Drywall Fixes Made Easy; 3 Sizes of Repairs

Today were going to review the most important repair for the college apartment. It may be an innocent bump into the wall or a fist of anger after a heartbreaking sports loss. Either way, drywall takes a beating. Because of its thin nature, it’s so easy to damage, but it’s also simple to repair. Let’s start with the small jobs.

Repairing Small Dents & Dings

Tools You’ll Need

• Putty knife

• Spackle

• 120-150 grit sandpaper

Take your putty knife and scrape away any excess debris around the dent creating an even surface. Take your putty knife and cover the hole with spackle until the dent is filled and even with the surrounding drywall. Once the spackle is dry (about 24 hours), sand it down with your sandpaper to create a smooth surface. All done!

Repairing a Small Hole; Size of a Doorknob

Tools You’ll Need

• Drywall Mesh/tape (Lowe’s or Home Depot has this)

• Putty Knife

• Spackle

• 120-150 grit Sandpaper

Place the drywall mesh on top and around the damage leaving two extra inches of mesh beyond the edges of the hole. Using your putty knife, spackle the damaged area so that the mesh and surrounding wall become one smooth surface. Try to blend the spackle as best you can from the edge of the mesh and the wall. Let it dry for 24 hours then come back with the sandpaper to smooth out.

Repair a Medium/Large Sized Hole; 6 Inches and Larger

Tools You’ll Need

• Drywall Tape

• Drywall Jab Saw

• Drywall panel

• Drill

• Drywall Screws

• 1-in x 2in Furring Strip (thin piece of wood)

• Spackle Knife

• Spackle

• 120-150 grit sandpaper

First, grab a new drywall panel and cut out a piece that is slightly larger than the drywall hole. Take the piece you just cut and trace it around the damaged drywall. Use a pencil when tracing.

With a drywall jab saw, cut out your outline and make sure to avoid studs or wires. Once you cut out the entire square/rectangle you should have an opening in the wall. Cut your furring strip into two equally tall pieces that are four inches taller than the hole. You are going to place these pieces inside the hole and use them as the backing for the new piece of drywall.

Take one of your cut furring strips and screw it into the left inside side of the cut hole. Do the same on the right side (image below). Place your cut piece of drywall into the hole and screw it into the furring strips you just placed. This should create a solid piece of drywall that sits in the wall.

Apply joint tape to the edges of the hole connecting the cut out to the undamaged portion of the drywall. Spackle your work until you have an even surface on the now repaired drywall. Once it sits for 24 hours, sand the surface so the drywall is smooth. You’ll likely want to repaint the area as well.

Great Video for Visualization

Know Someone Who Would Love This?

The link below will take you to the magical land of learning also known as the landing page. If you were forwarded this email, you can receive this daily newsletter tomorrow by clicking that blue button below and sharing your email address.