Confessional

8/8/2013

I'll just start with a quote.

"You think you can do these things, but you just can't!" -Finding Nemo, 2003

As is the case with me and drywall.

Well, it's not that I can't, but it is that I don't know how to do it.

Not yet. Not at all.

I should just go with something like this...

If you remember, a few months back, we were getting our house assessed about how energy efficient our house has become after all our renos. It was the morning of, and of course, there were so many tiny things that I hadn't done yet, but thought should be done before the assessment. The major thing they were testing for was air tightness.

I wasn't there for the original assessment pre- renovation, so I didn't get to ask how certain things would affect the ratings. Things like the drywall seams...

Since I hadn't asked, I figured it was probably a huge deal, and now that it was the day of the post assessment, I totally just slathered those seams with drywall mud, sans drywall tape. I did that with the first door too, however, it got covered by the trim. This time, our drywall patching was not getting covered by the trim. The door originally had a sidelight, so there was no getting away with a crappy drywall job this time.

So tempting! This would really solve my drywall problem...

Crappy job, Jena. Yikes!

I don't know if you picked up on this, but I said a few months back. Ya... After Adam lovingly pointing out that I did it very wrong, I felt pretty unmotivated to fix it. It was going to be a killer to sand. I slathered that mud on really, really, really thick.

But I finally got at her. The sanding part at least. I am definitely going to use the following instructions with the drywall joint tape and hope for the best. If at first you don't succeed, learn how to do it right, I guess. That patch of wall will be finished soon, I can feel it!

The tools of the trade!

Duck Brand Drywall Joint Self-Adhesive Fiberglass Tape - $5.52

Duck Brand Drywall Joint Tape is a 100% fiberglass mesh tape. It is self-adhesive and repositionable. Also strong, fast and easy to use - no need to re-apply compound to joints. Used for repairing cracks and small holes. Instructions for Taping Drywall (Sheetrock) Joints: Clean surface of dust and dirt. Position tape over seam and cut to exact length. When seaming drywall/wallboard joints, use only quick setting joint compound. For best results maintain room temperature between 50D - 70DF. Apply joint compound working it through the mesh. Let dry to manufacturer's instructions and sand smooth. Apply a second, thinner coat wider than the first feathering edges outward. Let dry and sand smooth. Instructions for Repairing Cracks: Slightly open up crack to a width of 1/8' and fill with ready mix or any setting compound. Let dry to manufacturer's instructions. Clean and sand surface. Apply joint tape to the repair area; overlapping the end of each crack by 1' or more. Spread compound down the crack, working it through the mesh. let dry and sand smooth. For a finished appearance apply a second, thinner coat wider than the first. Let dry and sand smooth. Instructions for Patching Holes: Clean and sand surface. Cut two pieces of joint tape 2' longer than the hole dimensions. Apply tape over the hole in a criss-cross manner so entire opening is covered by both layers. Depress joint tape 1/4' into hole and fill with ready mix or any setting compound. Let dry to manufacturer's instructions and sand smooth. For a finished appearance apply a second, thinner coat wider than the first. Let dry and sand smooth.

Professional Drywall Adhesive - $3.69
from: Green Retail and Wholesale, LLC

Green Planet Premium Primer Paint - $42.00
from: Green Retail and Wholesale, LLC

Any drywall horror stories to make me feel better? Please!?

Happy Drywalling!

Jena xo

9 Comments

Samantha giese

8/8/2013 02:28:09 am

At least you tried most women can't say that....... I just lucked out with marrying a journeyman carpenter....... All the sanding sucks..... And I'm just the supervisor ..... Keep up the good work..... If all else fails maybe paneling will make a come back?

Jena @ aesthetica design link

8/8/2013 02:38:03 am

I did try! And I will finish what I started, eventually that is! Adam is very handy, but he knows how much drywalling sucks haha. I was seriously contemplating wallpaper, but I already chose a feature wall, and it's not that one. I can see why paneling was such a popular option back in the day...

Jena xo

Christina Sheppard

8/8/2013 02:46:21 am

At least you seem to grab the motivation for these projects you haven't learned about just yet...drywall scares me. This past spring we did our shingles ourselves, got motivated, did tons of research and it looks great...but my dads leg came through our back entrance ceiling while replacing some sheets of plywood...now that huge whole in the ceiling drywall haunts me daily and I haven't been motivated to learn how to fix it just yet. :-(

8/8/2013 01:48:28 pm

Ah! The ceiling has got to be way more difficult than wall drywall. Yikes. I don't think I'd be able to tackle that one... Hope your dad was ok, too. That doesn't sound fun.

I hope it works out for you and that all is well!

Jena xo

Josh Jahnke

8/8/2013 03:30:46 am

This is gonna be long... My advice? Don't do it that way! Mesh tape is the worst - it doesn't work nearly as well as fiber tape (the stuff that looks like paper) in the long run. It cracks a lot easier. Here's what you do...

The first thing you need to know is that all mud gets thinned with water when you use it. Never use mud straight from the pail/box.

1. Apply thin (I'm talking pancake batter thin) mud (preferably taping mud, but if you only have a little mudding to do, then all-purpose works just fine) to the crack.

2. Lay fiber tape on it, and then scrape the tape with a 5" drywall knife (so that you squeeze almost all of the mud out from behind the tape).

3. Let it dry.

4. Take an 10" knife and apply a coat of mud (this time a lot thicker, about the thickness of peanut butter - still thinned from the box). Make sure that it is thick enough to cover the tape with about 1/8" of mud, and make sure that you feather the edges so that it doesn't have a hard edge, but one that blends into the wall. There are typically some ridges left after this coat that will need to be sanded down later.

*****There are two types of joints on a wall... Butts and flats. Flats are on the edges of the drywall, where there is a recessed hollow edge. Butts are anywhere there is flat drywall, not recessed.*****

*****Flats are given a coat about 10" wide, whereas butts are given a coat twice as wide. With a butt joint, instead of taking one pass centered on the joint that is ten inches wide, you take one pass on the left side of the joint, one pass on the right side, and a third in the middle.*****

*****Butt joints typically require more mud than flats*****

5. Allow that coat to dry.

6. Sand the mud with 150 grit sand paper and a sanding block (or pole), so that when you run your hand over it, you don't feel any ridges. It doesn't need a ton of sanding, just enough to make it smooth (unless you put way too much mud on, in which case you have to sand enough to reduce the bulge on the wall... haha).

7. Repeat steps 4 and 5, with mud a little thinner this time (maybe the consistency of mayo), and ensuring that you don't put as much on (just enough to fill in any hollows). There may still be ridges after this coat, but they are either not there or much smaller than the first coat.

***** The way to see if there are hollows in your joint is to straddle the joint with your knife. If there is a gap, you can see the hollow. If it rocks a lot, you may need to sand it down. There may be a little bit of rocking, which is ok, because once it is fully mudded and painted, you shouldn't see it.*****

8. Allow to dry again.

9. You are now ready to do the final coat... Repeat step 4 again, with a few changes... You want your mud to be the consistency of pancake batter again. Instead of a 10" knife, use a 12" knife. When you put the mud on, take it pretty much entirely off. Only leave some on if there STILL seems to be a hollow. Make your passes an inch or two wider on either side, so that the edges of the first two coats get covered by the final coat. You should not have any ridges after this coat.

10. Now for the final sanding. Repeat step 5, except this time use 180 grit sandpaper. Make sure everything is nice and smooth to the touch.

11. Take a high wattage light bulb (300w) and put it right beside the wall, so that it casts shadows across the mudding you did. This will show you any mistakes you made. You can then do touch ups (this time add blue chalk to the mud so you can distinguish between the original mudding and your touchups). The thickness of your mud will depend on how much you need to repair - the thick you put it on, the thicker the consistency. Usually you only need pancake batter thickness to repair small mistakes.

12. Sand the touchups with 180 grit sandpaper.

13. Go ahead and prime your wall. If you notice any mistakes after it is primed, do touchups again before you paint, so that you just need to prime over the touchups once they are done.

14. Paint your wall, and you are done!

A few notes...

Use Synko (Available at Home Depot) or Westrock mud that comes in boxes about 5 gallons... It will be much better than the little pails of mud you can buy. You will need 5 gallon pails to mix he mud in, and it would be very helpful for you to have a high powered drill and mixer, if you have one at your disposal.

When mudding nails/screws, make sure that there is nothing sticking out from the wall, and put a coat on every time you coat your joints. The only difference is, every coat you scrape off all your mud (so that there is only mud in the hole itself, not surrounding it).

If you have any inside angle or outside corners, they are a completely different story, which I will not get into right now.

I'm sure this was a lot to take in, if you have any questions, just ask.

8/8/2013 07:18:16 am

Oh, I almost forgot, with the nails, you want to use a 5" knife for the first two coats, and a 6" knife for the final coat.

I use a knife and pan when I tape, but you could hawk and trowel it as well (I just don't do it).

8/8/2013 01:44:56 pm

Wow, Josh, thank you for the great, great advice, and hopefully Adam listens to it! Hahaha. Just kidding... I'll definitely be following that. I'll keep you posted

Jena xo

Arden-Arcade swingers link

9/30/2013 05:45:33 pm

Great site, was just reading and doing some work when I found this page

10/5/2013 02:37:49 pm

Thank you, it's a lot of lessons I've learned. Usually learned the hard way, but making mistakes seems to be the best way to learn!

Jena xo

Confessional

I should just go with something like this...

So tempting! This would really solve my drywall problem...

The tools of the trade!

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