Drywall repair/refinish question
 

Hey guys, any of you have experience repairing drywall?

alot of my inside corners have bubbling tape. I want to scrape it all out and then re-tape and paint. Any tips?

also, some of thepaper backing from the drywall has been ripped off. I read about this product called zinsser gardz, that is a sealer for this type of damage. Looks like you can't buy it here in Canada.

what do you guys use to seal/prime this type of damage. If you don't use a sealer and try to prime/paint over this exposed drywall, it ends up bubbling up and looking like crap.

thanks in advance!

carefully remove the tape at the inside corners, you should be able to tape back over the joints

you should be able to mud back over any board...you'll need to reprime these areas after your final sanding to accept paint again

I like to ask whats causing it in the first place.

Moisture can cause problems. Mold can cause this. Shitty workmanship can totally make this happen.

Any indicators?

I love oil based primer for this type of thing, which effectively that zinnser stuff is trying to do the same thing. Seal all the old before adding in new.

I find once you remove all the stuff you want to get rid of, just putting a base layer of oil based primer seals all the old stuff and then you can put in new. It gives it something to grip but keeps stains, water damage and such from bleeding through to the new mud. I don't do it all the time, and mostly if its an old moisture issue

After all that, let it cure, then prime and repaint.

i think this is a case of poor workmanship. I am the second owner of this house and it is approx 20 years old.
so yesterday I tried cutting out the old tape, it was under a thick layer of paint and wouldn't just peel off. I had to just cut it all out. I can now see 2 peices of what looks like metal running down either side of the corner. The hole or crevice is now quite deep compared to the existing wall.

SO do I just fill this hole up with drywall compound and then tape it up again or is there some other product to be used if the hole is this deep? Should I paint the hole and metal with this oil based primer before applying the drywall compound?

Disclaimer, I don't have an extensive amount of drywall experience.

The metal is called corner bead. I would remove the existing corner bead entirely.

Once the existing corner bead is removed, apply compound to the joint and set a new piece of CB into place, then apply a thin coat of mud over it. Once that mud has cured apply a finishing coat of mud, sand and prime.

Hey highres...take us a low res so we can see what you are dealing with. ;)

I've pretty much seen the gamut of drywall destroyed by shitty workmanship, bad materials, age and mold...but I can't tell without a pic.

Twenty years puts you in the era of really bad construction techniques in Vancouver...they were knocking houses up so fast that no one cared, so I'm inclined to believe in just crappy workmanship.

Hi guys, here are a couple of pics i took with my phone. Hope they're not huge.

Attachment 11690

Attachment 11691

the pics dont really show just how much differencve in depth there is from the metal and the old paint/drywall. It really is quite deep. Also when I press on certain areas of the metal strip it does not seem to be attached to the backing. I'm guessing this is what caused it to bubble up and come apart in the first place.

I am going to try carefully inserting some joint compund behind the metal strips with a butter knife or something and making sure it's solid before doing anything else.

Im really just worried about filling in this deep pit with compound only to have it crack again in the near future.

also I should mention that I did not cut out the entire corner from ceiling to floor. There are parts in the middle that seem quite solid. When I press on it, there is no popping sound or any give. So I thought I would leave those sections and only repair what is needed.

The pictures help.

There are 2 kinds of corner bead that are used. Metal nail in and paper and metal compounded corner bead...used mostly in steel stud construction where you can't obviously nail in the other kind.

If the compound in type isn't done really well, then it can bubble out, and it looks to me like that is the kind that is used.

Usually, the first application of drywall compound is a setting type, where its activated by water instead of air. It dries harder and stays more secure, but it doesn't sand well. I would recommend that if you are doing this properly to use the same type of product. That will fill a slightly deeper crevice. Then follow up with how ever many applications of regular compound you need. You don't want to go too heavy with regular joint compound as it will crack as it dries.

So set your new corner bead with setting type compound, and finish with regular. You 'can' get away with replacing a section of it, but I would replace the whole corner. Trying to get the metal to all line up in multiple pieces is tough. Especially with it already on the wall.

Thanks for your reply, ok, so you are saying I should rip out the metal bead as well? It seems like the 2 sides are not attached and are seperate peices stuck on either side of the corner. I was hoping not to rip out that bead as it looks like it will take away much more wall.
The compound I bought was this pre-mixed general purpose compound. Brand name "syko" with a purple lid. Its supposed to be low dust or something.
Im going to try and re-stick the existing bead with compound tonight and then fill it up. Hope it doesn't end up looking like ass.

I'll update with pics when done! unless i totally janked it up lol.

I think what you have is this:

http://image.marginup.com/u/u64/corner032.jpg

and although its easy to install, its supposed to be moistened which a lot of people don't do and can't have too much mud applied on top which a lot of people do.

Your problem is going to be at the end of the metal...the corner is going to look all kinked because its supposed to be one piece, or if it can't be one piece, joined together while dry to mold into each other.

My fear is you are doing this to solve one problem, and then create a new one...a corner that kind of looks like ass. :)

I'd go with the compound you bought. If I have setting type handy, I'll go with it, but just using that stuff isn't the end of the world.

Yah i think i have something like that too. But the strange thing is on mine, the center portion of the metal are not connected. It is like 2 seperate peices of metal strip slapped on either side of the wall. I can see the large gap between the metal.

They do make corner bead where the metal is not connected in the center. It's beneficial to have the increased flexibility when the corner is a bit far off ninety degrees.

When you're mudding remember that multiple thin coats are the key to a good result, especially when you need to build up the compound a bit. It can be a PITA on small jobs, but don't give into the temptation to try and get it perfect in one shot.

good luck OP

I tried mudding up my entire unfinished garage, tried doing a joint and a corner and i was like.........:fuckthatshit:


i dont have the finesse or patience lol

I'd get rid of all the old stuff, put new screws in every 18-24" on both sides so you know the drywall is solid, fill the crack with fast set compound and bury the tape while it's still wet (you can do the same with the metal/paper product). Wait for it to cure a bit and then use the same type mud (new batch) on the outside.

BTW I hate premixed compound. It's not the right consistency and never cures the same as the stuff you have to mix yourself.

that was exactly what i was using, no wonder i had such a hard time...:okay:

i use the pre-mixed, but if I'm doing a larger drywall job, I go for the stuff in boxes, but on smaller jobs I just buy the tub of it. You NEED to add more water in regardless. Gets rid of bubbles, you use less, it spreads nicer and well, i don't have another.

I personally don't like that low dust shit because it sands shitty, but that's just me. It's only low dust because it comes off in clumps, ie...sands shitty. I'd rather have it be dusty and be able to polish it faster myself.

Is that metal corner bead on an inside corner?

Yes that is metal corner bead in an inside corner. Its not a 45 degree corner though. More like 22.5 degrees.

I'm happy to report that I fixed it and it looks good! I used the pre-mixed, low dust Syncko brand compound and regualr paper tape.

First I sanded it all out, wiped it down with a damp cloth. Then I filled the giant gap with a liberal amount of compound making sure to put plenty along either side of the gap as well.
Then I got my paper tape, ran it under the tap and folded and squeezed out excess water. Applied it to fresh compound and used a corner drywall tool thing to gently push and shape the corner. Once I was sure that the tape was 100% touching the compound, I let it set for a bit (1.5-2 hrs).
I returned and applied a very thin layer of compound to the same areas. This part was mainly to hide the tape lines. Flatten it out as best I could without using too much pressure.
Let it set overnight, then I sanded it with super fine grit. Looks pretty good now. Not Mike Holmes awesome, but WAY better than I thought I could do.

Lessons learned from this:

the compound is VERY forgiving. This is the first time ive used actual compound and it is so much different that that small hole patch stuff you buy.
Also, a bigger trowel is a must. I used a 6 inch one this time and was amazed at how much flatter, smoother I could apply this stuff.

I haven't had a chance to take pics of the finished area, but I will and will post them for anyone interested.

Man, I "do" drywall, but I don't like it and I'm not a drywaller. I hired some guys to do a ceiling for me and they come in on stilts and applying the mud and it was almost artistic. But the time they were done, it was smooth and clean and just so neat. They came, polished it a bit(we don't sand drywall, we polish it) and called it a day. The ceiling was as smooth as butter when they were done.

Made me feel like a total amateur. I get it done, and make it smooth, but it just takes me more applications to get there. You really need that day in day out approach to hone the skills.

I hear ya Grid. My buddy specializes in flattening out textured ceilings and when he comes over to do repairs it's pretty crazy.

Good boarders and tapers are just animals - especially when the finished product comes out so well done.