Let's say while sitting in your living room you notice the paint on one wall is starting to come loose, from the floor up about 2'...and there's a shower with a plumbing leak on the other side. A little more involved? Yes. Difficult? No.
With both of these repairs the most challenging part should be getting a good match for the paint and, if applicable, matching the drywall texture. Let's look at the bigger repair first.
After carefully removing the baseboard, make a nice sized hole to fix that plumbing leak. Not with a saw! Put it back, it's wet drywall. Your fingers and a utility knife will do just fine without further damage to your plumbing or to the wires leading to the outlet next to you. Always remember, lots of stuff hides in your walls.
Once that rotten leak is fixed and you're positive it won't happen again for obvious reasons, you need to cut the drywall back to the center of the first stud on each side that's beyond any wet drywall (see fig. 1). When everything is dry and anything else that's water damaged has been fixed or replaced (such as lumber or insulation, for instance), it's time to hang that new square of drywall.
Drywall comes in several types, thicknesses and sheet sizes. The most common types are the normal gypsum wall board, and mold resistant (green board) for use in areas where water or moisture may be an issue, like a bathroom. The most common sizes are 3/8", 1/2" and 5/8" thick. Sheet sizes are typically 4'x8' and 4'x12', but many stores sell 1/2 sheets (4'x4') and 1/4 sheets (4'x2'). Make sure you get the correct thickness!
Other things you will need are 1 1/4" drywall screws (longer is not better), all purpose joint compound (use joint compound -- if you use something else and it dries hard as cement, don't call me when you can't sand it), joint tape paper or mesh (explained later), a 4" putty knife, a taping knife and pan (which will save time and give better results on larger repairs, though not a must) and a drywall screw tip for your drill (this I'll also explain).
You may ask, "Why not use drywall nails instead of screws?" -- my answer, compared to screws, they suck. There are reasons you no longer see home builders and professional drywallers using nails. Let's move on.
Okay, checklist time:
Hole in wall...check
Drywall, screws, tape and mud...check
We're getting somewhere now! Be sure your new piece of drywall sits flush with nothing holding it out, and start putting screws in it. Now for a few tips: First, that drywall screw tip I mentioned earlier. This is so you can use a drill to sink the drywall screw, in a perfect world, just below the surface without breaking the paper on the drywall (see fig. 2). Put screws every 6" to 8" along the edge every 12" in the field.
Now, for the tape. Mesh tape or paper tape? They both have a reason to exist and I'll try to explain where they're supposed to be used. Mesh tape -- easy to use, stronger joint, harder to cover. Best used on factory edges of drywall sheets (see fig. 3). Paper tape -- use in corners and areas where "floating" a tape line without factory edges, needs to be very flat (see fig. 4). Not the best picture I've drawn, but as you can see the paper tape and mud are above the surface of the wall, and the mesh is used when you can keep it below the surface. You can mix it up all you want, but that's how I like to do it.
To apply mesh tape, you just stick it to the wall and put mud on it. To apply paper tape, you first put a nice "bed" of slightly thinned mud. You thin the joint compound with water, but very little. Read the instructions. Take your clean, dry paper tape and position it in the mud. Then, using your putty knife (or corner tool in corners), go from the center to the end of the tape smoothing it out while simultaneously getting the air out from under the tape and putting a thin layer of mud on top of the tape. Now you have your drywall up with the right tap and first layer of mud. Yes, first layer. You have two more to go...minimum.
Do not try to just put it on real thick. Here's why: Joint compound is what we like to call "mud". Have you ever looked at a dry lakebed with all those cracks? That's exactly what happens when it's too thick. Mud also takes a long time to dry when it's too thick. Days, in fact. Long enough for me to get pictures and post them around your neighborhood. ;) Or not...
After it has dried, you need to sand it down. This part you should pay attention to. Use a drywall sanding screen and sanding block made for it. If you don't know what I am talking about, the guy at the hardware store will. Just one medium screen will be fine. Now get to sanding. I love all the ambition to get it real smooth, but chill out! All you need to do is remove the high spots. No matter how long you sand on that low spot, it's still gonna be a low spot. Simple, I know, but people are........never mind. Now mud, sand, mud, sand until you have no low spots and no high spots.
If you have a smooth or "slick wall", the texture is easy. Just make it perfectly flat. If it's a spray on orange peel or knock down, you can get good results with those "texture-in-a-spray-can" products that are available. Some of the other texturing methods that are done by hand can be difficult to blend perfectly, even for many pros.
The best drywall repairs are never seen again. Have you ever looked at a wall and said, "Wow, look at that perfect drywall repair"? I didn't think so. It's normally more like, "Wow, I didn't know they trained monkeys to repair drywall", LOL.
Now go find some primer and matching paint so you can put the baseboard back. It's in the kids' treehouse now. Oh, that door knob hole should be no problem after this. Just remember to get that doorstop put back in place!
~SJN
Pictures referenced above:
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