Hanging drywall is almost an art. Just ask anyone who does it professionally and they’ll tell you that it takes years of practice to do a perfect job. If you’re lucky enough, you might even get a few drywall finishing tips out of the conversation. If not, don’t worry. Here are some drywall finishing tips that everyone can benefit from.
Make Sure You Have Everything Before You Start
Drywall finishing tip #1: You need to have a measuring tape, drywall screws, pencil, utility knife, drill with Philips bit, hand a taping knife spreader, application knife, joint tape, joint compound, bread pan, and a corner taping tool.
Get Secure About What You’re Doing
Drywall finishing tip #2: Drywall demands that all your measurements are accurate and that every panel is tightly secured to the supports that it’s nailed to. Could there be anything more embarrassing than to complete a drywall job – only to have it unexpectedly fall down during dinner or entertaining guests?
Make sure that your fasteners are long enough to keep the panels on their supports. If you’re more comfortable with using screws, then use them instead. You could even use the second set of nails as reinforcement. The important thing is that you feel as secure about your project as it’s secured to its foundation!
Beware A Muddy Mess
Drywall finishing tip #3: When mixing your mud strive for a consistency that resembles icing on a cake – not too stiff and not too loose. Essentially, you should be able to scoop some of this mud onto a trowel, hold the trowel upside down, and not lose any of the cement. At the same time, you should also be able to easily apply this mud into drywall joints without too much effort.
While mixing, take care not to “whip” the mud. A whipping action will inadvertently attract air – air which will form bubbles in drywall seams. Mesh Your Work Into A Smooth Finish
Drywall finishing tip #4: Use mesh tape or paper tape. Mesh tape is porous, it allows the mud to seep through it. The end result is much smoother than paper which is sometimes visually apparent.
Drywall finishing tip #5: IYou can hide the heads of your nails by hammering them in just below the surface of the drywall. This might take a little practice beforehand, as you don’t want the nail heads to show, but on the other hand, you don’t want to break the surface of the drywall either!
Patch Like A Pro
