Cracks seem to create themselves in drywall from foundation settling and other structural movements over time. Then there are those times when moving a heavy object gets bumped into the wall and, uh,oh…there’s a fresh hole in a moment’s time.
Making a drywall patch is easy and repairing a small hole in drywall can be accomplished fairly quickly with a few basic tools and a piece of scrap sheetrock. Here’s a quick guide that’ll show you how to perform basic sheetrock repair, including the best way to get a paint match after the drywall repair is complete.
First you’ll need to make sure you have a piece of sheetrock large enough to cover the hole. If you don’t have a scrap laying around, you can still buy a small piece from Home Depot (2′X2′). It’ll cost you almost as much as a full 4′X8′ sheet, but if repairing holes in sheetrock is not something you normally do, it may not make sense to buy a full sheet.
For tools you’ll need a utility knife, a straight edge of some kind, like a carpenter’s square, some drywall screws, a way to drive them in, a wide putty knife and some sandpaper. You’ll need to get some drywall mud and primer as well. For the putty knife, I use a 10″ drywall trowel, but if you have at least a 4″ to 6″ putty knife, you’ll be fine. Later in this article I’ll show you how to get the best possible paint match for the finished patch.
Begin by cutting around the hole with a straight edge and utility knife to create a square or rectangle hole. Above and below the hole, make sure the drywall is not broken where you make the cut. On each side of the hole, you’ll want to find the nearest stud and cut to the center of it. The studs on either side of the opening will be the support you need for screwing in the new drywall patch. You can use a coping saw to make the square cuts if using a utility knife is too difficult. Cutting all the way through drywall material takes some strength, so be careful when exerting power to any utility knife. A sharp blade is important to a nice, clean cut..
Once you have a new opening, and all the sides are nice and clean and square, you can use your scrap piece to create your patch. Simply start with one edge of the new piece lined up to the hole you will be putting it into and make a mark where you will make you cuts. You will want about a 1/16″ gap all the way around your drywall patch for the drywall compound. Screw the new piece into the studs with 3/4″ drywall screws. It’s nice to have a drill with a phillips head screw driving attachment for driving the screws into the wall.
Then, using your putty knife, spread some drywall compound onto your patch and work it around the seams. Use your putty knife to get as much excess drywall compound off the wall as possible. Let it dry for several hours then sand lightly. You’ll probably need to do 2 filler coats since drywall compound usually shrinks while drying. Sand everything nice and smooth with 80 grit sandpaper, then paint the area with a good primer suitable for the paint that’ll be used on the rest of the wall.
Unless your existing wall is smooth and flat, you’ll need to apply texture to match the rest of the wall. Since there are too many textures to go over in one article, you will need to find a drywall contractor or handyman knowledgeable in texturing to handle that part of the patch for you.
Find a piece of drywall that you removed that has a nice spot of paint still on it. Don’t rub it or try to clean it because it will change the color, but do try to find a piece that’s as clean as you can find. Take that to Home Depot and have the paint department use it to match the color and type of paint you’ll need for the new drywall patch. Short of repainting the entire room, this is the best way to spot match paint.
After you paint the newly repaired area, you’ll have a patch that is just as strong as the rest of the wall.