Drywall On Curved Wall

Q: I want to construct a curved wall and cover it with drywall. I have been told that I should use plaster instead of drywall because of the curve. Is this correct?

A: You do not have to use plaster as drywall bends very well. Just lean a piece of drywall against another wall and it will curve all by itself! Bending drywall takes patience, but it is not difficult. Moisten the drywall as you are bending it and it will take almost any shape, just do it slowly.

For additional information, just follow the link.

Link

Repairing Holes In Drywall

Q: I'm renting a house where the previous tenants had an entertainment center bolted to plaster walls. When we removed the piece of furniture we discovered that they were secured by nickel-sized butterfly hook bolts. They left substantial holes in the wall that needed repairing.

We used wall patching (plaster sheets that you wet and apply, sand when dry). Unfortunately they are extremely noticeable because it's another layer on top of the wall.

Any suggestions on how we can make it more flush and less noticeable? I realize it'll never be perfect, but the condition it's in now concerns me.

A: If it is a large hole you need to install a piece of drywall and then use mudd to do the repair. Install a piece of wood (just wide enough to hold the piece of drywall), a couple of inches should be more than suitable on the backside of the wall, using screws through the front of the wall and attach the piece of drywall to it using screws.

Link

Bathtub Surround Backing

Q: I am in process of replacing my fixtures for my bathtub with shower. My house was built in the mid 70's. When we pulled the laminate sheet to get to the pipes the only thing we found behind it was drywall. I found some tiles that will be a nice for the walls as a new surround. I've gone to home depot to be told that I need to take out the drywall down to the studs and install another type of board. Can't remember the name of material. Is it necessary to remove the drywall? The old surround did not go all the way to the ceiling and if hasn't seemed to bother the dry wall that is there. A friend who does tiles seemed to think that I could just get the board and put it over it. I'm confused. Are there other methods can this be placed over the drywall that is already there.

A: "CONDENSATION" - The moisture that forms on your mirror when you take a hot shower, is also forming on the walls! As there is a small air gap, in places, between the panel and the wall that it is glued to (unless you got 100% coverage of a waterproof adhesive), you have condensation forming between the shower panel and the drywall, which will eventually cause mold, mildew and rot.

Link

Screwing Into Plaster Walls

Q: I need to put some screws into a wallpaper covered plaster wall. Anything I should know before just doing it? Nothing weight-bearing. Holding up some vertical boards with L brackets/corner braces.

A: You have to use anchors of some kind. If there is truly no weight you can use the plastic anchors that expand as you drive the screw into them. Drill a hole first. If there is some weight you should consider using the toggle style that grip from behind by expanding when a bolt is threaded into them.

Link

How to Repair Baseball-Sized Hole in Drywall

Q: Someone threw something and it poked a hole right through the drywall. It's about baseball-sized, and I'm wondering what the best repair method is going to be. I want something that looks decent, since we're just renting this place.

My wife bought this wire mesh patch-thing that has instructions and all that for fixing it. Is that a good way to go?

A: The mesh works, but it requires practice, to get a seamless finish. I would suspect that the hole has pushed the drywall in, rather than having an open hole. There should be enough meat of drywall to do a repair using spackling compound and then a cover layer of drywall joint compound. If necessary fill the hole with the spackle using multiple layers, as an example the first amount may only reduce the hole by a 1/2" once that is dry apply some more and it will fill in another 1/2" to 1" do this until it is filled, sand to remove any spots that are higher than the drywall. Then using drywall compound joint filler, put a covering layer over the spackle, and feather over the drywall, sand and if necessary apply another coat until smooth.

The problem with the mesh is that it has to be higher than the drywall and requires that you feather it out at least 12" to create a smooth finish, which is not easy if you haven't done it before.

Link

Cracks In Newly Painted / Patched Walls?‏

Q. Last June, we patched and painted every crack in the walls of our 100yr old apt.

Now I have two questions:

1. There are tiny, almost feathery looking cracks appearing on several of the walls. They are very shallow and fairly uniform (i.e. everywhere). What might have caused this and is there any cure?

2. Several large cracks have appeared on the walls that don't have the problem I listed above. I assume if we patch and paint again we'll have the same problem. Any ideas on how to get a longer lasting solutions?

A. The feathery looking cracks sound like a paint compatibility problem - undercoat/primer versus finished coat - from your description it sounds as if the paint is cracking not the wall.

Large cracks sounds like a settling problem - foundation problems in a 100 year old apt. The answer to your question is - YES , if you patch and paint you will most likely have the problem repeat itself.

Q. If I've got a paint compatibility problem (the feathery cracks), what do I do to fix it? Paint again?

Also, what, other than patching and painting the walls with the big cracks, can I do? Does skim coating take care of this? Other ideas?

A. It may be possible to correct cracking if it is confined to small areas by removing the loose or flaking paint with a scraper or wire brush, sanding to feather the edges, priming any bare spots and repainting.

If the cracking involves large areas or the entire surface, remove all of the paint by scraping, sanding and/or use of a heat gun or power washer.

Then, prime with a quality primer and repaint with a quality latex house paint.

I would also recommend that you go talk to a paint expert - Benjamin Moore or Sherwin Williams paint store - not a big box like Home Depot or Lowes and ask for their advise.

I am sorry to say that with the big cracks, you have to fix the problem, and if it is the foundation it is a major exercise.

A building only has to shift 1/32 of an inch to produce cracks. The only way to "possibly" stop the appearance of the cracking would be to put a layer of thin drywall over the wall. Drywall will stand-up better to shifting than plaster.

Link

Tearing Out Part Of A Plaster Wall

Q: How can I be sure there are no wires back there until I start tearing the wall down? I don't think there is but I can't be sure that no wires were run in the walls there. Also there is no plumbing around that area so I wouldn't think there are any pipes back there. I am really looking forward to doing this and the change it is going to make. I am just worried I will get started and find problems so I want to try to cover everything that could go wrong before starting.

A: You can never be 100% sure until you take off the drywall, that is why I suggest that you take off a layer instead of cutting through both walls at the same time.

Things to check are - electrical outlets on that wall - if you take the covers off the outlets, pull the outlets out and check to see how many wires are in the boxes. There should be a max of 2 sets of wires - coming in to
the outlet and going to the next outlet. If there are more than 2 sets, the question is where is the other wire running to? Same with switches - look at the direction of the light fixture that a switch controls - if you were
running the wire would you run it through the space you want to remove.

If you have a basement see if any unaccounted for wires seem to run up that wall.

If you have an attic see if any wires are coming through from the top plate of that wall into the attic. If you are reasonably sure that there are no wires or pipes, then take off one side of the drywall.

The worst thing that can happen is that you have to replace that piece of drywall and paint!

Link

Drywall Over Stucco Ceiling

Q: When we bought our home, the plaster walls had allot of cracks. None of them were due to structural issues. Merely old plaster that cracked. I've always been of the mind set that if you love plaster you have to love the cracks. But anyway, at the time my wife and I really liked the south-western look of stucco. I fixed all of the cracks, then applied a stucco finish with joint compound. It looks very nice. Now the misses wants a new kitchen with smooth ceiling and a boxed beam ceiling. My question is, can I apply new drywall over the stuccoed ceiling? or is it better to just tear it out and start the new drywall from scratch. Another option that I am pondering would be to add sleepers to the ceiling with 1x4 lumber and attach the new drywall
to it.

A: If you can find the roof joists in order to screw in the drywall there is no reason to remove the stucco or add sleepers. The key is to screw (use screws that will provide at least 1" penetration into the joists) the new drywall to the ceiling joists not to the stucco. Remove any high spots in the stucco with a scrapper.

Removing the stucco will create a real mess and you may also have to install new insulation if it is loose fill insulation as it will most likely come down with the stucco.

Link

Drywall, Concrete Board, Sheetrock, Green Board Calculator

We have added a downloadable (Microsoft Excel)drywall, concrete board, sheetrock, green board calculator to the website.

The calculator allows the input of:

• any material size


• 4 wall dimensions in feet and inches


• 1 ceiling dimension in feet and inches


• 3 window dimensions in feet and inches


• 2 door dimensions in feet and inches

Output provides:

• Number of sheets with allowance for windows and doors


• Number of sheets without allowance for windows and doors


• Number of screws needed for wall, with and without allowance


• Number of screws needed for ceiling


• Amount of joint tape required in feet


• Amount of joint compound required in pounds

Follow the link!

Link

Mixing Drywall Joint Compound

One of the biggest mistakes, made by the home handyman, when using drywall joint compound is that they do not mix the product thoroughly. It is next to impossible to mix a large pail of drywall compound without the use of a power mixer or mixer mounted in an electric drill.

Taking out small portions from a large container and mixing those individually will not work. Joint compound separates after sitting in the pail in a few days. It is important, in order to have a workable product, that you will be able to feather out, is to make sure that the compound is emulsified, that it is evenly mixed throughout.