Repair small areas of drywall damage
Drywall damage is not always a major job. You can repair small areas of drywall damage yourself and save money. This post is all about focusing on the easy repairs you can do. Do not worry, I will teach you how in this post.
I will also teach you how to match the texture on the wall, as there is a texture on most walls from previous painting. However, your patch will be smooth when you finish sanding.
Also, I will show you how to avoid a common problem many do-it-yourselfers experience, shrinkage.
Coming soon in a follow on post, I will show you how to remove small damaged sections of drywall and replace them with a new piece of drywall.
What you need to repair small areas of drywall damage
These are the tools and materials you will need to do the repair. I’ve also included a link at the bottom of this post to my video showing how to do the repair.
Tools and supplies
- Gloves
- Putty Knives
- Drop Cloth ( optional )
- Drywall Joint Compound
- Sanding Blocks – (Sponge 4 assorted pack )
How to do the repair
In this picture you can see the horrible workmanship that was done by a repairman. In other words, I am going to show you how to be better than this repair person.
First, you would remove the vent covers two screws.
With fine sandpaper, lightly sand over the repair area. You DO NOT have to sand off the paint. We only want to rough it up a little so the drywall joint compound can get a good grip.
Next, you need to remove any sanding dust from the patch area.
Getting ready to apply joint compound
All you need for a patch this size is a two or three-inch putty knife and a sponge sanding block. Then a small container of drywall joint compound. With smaller patches you can use spackle, it dries faster but is not suited for a patch this size.
Before you start let me explain the characteristics of the joint compound. Joint compound is easy to work with, that said, there are a few problems to be aware of.
- It will shrink and it cannot be applied too heavy. Usually, you are okay up to just over quarter inch thick; much more than that and you may have cracking.
- Cold temperatures can affect the setting process.
Making the repair to a small area of drywall damage
When you apply the joint compound think of it like putting icing on a cake, not the fancy decorating, but the smeared-on texture, see photo. You are not looking to make it pretty at this time, the product will sand easily.
This is what you are going to do, dip the putty knife in the container about an inch. Then smear it over the patch, filling the patch. Continue until you have covered the whole patch, the paste needs to be a little higher than the drywall.
DO NOT try to smooth it out to match the wall at this point. This is the mistake people make, they want to make it look nice right away. It will shrink and you will have to apply some more paste when it’s dry, in about 24-hours. That is why you leave it a little high, allowing for the shrinkage.
Sanding the patch
Using a sponge sanding block, (best deal, 4 pack assorted grit) sand with light pressure, mostly in circular motion. You want to keep the block as flat as possible to get an even surface. Try not to over sand as you will have to reapply more joint compound.
To test the surface of the patch, remove any gloves and lightly rub your hand over the patch. You will feel any imperfections and can correct them before painting begins.
Matching the texture on the wall
Although your wall may look like a smooth surface to you, it will most likely have a light texture from being painted before with a roller. Your patch will be smooth, just painting over it will not work. The patch will show up as a smooth spot on the wall.
This is an easy fix. For most walls you can just use a dabbing technique with regular paint. However, some walls have a heavier texture than others. There are different spray textures that may work for them or you can duplicate texture using the joint compound.
Video on repairing
As it’s easier to show you, I have put together a video on repairing small areas of drywall damage.
At minute 2.45 I specifically start talking about matching the wall texture and at 3.25 I demonstrate the technique.
Please visit my YouTube Channel and consider subscribing if you found this information useful.
Thanks for checking out this post, hope it was of help to you. Watch for more drywall posts coming soon.
