This method is preferred if you have a very minor peel that isn’t exposing a lot of drywall. This repair won’t last forever, but it will keep smaller issues from getting worse. If a length of tape longer than 1 foot (0. 30 m) is coming off, consider replacing it entirely. If you’re worried about creating a mess on your floor, put a drop cloth down under the area that you’re patching.
You can really use any kind of spackling paste to cover a hole in drywall, but fast-setting joint compound will be stronger and won’t take as long to dry. Standard setting compound has to be mixed with water until it becomes a thick paste. If the hole created by your peeling tape is less than 1 foot (0. 30 m) in length, you won’t need more than 1 scoop of joint compound.
Cover the hole 4–5 inches (10–13 cm) in both directions of the tear to keep the tape from continuing to peel in the near-future. Scrape an area 2-3 times to add additional pressure if you want to force the compound all the way into the gap.
After 12 hours, run your palm over the joint compound. If it’s chalky and dry, you’re ready to move on. The deeper the hole in your wall is, the longer you need to wait. Twelve hours should be more than enough time to dry the fast-setting compound out.
You can tell if the joint compound is flush with the wall by running your hand over it. If you feel bumps or grooves in the wall when you run your hand over the patched wall, then you aren’t done sanding. It doesn’t need to be perfect. If it’s flat enough for you and the peeling tape is completely covered, it should be fine.
Depending on the type of paint, size of the patch, and type of joint compound, you may need to prime the wall first to keep the compound from showing through.
Chunks of drywall or dried paint may pop off of the wall. It may look like you’re making a mess of things, but don’t worry about it. You need to remove all of the damaged surface before you can replace it. Set out a drop cloth if you’re worried about getting drywall dust all over your floor while you’re doing this.
You only need to re-tape the length that’s weak enough to be pulled out on its own. This could be anywhere from 2–3 inches (5. 1–7. 6 cm) to 5–6 feet (1. 5–1. 8 m). The length you need to replace is entirely determined by how weak the tape is in the section that’s peeling. It could be the entire length of the tape, or it could be a small section where an air bubble was trapped.
You’re going to repaint anyway, so don’t be conservative when it comes to sanding. Try to avoid sanding the drywall paper down at all. There should be a layer of joint compound on top of it where the tape was, but if you see a layer of paper underneath, you’ve gone too far.
If your vacuum doesn’t reach the area that you sanded, you can simply wipe it with a dry cloth to knock the dust away.
If 1–2 inches (2. 5–5. 1 cm) of tape overlap, that’s fine. Try not to cut it short though. If you’re re-taping a corner, you can use the pre-folded paper tape if you’d like. This type of paper is designed specifically for corners.
It’s easier to use pre-mixed joint compound, but you can get the cheaper joint compound and mix it with water yourself if you’d like. The amount of joint compound that you need is dependent upon how big the chunk of wall you sanded down is. In general, . 05 pounds (23 g) of joint compound will cover 1 square foot (0. 093 m2) of wall.
You do not want giant globs of joint compound sticking to you wall. The compound should be nearly flush with your wall, but thick enough to visibly cover the tape. If you leave a bunch of clumps of joint compound, you’ll have to sand really hard to get it flush with you wall. If you’re doing this in a corner, start right where the walls form a 90-degree angle and scrape away from the joint to add your compound. Do this in both directions.
If there’s a fan in the room, turn it on. The compound doesn’t necessarily require ventilation to dry, but the joint compound will dry more thoroughly if there’s some air flow in the room.
It can be a little hard to tell when you’re done sanding. In general, if you’ve sanded every section at least once and the wall looks smooth enough for you, you’re fine. If any big chunks of joint compound fall off, you’ll need to re-patch it using the same method. Wait at least 72 hours for the second coat to dry though.
You’ll need to repaint the whole wall if you want the paint job to be uniform if your walls are really old and haven’t been painted in a while.
