3 & 4 for the opposite side of the hole.
6. Set your larger piece of drywall into the space (the wood will prevent it from falling through) and fix this piece of drywall to the wood with another screw on each corner.
Now you should have a relatively even wall minus a few joints we just created with our patch.
(Small patch readers, continue here!)
To begin grab your pan and pour your quick-dry drywall compound and mix (mixing different types of drywall compound) with clean water. Usually at this point here at Filadelfia Construction we like to use a strong base to prevent cracks in the future. For this stage of the repair, we will fill and level the damaged area with Durabond 90. Mix small amounts and mix more as required, this mud hardens and will be unusable within about 45-60 minutes.
Once you have the consistency right, take your knife (4 or 5 inches) and apply mud into the cracks (joints) making sure to leave more compound in the more sunken side of the joint so as to level the gap. If covering a small hole take the same approach, make sure to pack the opening then clean off excess mud. The goal is to level!
When using Durabond90 be sure to clean any excess mud off the wall to avoid a tough sanding session later or even damage to the drywall when removing.
Once cracks have been filled and leveled allow about an hour for the compound to dry. Empty out your pan and scrape any dry compound to leave your pan as clean as possible. For the next phase of your repair depending on your timeline and schedule you can use quick-dry, easy to sand compound, for example Sheetrock45 if you’d like to apply all the coats in the same day (if not, using regular machine mud or all purpose, you will have to wait a day in between each coat for the compound to fully dry.)
Again mix to the correct consistency and apply mud evenly along the joints, cracks or hole you are going to tape over. Once applied cut the length of tape needed to completely cover the joint. For this process you can use regular paper tape or FibaFuse Fiberglass tape, we recommend this kind to create the strongest hold and prevent cracking of any kind. Place tape over the mud and using your knife start from the middle of the tape and clean the mud out from underneath by flattening the tape and therefore squeezing out the mud. Cover each joint with tape and clean in the same fashion ensuring the mud is even underneath the tape. (You will be able to see, if uneven, just apply mud over top and clean, the pores of the FibaFuse will allow mud to pass through). Allow for drying.
You’re almost there! Once the joints have been taped you can begin coating. For small holes using your knife may be enough (6-8in knife) but for larger patches you’ll need a trowel (using different sizes can help, recommended 10-12in) When coating consider that you will need a Level 4 finish in order to blend properly back into your old drywall, completely hiding the damage. This means tape and 3 coats, each coat extending a little further ensuring the flatness of your wall once finished, final coat must be machine mud for best results. Completely cover the patch making sure mud (compound) is applied evenly and try your best to not leave veins in the mud which can be tough to sand out later. Remember to feather out the edges as much as possible to save time on sanding.
*Pro tip: For larger areas and more complex repairs (eg. Finishing new drywall with old drywall) it is best to hire a skilled professional as using the trowel and ensuring the even application of compound is a learned skill, without it your wall may show the unevenness or tape underneath if not done properly, especially when exposed to light.*
Once the mud is dry, you can sand (using 80 grit) removing large veins and hard edges (borders) so that your next coat is even and doesn’t show underneath your paint later on. Once the mud is flat again, re coat this time with less mud evenly across your patch. Ensuring by this coat that your wall is as flat as possible. Allow for drying, then sand in the same fashion. (80 grit)
*Pro tip: use your trowel to check for levelness, lay the trowel perpendicular to the joint direction, check for gaps or rocking. If you can lay your trowel completely flat then the wall is level in the area covered by your trowel.*
Again allow mud to dry, sand to level, and prepare mud for final skim!
When you apply the final skim, remembering to go out further than your last coat, you’ll want to cover the whole area, but then you’re going to clean most of the mud back off, the goal of this coat is to fill any imperfections, small valleys, cracks, or fish eyes (puck-holes) that may be remaining on the wall.
Let the mud dry once again and using your finishing sand paper (180+) once again remove veins and hard edges. Grab a light and check your work for imperfections, or puck-holes that may have been covered previously by dust from sanding down previous coats. Using a quick dry compound fill the tiny holes and sand the area down once dry. Congratulations you’ve finished patching your wall ensuring a very strong hold and clean finish. It is now ready for Prime and Paint.
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