Drywall Taping For Beginners

Insulating Your Metal Stud Framing

2010-01-17T11:25:00.000-05:00

Now you should have most of your framing in place and now need to install your electrical boxes and any pluming if necessary. For your electrical you can purchase boxes with brackets designed to zip screw to the metal studs, but there are numerous ways you can do this, if you wish you can cut wood braces and fasten them to your studs vertically or horizontally most of this is up to you make sure any electrical boxes in the outside walls have plastic protectors behind them.The same with your pluming cut and fasten wood braces wherever you need them. You can use standard household electrical wire by using plastic inserts for your metal studs that can be purchased at your building store. Make sure your electrical work is done to code and inspected for your own safety or hire a licensed electrician or plumber to perform this part for you.

Now back to your insulation start at your back wall against the concrete where the four studs are fasten in two at either end. Set up a table of some sort that you can work on to cut your insulation and of course you want to dress properly for this part with a mask, gloves and so on. Now your first run of insulation will be narrower then the bats of insulation because you are filling from the end of the wall to the first stud that is fasten where your other wall will meet, so measure the width you want and lay your bat of insulation on your table and take a 1x2 piece of wood or something you can use as a guide for cutting your insulation straight and cut it using a utility knife to the size you need and place the insulation between the studs firmly and neatly and avoid overlap of your bats,so now you have your first cavity filled, now do the same at the other end of this wall.

Now this next part you will see why you left you the studs loose, place full bats in the next run and move the next stud over and snug it up against the insulation level it and fasten it in with your self taping 1/2 screws.Using this method works well as you do not have to worry about buying specially sized insulation for your metal studs because of being hollow on one side, keep repeating this process until you have completed your back wall. now if you reach the end of your wall and the last space between your metal studs are too wide for the insulation bats simply add another steel stud to your wall, you can just notch it out with your metal snips if you have electrical wires to go over.

This procedure allows you to use much more of your insulation factory width without having to cut as much. Once you have done your back wall you will know the method behind this and will be able to repeat the procedure on the rest of your basement, now remember to not tie in your corners so when starting on the wall coming off the back wall just push your first stud up against the stud on your back wall and place your first bats of insulation in and move the next stud over against your insulation and fasten it in and finish the rest of your wall. Later when you drywall your back wall you will pull your corner stud back a bit for the drywall to slide behind and then slide the stud back in place and fasten it in, more on this when you start to install your drywall. I just keep mentioning this so you understand where your heading and the importance of patience and procedure.

It may at times seem like a lot when reading this but as you start you will see how sensible and easy this all is, not to mention the enjoyment of learning and working with steel studs and the satisfaction of your project being done well and done right. Well this should keep you busy for a while and next you will put up your vapor barrier and be at the drywall installation soon.

Partition Walls And Door Openings-Metal Studs

2010-01-07T11:51:00.000-05:00

Once you have your outside walls in place you need to figure out where you want your steel stud partition walls that will divide the rooms of your basement, bathroom, bedrooms, family room and so on. Pick your first wall with a door opening in it and draw a line on your floor as to where it will be located and cut your 2x4 wood floor track the full length of your wall. Take your ram set gun and fasten the wood track to your concrete, you will notice this time we are not going to fasten the steel track on top of the 2x4 first because of the door opening.

These instructions are for prefabricated doors because they are very easy to work with and will save you untold grief if your are not familiar with hanging doors, also this procedure is designed for them. Now measure the width of you prefab door from outside to outside of the jam, by example if the measurement you take 30" inches wide you are going to mark your door opening on the 2x4 wood track as 30 1/4 inches wide if this seems tight compared with the rough opening the instructions say , you are right but this is not the conventional way of framing and you will love it's ease and simplicity.

Now cut your steel track to go on top of the wood leaving of course the door opening you marked and fasten it down using your drywall screws after the rest of the wall is built you will cut out the 2x4 for your door opening. Important: Make sure the 2x4 wood track is fasten with the ram set well on both sides of where your door will be and make sure it is not fasten where it will be cut out, the reason it is cut out after the wood is fasten is to keep your door perfectly straight. Many of your probably know most of this but for the sake of those who are just learning I want to cover every point I can.

Once your track is fasten on the bottom measure your metal track for the top the same size as the bottom and cut it, now you may need some help with this next step as you need to hold the track to the ceiling while you measure for your vertical steel wall stud and cut it 1/4 inch short of your measurement. Place the stud in the one end of your wall and with your level on the stud level that end of your wall and put a drywall screw in the ceiling track into your wood joists. Repeat on the other end but keep the stud back from your door opening you will know why soon then put a metal stud in the middle until your wall is plum and fastened. You will notice this is just a reverse procedure from your outside walls,so cut the rest of your wall studs and place them where they should go. fasten them using your clamps and 1/2 inch self tapping screw, now contrary to what many will say is that your just need one screw on one side top and bottom. In high rise construction this is only done where necessary such as outside walls for insulation or where braces are used for pluming etc. But if you wish knock yourself out, remember the drywall is the real fastener and strength.

Continue with this procedure in building the rest of your partition walls and door openings. Now lets install a door. Yes you are reading this right you are going to install your doors before you drywall. OK let's install a door you will need to cut out the 2x4 wood track where your door is going this can be done with a good hand saw or better a reciprocating saw, do not pry on the wood to remove it or you will possibly damage the work you have done make a clean cut through. Figure out which way you want your door to open and where your hinge side will be, now on the hinge side of your wall measure for a wood stud from the top track down to the bottom and cut 1/4 inch less. Now slide this wood stud into the track and at he bottom fasten through the track into the stud with 1 1/4 inch drywall screw now take your level and level the wood stud and fasten at the top in the same manner and this time fasten on both sides.

Now take your prefab door and measure the width of the top from outside to outside of the jam and cut a 2x4 wood stud exactly the same width and place it on top of your door jam right in the middle so you have a 1/2 inch on either side the 2x4. Take 2 inch wood screws and fasten from the top of the 2x4 down into your door jam, so now you have a wood stud fastened to the top of your door. The reason for doing this first is some older homes do not have the ceiling height to allow you to do this latter and even if you do this way still works great. Now place a piece of 1/2 inch wood or drywall on the floor of the door opening so it keeps your door frame up for your carpet, tile or wood flooring installation later. Put the hinge side of your door against the wood stud you installed and fasten through the stud into your door frame this is why you kept the studs back from the door opening so you .would have room to work, now cut a nice straight wood stud for the other side of your door and push it up tight against the other side of your door jam and fasten in the same manner as the other side. Finally fasten your vertical wood studs into the the wood stud you fasten on top of your door using woods screws. You now have a perfectly level installed door just repeat for remaining doors and soon your metal stud framing will be ready for your drywall installation.

Framing Your Basement With Steel Studs

2010-01-01T11:41:00.016-05:00

First of all in getting ready for framing your basement with steel studs you are going to have to prepare, this is one of the most important parts of any project. Make sure your work area is ready by this I mean clear out any furniture or items that are going to be in the way of you working.Store somewhere else if possible maybe your friends and family can help your store your items for a while or put them out to the garage if you have one, now if it is your basement you are finishing make sure have gutted and cleaned out your basement so you have a nice clean start. If this is a new home this should not be a problem but if it is an older home and you have to remove previous owners attempts at your basement and many times these efforts are undesirable, do not be shy rip it all out until you have the original basement back. There is a two fold benefit to this, one it will be like working with a new home and two you can remove any unwanted partitions and problems that may be behind those old ceilings and walls.This may seem like a lot of work but you will soon see the benefits of this.

Just a note: If you are planing your job for down the road time wise, you can do this part way in advance as it does not require a lot of money just some old fashion hard work.

Once your work space is ready you can plan your layout for your new project, take your time so you know exactly what you want. In starting you want to do all your outside walls in your basement first. So measure your outside walls in running lengths with this I mean do not try and figure out each wall individually so by way of example if your basement is 30 X 40 feet you want enough material for 140 running feet this keeps things simple and you will need more later for the rest of your job, but it is a good starting point and will give you an idea of the cost for your framing. Now taking our example of 140 running feet of outside wall you will need track this is the top and bottom of your steel wall, so you need 140 for the top and 140 for the bottom a total of 280 feet of running steel track so if the track comes in10 foot lengths you need 28 lengths or pieces of track.

But you are going to also use a 2x4 wood stud bottom plate along with your steel track bottom plate. I know you are using two bottom plates ,but at 140 running feet or 14 ten foot 2x4 the cost is small and you will be thankful when you start trimming. And it is hardly any extra work this you will see very quickly when you start building your wall. Figure out your vertical steel studs for your outside wall at roughly 16 inch centers a quick count will do to start or just buy a couple of bundles. So once you have your starter material you will need a hand held ram set tool , 2 inch pins and shots for fastening down your 2x4 wood base plate to the concrete floor and 1/2 inch self tapping screws for fastening the studs. Also 1 1/4 inch drywall Screws and drill with Philips bit for fastening your steel track on top of the 2x4 wood floor plate and a good level and metal snips. Now your ready to start your first outside wall.

Pick a back outside wall and take your ten foot piece of track and holding it up to the floor joist and 1 inch out from your concrete wall and with your drill, screw an 1/1/2 inch drywall screw through the steel track into your first floor joist then go to the other end of your track and do the same this is fairly easy as the track is very light and easy to handle. Now continue this procedure until you have your top track up around your outside walls putting drywall screws in each floor joist and keeping a 1/2 inch space between your ajoining walls so your drywall can slide through. If your floor joist is running in the same direction as the wall you want to build you will have to put in 2x4 cross braces no more than two feet apart so you have something to screw your top track to. Now for your floor track cut 2x4 studs to run the full length of your first wall for instants if you have a twelve foot wall you will have a 8 foot stud than cut a 4 foot piece, lay them along your wall and take a10 foot track and from the four foot piece lay the track on top spanning over top where your 2x4 studs join. you will notice that the track is a bit wider than the 2x4, so place it flush to the face side of the wood for your outside wall and screw your track to the top of the wood with the 1 1/2 drywall screws so now your have your bottom wood base with a track screwed to the top.

Place your bottom wood and steel track against your wall and measure from the ceiling track down to the floor track, now cut a wall stud with your metal snips about 1/4 inch shorter so it fits without binding and place it in your bottom and top track at on end of your wall do not fasten just eye it straight. take the level and place it on the stud and move your bottom track in or out until your stud is level, now take your ram set and load a pin and a shot and about 6 inches from the end shoot the bottom track to your concrete floor. Repeat this at the other end of your wall and then in the center of your wall, making sure each time the wall is level. Put shots at no less than every 24 inches now cut enough studs for the whole wall at 16 inch centers keep checking the measurements of your studs as the lengths can change if there is a slope in the floor. Place your studs in your wall and just eye them up and this is important DO Not Fasten Them just leave loose you will see why later. Now as this is your back wall you can place a stud at either end against the concrete wall and fasten them top and bottom with zip screws {or if you wish ram set these studs to the concrete}.In your back wall you are going to fasten two more studs in where your other outside wall meets your back wall you need to fasten a stud in the center where the two walls meet at both ends of your back wall, these are your anchor studs that you will use later to join and lock in your corners more on this when you get to putting up your drywall so you should now have four studs screwed in place and the rest are loose.

Now you have your back outside wall complete except for fastening everything in place, repeat these steps with the rest of your outside walls and just make sure that the top and bottom tracks are fasten securely and leave everything else loose especially the corners because when you put the drywall up on the back wall the studs on the other wall must be able to slide up against the drywall on your back wall and fasten into the stud you placed there.Do not try to make your corners before hand as this involves your drywall as I just described. OK this should keep you busy for a little while next we will move on to partition walls and framing for your doors. Always remember that steel stud framing is reliant on the drywall installation as this is what locks in your corners and strengthens your whole job, you are not at that point yet but keep it in mind as it will become clear soon.

How To Frame With Metal Studs- For Home Renovations

2009-12-29T13:13:00.006-05:00

This article is going to deal with the how and why of metal stud framing for your home renovation project, it will deal primarily with the finishing of your home basement but the techniques can be applied almost anywhere. I first became familiar with steel stud framing years ago while working in high rise construction installing drywall. At first I hated it mainly because my experience was with home residential construction where the standard was 2x4 wood studs. But before long I started to love working with steel studs and later on when I left high rise construction and started to finish basements in new and used homes I took my new found love for steel studs with me. But unlike many who use metal studs I came to develop a combination of steel and wood combined, mainly because many of my customers wanted to save some money and have some fun by hanging and trimming the doors and baseboard trim themselves and they were not familiar with how to fasten the frames and trim to the steel and wanted to use wood, so I needed to come up with a system that was user friendly for the average home owner. The out come was a combination of wood and metal stud framing 90% steel with just enough wood studs use in the right places to allow the home owner complete control in finishing his project.

First we are going to consider some of the benefits in using steel for framing your basement:

You don't need power saws to cut your studs
They can be installed quicker than wood
They do not rot or warp
they are bug proof
No variation in size and they are completely straight
They do not shrink or split
They are lighter and easier than wood to handle
They are flame retardant
They are economic
They are easy to take apart

Steel stud framing installs very much the same as wood studs with 16 inch centers for your insulation if you are framing your walls with metal studs the main differences are that you use self tapping screws these are referred to as zip screws, and are about a 1/2 inch in length and some drywall screws 1 1/4 inch long. You will need a cordless drill,and a Phillip bit for your screws,some hand clamps for holding your studs in place while you fasten them and of course a good pair of metal snips for cutting, you can use a power saw if you have the right metal blade. Also because this method requires some wood studs you will need a saw to cut them but no nails are required and you will need a ram set gun a hand held one works great and are inexpensive to buy or rent also shots and pins these are to fasten down your 2x4 floor track. In the following posts I will deal with the procedures to use in framing your project in steel studs.

Note: As you start to use metal studs you may notice that they seem flimsy and not as sturdy as you thought but steel studs are designed to work in conjunction with drywall, so do not be overly concerned the finished job will be just fine.

Finish Drywall Sanding And Priming

2009-12-28T12:48:00.003-05:00

This is the part of your drywall taping job that most of the horror stories come from and I will not pretend it is enjoyable but it is a very important part of your drywall job and if you have kept your work neat and clean and have stuck to the drywall instructions up to now it will not be that bad, first as always you want to prepare by closing or blocking all cold air returns on your home furnace and make sure the fan on your furnace is not running turn off the switch if necessary.

Now close all doors on adjoining rooms that do not have to be sanded and block the doors at the bottom or even better staple plastic over the entrances that you wish to protect as much as possible. Now as for yourself you are going to get covered up ,so if you have coveralls great if not grab some old clothes also a hat and disposable filter masks that you can buy at your building supply store once you have done this you are ready to start sanding your drywall job.

Always start at the top of your job and work your way down so pick a room and start with the corners that meet your ceilings and start lightly feathering along the edges of the corners to remove any ridges and try not to go too hard into your corners as you may cause damage to your corners. You are doing what you did between coats you are cleaning your drywall job the only difference is this is your final sand and you want to be a little more picky. Now when your done the corners around the top of your ceiling, finish sanding your down corners until you have finish all the corners in your first room. You are going to sand your ceiling next and this is where it can become messy as the sanded drywall dust will of course fall down right on you and the room.the procedure for sanding your ceiling seams is the same as your corners, feather the outer edges first and then lightly run your hand sander back and forth on the center of your seam always running in the same direction of the seam never across it.Just a side point do not let any one tell you to use a power sander they are not for sanding drywall so avoid the temptation, because if someones drywall coating is so thick and bad that they have to use a power sander they have gotten themselves into a real mess.Now when your have your first ceiling seam nice and clean just repeat the process on the rest of your ceiling and move on to the walls in your room which are easier as the dust will fall to the floor in front of you.

Remember when sanding the ceiling your bulk heads are part of your ceiling and sand your corner bead in the same fashion feathering at first then lightly finishing the rest of your bead up and down not across.When you have completely finished one room move to the next until you are completely finished your drywall sanding job. You are finally finish all your drywall and all that is left is to is clean up,take a broom and knock all the excess drywall dust off your ceiling and walls and if you have a shop vac use it to vacuum up the dust and then damp mop your floors to get the rest.

You are now ready to prime your drywall, this is important as new drywall after it is finished is very volatile and it can be easily damaged when bumped or scratched so you want to seal it with drywall primer as soon as possible also paint today is not cheap so you want your drywall to soak up your primer and not your expensive finish paint. One last tip when sealing get lots of paint in the corners,but do not leave of course any excess drips. I hope these drywall taping instruction have been of help to you and you are happy with your finished job. Thank you for visiting.

Third Coating Your Drywall Job

2009-12-25T11:00:00.002-05:00

You have come to the final drywall coat of your job and you will enjoy this as it will truly make your drywall project look complete, even though at this point your drywall job should already look good. But you are going to put the icing on the cake. Now once again take your hand sander and start cleaning up your seams and corner bead remember to go easy you are just cleaning and I know it is tempting to try and sand every thing so it looks perfect but be patient that part is on it's way.

At this point you will once again need your 12 inch knife and your box for compound, are you seeing how this 12 inch knife has become the corner stone of your work,it is truly a main tool in drywall taping. OK take your pail of mud and mix it nice and smooth add a little water if you want it thinner, be careful only a small amount of water at a time you do not want your compound so thin that it falls off your knife. Now when your have your mud at the right consistency pick your starting point and apply mud again vertically across your drywall seam about 2 inch past your seam on either side until your have covered 3 or four feet of your seam from the end of your seam draw your knife from the outer edge of the seam to the center horizontally removing all the compound you applied except for what is left on to feather out the ridges and small imperfections.

Do the same with your drywall knife at the bottom edge of your seam to the center and draw off your excess mud in the same manner until you have a nice clean coated seam. This procedure should be familiar to you now so keep repeating this until you have applied your third coat to all your flat seams and once again do not forget the little seams, joints in your bulkheads and above your doors or windows making sure you have everything coated. You should be very happy with the way your seams are looking now and you will notice how fast they are drying as this is a very thin coat.

As it dries you will be able to put your third coat on your corner bead using the same technique apply your mud again from the far outer edge of your bead about 2 inches past the edge you want to feather out and draw your mud across or down to the edge of the bead 3 or 4 feet again then draw off all the excess compound to fill your outer edge and imperfections of your drywall bead, repeat until your have completely third coated your entire drywall job. Now take a break and wait for everything to dry good and in the next step you will finish sand and prepare your project to be sealed with drywall primer.

Drywall Seams Second Coat

2009-12-21T12:42:00.003-05:00

You are now at the point where you are ready to apply your second coat to your drywall seams and corner bead. Once again do a walk around your job and make sure everything is first coated so you don't have to stop and fix something you missed. now take your hand sander and lightly go over your drywall job, this can be done fairly quickly as you are doing a quick clean of any small spots that are a bit high or pieces of drywall that can get into your compound when you are coating, also make sure your corner bead is cleaned up on the edges and so on, once your happy with your clean up job you are ready to go.{Do Not Over Sand}.

Get your 12 inch knife and box and your drywall compound mixed nice and smooth and of course clean as well as the rest of your tools. Now pick a place to start to coat just your seams at this point, the best way is to do a room at a time and don't start another room until you have finished the room you started you should know by now that being organized is everything with drywall. OK fill your box with your mixed compound and scoop some onto your 12 inch knife now the same as your first apply the mud on your seam in a vertical manner making sure you completely cover your first coat by about 2 or 3 inches on either side of your seam and again keep applying the mud for three or four feet.

With the same 12 inch knife start to to scape off the compound and put it back into the box keeping your knife scraped off clean is of course important, but how you take off the mud is also so important. By starting at the top of your seam with the edge of your knife at the center of your drywall seam with the other edge of your knife easily encompassing the rest of the compound, draw your knife horizontally along your seam and take off all the excess mud and the same with the other half of your seam. keep on repeating this this process until your entire seam is coated, you should have a fairly smooth looking seam at this point as the idea of this is to feather out the edges of your first coat and to fill any imperfections .

Finish the rest of your room or rooms in the same manner until all the flat seams or your drywall are second coated. Now would be a good time to coat your nails or screws with their third coat if you have not already done so. This coat will start to dry much faster than the first so you should be able to second coat your corner bead the same day, but if not wait until the next day or when you have the time remember this is not a race.

Coating your bead is pretty much the same apply your mud from the inner edge of your bead to the outer edge until you have coated 3 or 4 feet then take your knife and scrape it all off filling the outer edge of your first coat and coating over any small imperfections, again when your are done your corner bead it should look smooth and clean for when you apply your third and final coat on your job. By now you should really see your drywall job coming together. Next you will apply your third and final coat on your drywall job and sand it out to make it ready for painting.

How To Coat Your Drywall Corners

2009-12-15T11:30:00.003-05:00

Now at this point you should have your drywall flats and corner bead covered with your first coat of drywall compound, as much as you would like to keep going with your second and then your final coat, you need to stop here for a bit so you can apply a coat on all your inside corners. This will take a little bit of time but if you do it right you only need to do it once and you will be done your corners except for some light sanding at the end of your drywall job and then you can return to your second and final coats.

So let's get started applying your coat over the inside corners,take your drywall hand sander and carefully take of any bumps or ridges off your corners being careful not to sand into the paper.First as always make sure your drywall box, three inch knife and your plastic drywall corner trowel is clean an ready to go. I know you may wonder about that plastic corner trowel that cost a huge couple of dollars, but when you start using it and see what it does for your corners it will be your best friend. make sure as always your mud is clean and well mixed then scoop about half the box full of mud as this coat that you are applying won't use a lot of compound.

Pick a starting point to start as you will be working your way around your job systematically so you do not miss any corners. Take your 3 inch drywall knife and scoop some mud out and using the edge of the knife apply mud up one side of your corner about a 1/4 inch thick and no more then one to two inches wide, then repeat the same procedure on the other side of your corner. Now if you are having trouble apply your mud using the edge of your drywall knife as this does take a little practice, just use the flat of your knife if this makes it easier for you but scape of any excess mud that is over 2 inches wide.

Here is the part where you take your plastic corner trowel and from the top of corner start working the mud in scraping of any excess back into your box. keep repeating this until all the mud on your corner is nice and thin and smooth do not leave excess mud on your corners, if you do this right you should have a fine ridge of mud on either side of the tape. With your three inch knife very carefully and lightly scape off the excess ridge of mud with your knife making sure not to touch the inside of your corners. This all may be a bit tricky at first but be patient and you will get the knack of it, keep working until all your corners are neatly coated making sure to miss none. Let your corners dry well over night and you will be ready to second coat everything again except the corners of course as they should be done.I will go though this with you in my next post on drywall taping.

Drywall Corner Bead Applying Your First Coat

2009-12-10T13:47:00.009-05:00

Your first coat on your flat drywall seams should be done,but before we start to first coat your corner bead

remember to double check your seams to make sure you have them all first coated. Many times myself included have missed the smaller seems like joints above doors or small seems in the bulk heads and so on. I don't want to keep beating this dead horse,but it is important to make sure each step is completed before you move on.

Now when the flats are checked and done take your hand sander and lightly skim over all your corner bead to take off any small bits of drywall compound so that it is clean and ready for your first coat. Once again mix your mud with your drill nice and smooth,then scoop compound into your drywall box. Taking your 12" drywall knife take some mud and starting at one end of your bead apply mud vertically onto your bead always apply it about 7 or 8 inches wide dragging down to the edge of the bead,do this until you have applied about three feet of mud.

Now take your knife from the start of where you applied the compound and horizontally draw your knife down the bead,scaping off the excess mud until it is all off except the area you are filling{Do Not Leave any build up of mud}now there will be a ridge of mud on the edge of the corner bead just take your drywall knife and on a 45 degree angle using the edge of the blade skim off the excess mud from the edge of the corner bead. Repeat this process until you have done one side of your bead then copy what you have done on the other side until you have one bead completely coated.

Continue this process for all your bead and make sure you do not leave any build up of mud on your corner bead you are just doing some filling here even though it should start looking a lot better. The problem many people can make is they try to make the first coat perfect or they try to cover everything in this first coat and this leaves them sanding their hearts out. You what to see a nice clean coat with no excess mud so you can prep quickly for your next coat and you will start see the logic in all this very soon.

Once your are done coating all your corner bead you need to again let it dry well,and in our second coat things will start to move quicker and easier for you but first you are going to take a break from this for now so we can coat your corners which I will discuss in the next post. so that's how you first coat your corner bead.

How to First Coat Your Drywall Flats

2009-12-03T11:37:00.010-05:00

Well now we can begin to first coat your drywall flats ,at this point you should have everything covered with tape. Do a walk around your job and double check everything you have taped and make sure all your corner bead,flats,corners,screw holes are all coated even the smallest pieces so that you don't have to backtrack as this can be very frustrating to start coating and then find out you have missed a spot that needs tape. So now that you have check this and corrected everything we can start.

Now I want you to take your drywall hand sander and put a piece of sand paper on it or screen paper which is what I use it lasts longer. You can buy these cut to to size to fit your sander at any building supply store, use 120 grit. Take your sander in hand and go lightly over your flats to take off any bits of drywall compound you may have left on your tape and please do not sand so hard that you are damaging the tape. The point of this is to knock off any small high points so that when you apply your coat it goes on smooth without getting little pieces of drywall in your mud. I will say this again you are not sanding your job you are prepping it.

We will now check your compound and make sure if it's a partly used pail that it does not have any bits of dry compound in it as this will cause you aggravation to no end. If your mud has too much crap in it put it aside and get a fresh pail,it's worth the extra cost and it can be used for other things. Make sure your box and 12 inch knife are cleaned as well as your mixing attachment. As before take your mixer and mix the mud nice and smooth and with your clean 3 inch knife scoop your compound into your box. Now with box and 12 inch knife in hand you are ready to start your first coat.

Start at one end of your wall and with your 12 inch knife scoop some mud out of your box and apply about an 8 inch wide amount across {vertically} your drywall seem about a 1/4 inch thick. Do this until you have gone about 3 or 4 feet down your wall,if coating a small wall 8 feet or less do half at a time, now take your knife and at the point you started and drag your knife {horizontally} lightly over the mud you applied scooping the excess mud you take off back into your box. keep repeating this until you have a very thin coat over your tape no more then about 1/16 or 1/8 of an inch thick, the thinner the better, you are not trying to hide your tape completely yet, repeat this step until you are about 4 feet from the other end of your wall.

Now start at the other end of your wall and apply mud to the rest of your wall and working from the other corner of the wall draw back to where you finished the first half, you may have a small line where you meet your other end, but don't worry to much about this you will see later. The important thing is to keep this coat as thin and neat as possible without scraping it off completely,the more seems you coat the easier it will become to you remember you are not in a race your after quality. Follow these steps carefully and never draw your knife vertically when smoothing out your seem always draw along the same direction as the seem. Coat every flat that you have and miss none then take a break and let them dry well.This ends how to first coat your drywall flats next we will first coat your corner bead.

Installing Your Drywall Corner Bead

2009-11-30T12:25:00.009-05:00

This is the post where we will deal with how to install corner bead , by now you should have all your flats taped and your corners taped and they should be dry. Now there are a few types of corner bead we will discuss the two main ones, There is the old faithful one that has been used for years and that drywall bead is the steel one with the multiple holes perforated into it, this is still widely used in mainly industrial work.

But for some years now in residential construction the bead of choice is drywall paper bead this consists of a metal insert with paper over the out side of it. The reason this is preferred is that it coats better and has a less chance of cracking and it is applied with drywall compound not screws or nails. This is great if you are doing an area such as bulkheads that may be covering duct work etc... and perhaps there is not backing everywhere and can cause buckling in the the other type of drywall bead. For the paper bead does not need backing everywhere.

Now before you cut your lengths of bead that you need for your archways,closet returns,outside corners and bulkheads, make sure you have the right bead. I mean that the paper on the bead should be facing you on the outside of the corner not the steel. Once your sure you can cut your corner bead this can be done with a measuring tape and pair of metal snips, cut your bead so it is about 1/2 inch off the floor. Now that you have your bead cut we can start installing it,take your 3 inch drywall knife and your drywall mud box make sure your mud is mixed smooth and scoop some compound into the box.

Now pick your first corner and apply your mud on one edge the same as the inside corners about 2 Inches wide and the same on the other side of the corner, now take your bead and place it over the compound and press it squarely and firmly over the corner, now take you thumb and your index finger and run them down the bead pressing it on to the corner. now there is a rolling tool you can buy that does this or maybe you can rent one, but if saving money is an issue then my procedure works fine. Take your 3" knife and start scraping out the excess by running it down the edges of the bead one side than the other keeping it as neat and clean as possible for your next coat of compound. Make sure the corner bead stays completely to the top of your ceiling or door way and where you are doing around a passageway, where your top horizontal corner bead meets your vertical corner bead in that corner you will have a bare one inch hole visible just leave alone until all your bead is up.

After your bead is all up take your paper drywall tape and rip off enough 2" pieces to cover all the corner holes where the bead meets each other, now take the 3" knife and put mud across one hole and put one of your small two Inch pieces of tape over it and squeeze out the excess mud like a flat so it nice and clean, repeat for the other corner holes until done. At this point you should have everything covered the flats,corners and your bead up. Now while you are letting your bead dry well,you can keep busy by coating your nails or screw holes.

Again take your 3" knife and your mud box and pick a starting point and start coating your nails, doing this by pressing the mud into the nail hole and then scraping it off clean,do this in an orderly way so you don't miss any. now when you finish coating all the nails, start at the beginning again with the first screw hole and start coating them again as these will dry fast, as it is very little mud in them. Again make sure you coat the nails or screws systematically so you do not miss any as they will get harder to notice when they are all coated once and make sure you keep them scraped clean as you go, repeat this process until you have coated them all three times.

That's it for how to install corner bead , next post I will have you coating your drywall job, I think you will like this part as your work truly starts to come. together.

2009-11-26T13:56:00.003-05:00

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Time To Start Taping The Drywall Corners

2009-11-25T13:58:00.011-05:00

Well your flats should be dry and we can start with taping your drywall corners . Once again you should take your mixing drill and give the compound a good stirring up so it's nice and smooth,make sure your box for your compound is clean as well as your knifes not bits of dried up compound in your box or on your knifes. Keeping everything clean is very important as it allows everything to coat smoothly and will keep you from getting frustrated, so if you start getting bits of dried drywall compound in your mud or tools, slowdown stop and clean everything and then continue on. Keeping everything clean and tidy makes all the differences in the world to your drywall taping and your attitude towards the job now back to are corners.

OK take your tape and again set in corner on edge and unravel 30 or 40 feet,then take the end of the tape and pick a corner and start at the ceiling and work down to the floor, using your 3" knife place on bottom of tape one inch up from floor and ripe it off now you have the proper length of tape for that corner,repeat for your other corners.Now take your 3 inch drywall knife fill your box with some compound, now the same knife start applying mud in the corner, one side then the other as a guide try to keep the mud in the corner no more 1 1/2 to 2 inches wide on each side of the corner you will understand why soon. I want you now to take the tape you cut for that corner and if you look at the tape you will see that it has a crease, fold it over and run your fingers down the crease of the drywall tape to create a corner.

Starting at the top of the corner that you applied the drywall compound to,place the tape over the mud and with your fingers gently push the crease of the tape into the corner all the way down to the floor.This is where it can become a little tricky,take your 3 inch knife with the slant and at the top of the corner start at one side only and gently start squeezing out the compound the same as the flats, being careful that your knife does not touch the inside crease of the tape as this will cut your tape. When your are done one side of the corner repeat the same procedure for the other side of the tape. The corner should now look clean and smooth with no excess mud on the outside of the corner remember we are applying the tape only and not coating.

After you have one corner done, just repeat your efforts with the rest of your corners as it will get easier as you go. Make sure you keep any excess drywall compound off the tape so it will be neat clean for coating latter, try to keep in mind that we are applying the tape like wallpaper only the compound is our glue and remember to take it slow and easy and you will be surprised how quickly those cracks disappear and your work becomes a room. Once again when your done all your corners and make sure you got them all the big and small the same as your flats so you don't get out of step with your procedure,then let them dry up overnight or however long it takes. So this ends this part on how to tape drywall corners ,in the next post we will look at applying the corner bead and coating the screw and nail holes.

Applying Tape To Your Drywall Flats

2009-11-25T09:56:00.015-05:00

OK let's get started on How To Tape Drywall Flats. First of all let's get set up fill your 5 gallon pail with water 3/4 full is fine,this is so you have water on hand to keep your tools and drill mixer clean. Take your drill and install your mixing attachment for mixing the drywall compound.Then stand it in the pail with the water,now open your drywall compound use the large plastic 12 litre they are easy to work with and you can reseal them. Now take your drill with the drywall mixer,I know what you thinking that this compound is ready to use trust me it's not,now mix it so it's nice and creamy and smooth and after you have used about half of it you will want to remix it. After you are done using the mixer place it back in the pail of water so the compound on the mixer does not harden.

Now we are ready to learn how to tape the flats,check your drywall wall and make sure there are no nails or screws sticking out. Take your roll of drywall tape make sure it's the paper tape and not the mesh tape,Place it in a corner so it stands up on it's end and start unrolling it about 20 or thirty feet to start is fine. Now we have are drywall compound and our tape ready,let's tape a drywall flat. take your plastic drywall compound holder,now using the 3 inch knife scoop drywall compound into your holder then place that knife in the pail of water so the compound does not harden on it.

Now hold your compound box in one hand and take your 12 inch knife in the other and scoop out some compound onto the knife and start to apply the drywall compound to the drywall board seam making sure you cover the indents of the seam fully. Now if the wall is 8 feet or over do half at a time,take the drywall tape that you unraveled and starting at one end place the tape onto the compound down the drywall board as far as you applied the compound, do not ripe the tape off at this point just let it hang there.

Now with your fingers hold the end of the tape so it does not pull when you run your knife over top of it and with your other hand take the 12 inch knife and start to squeeze out the excess compound from underneath the tape, lightly at first and then applying more pressure as you go over it again .Keep going over the tape until you squeeze all the excess compound until you have a completely flat surface with no bumps or lumps. Now you can apply compound to the remainder of your wall and finish it the same way, now you can rip the tape off at the end of the wall,sorry if I keep stating the obvious, just want to keep it as detailed as possible. So now you should have one seam with the tape on and is nice and flat,just repeat this process with the rest of your flats making sure you squeeze out all the excess compound out from underneath the tape so it is nice and flat, I can not stress this enough. At this point of how to tape drywall do not touch anything else just do all the flats and when your done all the flats let them dry good over night and do not attempt to apply your first coat over top yet. This is not a race or production work,this is about a good quality drywall taping job that will save you money and make you proud. My next post will deal with how to tape drywall corners.

Get Started Taping Your Drywall

2009-11-23T10:18:00.040-05:00

Drywall can be very intimidating for someone who has never tried it before. We have all been told the horror stories about the mess and the terrible results others ended up with. But it does not have to be that way with a little guidance and patience you can be proud of your results and save a lot of money in the process.I will try to keep this as simple and straight forward as I can, to start we need an item list this list will contain the tools you will need such as drywall knives and corner tools that will be needed. Contrary to the many, many tools for sale that I have used and can cost you hundreds of dollars,I will tell you what to buy and how they will do as good a job as expensive machine tools with a little effort on your part.

Perhaps you have seen the endless knives and accessories such as a bazooka for applying tape and compound at the same time or boxes 8" 10" and 12" for coating over the tape. All this is great if you are a pro doing this day in and day out, but not necessary for those who want to tape and finish a bathroom or family room and so on. Well enough of that, what you need to do your project is this.... )One 12" drywall knife-ONE 3" knife with a slant on the blade and a plastic corner trowel, perhaps a 6 " and small 1" knife in case you may fine them handy in some areas . Also a mixing attachment for a drill,one 5 gallon pail for water, a plastic drywall compound box,and of course a manual hand sander any building supply store will have all these items.

Yes your reading this right. With these tools I have taped very large homes with the same results as very expensive tools.With that said there is a certain amount of skill involved ,but if you follow the proper steps and are fairly neat you can accomplish your goals and be proud of your finished product in the following article I will walk you though these drywall taping steps.

Drywall Taping

2009-11-22T15:43:00.024-05:00

Welcome to Drywall Taping . This site provides tips and techniques for home owners who want to learn how to Tape Drywall. If you have questions not covered in Drywall Taping Basics please feel free to email your question to aldridge2009@live.com To continue please go to the drop down menu on the right and start at post # 2 and thank you for visiting Drywall Taping .