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Step 1
Strip away any raised portions of the drywall paper around the edge of the hole.
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Step 2
Sandpaper all around the edges of the hole enough to scrape and roughen the paint.
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Step 3
For holes roughly 1 to 3 inches wide, apply self-adhesive plastic mesh tape. (Skip this step for smaller holes.)
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Step 4
Use a putty knife to apply spackling compound or a hard-setting, fast-drying patching compound. Smooth it out.
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Step 5
Repeat step 4 after the spackling shrinks, if necessary.
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Step 6
Allow the spackling to dry. Sand the area smooth, prime it and paint.
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Step 1
Find the stud that is closest to the hole and use a drywall knife or saw to cut out a rectangle of drywall around the hole, including half of the width of the stud.
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Step 2
Roughen up the paint several inches all around the cut with sandpaper.
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Step 3
Cut a new piece of drywall the same size as the one you removed. Use the cutout as a patch.
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Step 4
Attach your new drywall patch to the stud using drywall screws or dry-wall nails, being careful to set the heads just below the surface, but not too deep - you don't want to break the paper.
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Step 5
Using a wide putty knife, apply a thin spread of joint compound along the seams. Gently press paper joint tape into the joint compound with your putty knife. Be sure that the edges of the tape are embedded in the compound, but scrape any excess compound from the tape.
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Step 6
After the joint compound is dry, spread two or three additional thin coats of compound over the tape, extending 4 to 8 inches on each side of the seam to blend in with the surrounding wall. Sand lightly between coats.
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Step 7
Paint primer over the new patch. If the seams are still visible after it dries, apply more joint compound before final painting.
For an additional children's room or office, build a dry partition wall. These walls go up quickly and can… More
Comments
jsprow said
on 3/3/2009 Tooth past will shrink way to much.If you want to do it right with no nails or studs.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VMfUiAVZ9ZAhttp://drywallstuff.com/Thanks Jeff Sprow
Anonymous said
on 11/22/2005 For small nail holes from pictures, you can use toothpaste to plug the holes instead of buying a whole bucket of drywall mud. Excellent when moving out of an apartment, rental house, etc.
Anonymous said
on 11/22/2005 You can wad up paper and stick it behind the hole, cover with drywall tape and proceed the same way. This gives extra support to the wall. The paper won't slide down if wadded up large enough.