Patching Drywall and Touching Up Paint

Walls take a beating in any building. Door handles punch holes, carts gouge corners, and movers leave dents. A good patch disappears. A bad one shows from across the room, especially in side light. The skill is less about strength than patience: thin coats, wide feathering, and time to dry. Most small repairs take two or three short visits, and rushing one is why it shows. Before you cut or sand any wall in an older building, check whether it has been tested for asbestos or lead paint.

What You Will Be Able to Do

• Choose the right repair for a hole's size
• Fix nail pops and small dents
• Patch a medium hole with a mesh patch
• Patch a large hole with a new piece of drywall
• Sand, prime, and touch up so that it blends

Before You Start

Look for the reason behind the damage. A door handle that keeps hitting a wall needs a door stop, and a water stain means a leak that needs fixing first.

Check what is behind the wall before you cut, including wires, pipes, and ducts. Use a stud finder, and cut only as deep as you must.

Warning: Older buildings may have lead paint or asbestos in joint compound and texture. Check your site's records before you sand or cut. If you do not know, stop and ask. Do not dry sand old paint.

Wear safety glasses and a dust mask or a respirator as required. Lay down a drop cloth, and tape off the area. Keep dust out of occupied rooms and away from air returns.

Tools and Materials

Nail Pops and Small Dents

A nail pop is a bump where a fastener has worked out.

1. Drive a drywall screw 1 to 2 inches above or below the popped nail, so that the drywall is held tight to the stud.
2. Tap the popped nail below the surface.
3. Fill with a thin coat of compound.
4. Let it dry.
5. Sand lightly and apply a second coat if needed.
6. Prime and paint.

Small dents and screw holes need just compound, sanding, and paint.

Medium Holes (About 1 to 6 Inches)

1. Cut away any loose paper and broken gypsum, and clean the area.
2. Stick a mesh patch centered over the hole.
3. Spread a thin coat of compound over it, feathering the edges 2 to 3 inches beyond the patch.
4. Let it dry fully.
5. Sand lightly, and apply a second thin coat that goes a little wider.
6. Sand again.
7. Prime and paint.

Worked example. A door handle made a 4-inch hole. A 6-inch mesh patch covers it, with 1 inch of overlap on each side. Feathered 2 to 3 inches past the patch, the repair is about 10 to 12 inches wide. It looks large, but that is why it disappears.

Large Holes

1. Draw a square around the damage. Cut along the lines with a drywall saw.
2. Cut two pieces of wood backing about 4 inches longer than the opening. Slide them in, and screw them to the wall through the drywall above and below the hole.
3. Cut a drywall patch of the same thickness.
4. Screw the patch to the backing.
5. Tape the seams with paper or mesh tape.
6. Apply 2 or 3 coats of compound, sanding between coats and feathering 6 to 8 inches past each seam.
7. Prime and paint.

If the hole lands on a stud, you can screw into the stud instead.

Getting a Smooth Finish

Thin coats dry faster and sand easier than thick ones. A thick coat can crack as it shrinks. Pull the knife at a low angle and put more pressure on the outer edge to feather.

Check your work with a light held flat against the wall. Side light shows every ridge. Run your hand across the patch, and feel for bumps with your palm. Sand only until it is smooth. If you sand through the paper, you will raise fuzz, and you will need to seal and skim it.

Matching Texture

Many commercial walls have some texture. A smooth patch on a textured wall will stand out.

• Orange peel: Use a texture spray can, adjusted to the right size.
• Knockdown: Spray or dab on compound, let it set briefly, then flatten it lightly with a knife.
• Skip trowel or hand texture: Practice on scrap first.

Test the texture on cardboard before you spray the wall. Do not paint until it is dry.

Priming and Painting

Bare compound soaks up paint and looks dull, a problem called flashing. Always prime. Use a stain-blocking primer over water stains.

Touching Up

Touch-up paint rarely matches if the wall has aged, faded, or gotten dirty. These steps help:

1. Look for your site's paint records. Good buildings record the color, sheen, and maker for each area.
2. Match the sheen, not just the color. A flat patch on a satin wall stands out.
3. Clean the area first.
4. Apply the paint the way the wall was painted. Roll where the wall was rolled, because a brush leaves a different texture.
5. Feather the edges, using a small roller with light pressure.
6. Let it dry, then look at it from the normal viewing spot.

If the patch still shows, paint the wall from corner to corner. Most eyes stop at corners, so a full wall gives the best color match.

Keep cans sealed, labeled with the room and date, and away from freezing. Dispose of leftovers according to your site's rules.

Protecting the Repair

Add a door stop, corner guard, or chair rail if the damage is likely to happen again. In wet areas such as restrooms, use moisture-resistant board, and fix any leak first. Mold on drywall is a separate problem. Report it, since it often needs more than paint.

Common Mistakes

Check Your Understanding

1. You patched a 4-inch hole with a mesh patch. How far do you feather the compound?

About 2 to 3 inches beyond the patch.

2. You paint a patch and it looks dull next to the rest of the wall. What was probably skipped?

Primer. Bare compound soaks up paint.

3. A leak stained a ceiling tile and the nearby wall. What comes first?

Fix the leak. Then seal the stain with a stain-blocking primer.

4. You are patching a wall in a building from 1960. What do you check before sanding?

Check for lead paint and asbestos. If there are no records, stop and ask.

Key Takeaways

• Fix the cause of the damage first.
• Match the repair to the size of the hole.
• Use thin coats, and feather wide.
• Always prime before painting.
• Match both color and sheen, and paint corner to corner if needed.
• Check for lead and asbestos in older buildings.