Holes in drywall....they happen.
Doorknobs, chairs, indoor baseball games and many other things can happen that may leave you with a hole to patch. Here are a couple of methods to repair the “hole” thing.
First, you must provide a backer for the repair. The most current method would be an adhesive metal patch that simply sticks over the hole. These work well but are not as strong as the old way. For a patch that will be stronger than the old wall, follow these steps.
You will need a drywall saw (or a sharp utility knife), a board that is narrow enough to fit inside the hole but long enough to extend beyond the hole by about two inches on each side, a small piece of drywall that is the same thickness as the existing drywall and a little larger than the hole, drywall screws and spackling, or drywall compound (sheetrock mud, as we sometimes call it).
Step 1. Take the piece of drywall and cut out a square that is bigger than the hole. You can make the patch as large as you want to. Place the square over the hole and trace around it with a pencil. Now cut out the hole in the wall to match the patch. You should now have a square patch and a square hole that the patch will neatly fit into.
Step 2. Place the backer board inside the hole. There are two ways to hold it in place. One, you can apply construction adhesive or adhesive caulk to the board, insert the board into the hole and pull the board tightly against the back side of the drywall. You may even screw a short screw in the board to give you something to pull on, or you may have room for your fingers on the side of the board within the hole.
The second way is to wrap fishing line around the middle of the board and insert the board into the wall with the end of the fishing line hanging out. Wrap the end of the line around a pencil and rotate the pencil to tighten it against the outer surface of the wall, thereby tightening the board against the inside.
Now firmly hold the board in place by screwing a couple of drywall screws through the wall into the ends of the board on each side of the hole. The screws should be slightly indented, but try not to pierce the surface of the drywall with the head of the screw.
If you used the pencil and string method, you can clip the string close to the board and remove the pencil. Now you can place the patch in the hole and secure it to the backer board with a couple of drywall screws.
Next week, we’ll talk about applying the mud. Remember, help is just around the corner at your local hardware store.
