How to patch a drywall hole
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Supplies Needed
Got a hole in your wall?
You never know when you might end up with a little (or really stinking big) hole in your wall. I was so intimidated to fix something like this on my own, but was pleasantly surprised by just how easy it was!
Step 1: Add Supports
To start, you need to fill in the hole with a piece of drywall. Thankfully, I had a stud in the middle of this hole, but often times there are no studs or anything to screw a new piece of drywall into.
To fix that you can add a few supports around the perimeter of the hole. Start by cutting down a pieces of wood to fit the size of your hole. You could also use paint stir sticks to do this if you don’t have any pieces of wood on hand.
Place the piece of wood partially behind the wall. Use drywall screws to attach the piece of wood and anchor it behind your wall.
Now you have a little ledge to screw the new piece of drywall too in the opening!
Step 2: Attach drywall
Cut down a piece of drywall to fit your hole. If you have the original piece that came out of the hole that’s even better! If you hole is an irregular shape that can make it hard to cut your new piece of drywall to match. Try cutting the hole in your wall into a square or rectangle, this will make it much easier to get your new piece of drywall to be the same shape.
Cutting drywall is pretty easy to do with either a utility knife or a drywall saw. If you need to buy a new piece of drywall, first check how thick your drywall is (it is usually 1/2in or 5/8in). Then head to your local hardware store to pick up a replacement piece, they sometimes sell small squares of drywall. If they don’t you can buy a full sheet and cut it down in the parking lot with your drywall saw so it fits in your car.
Use the drywall screws to attach that piece of drywall to the new supports that you added. The screws should sink into the drywall just a bit so you can fill the holes easily.. If they are sticking out too far your wall won’t be flat when you are done.
Step 3: Tape & Mud
Place drywall tape on all the seams and screw holes. I like using this drywall tape with a grid pattern because it has a slight layer of adhesive on it which makes it stick easily to the wall.
After you get your tape on, grab some joint compound. This is basically like a milky play dough that you use to cover up all the gaps and cracks.
Use a taping knife to apply a smooth layer over all of the areas you put the tape (and screw holes). Don’t worry! It will not look great on your first coat.
Let that dry, and then lightly sand with a 220 grit sanding block. I’ve heard that wet sanding is also a really effective (and less messy) way to sand but I haven’t tried it myself yet.
Repeat the process until you’ve covered everything up and it is smooth!
Step 4 - Texture
(optional)
If your walls have a texture on them, grab a can of wall texture spray. This stuff is like spray paint but it is filled with texture for your walls. How cool right?
You can adjust the setting to be either light, medium, or heavy to match whatever texture you have on your walls. (I used the heavy setting for this example) Before you spray the texture on your walls, I HIGHLY suggest practicing on a piece of cardboard.
In this example project, the walls had a ‘knock down texture’. That means that the texture gets sprayed on the walls and then lightly flattened.
In order to achieve that knock down look, start by spraying the texture on your wall. Wait about 8-10min. Then take your taping knife and lightly smooth out the texture. I suggest practicing this a couple times on your piece of cardboard before doing it on your wall.
Step 5: Prime & Paint
After your wall is all patched up (and textured), grab some primer. It is really important to prime fresh joint compound / drywall / texture before painting. The primer will make sure that the paint sticks really well.
After the primer is done you are all set to paint your wall *dance emoji*
Not sure what color your walls are? Try using this color reader machine. It can detect what color your walls are!
Conclusion
It seems like such a daunting task, but it is actually pretty simple! Just take your time with it and don’t worry because at the end of the day it’ll look better than the hole in your wall did *wink* *cry face*
Need a visual? I made a YouTube video walking through the process! Watch it here: https://youtu.be/Q_wdCCr2ISk
