Sunday, February 21, 2010

Dry wall tape peeling up under paint? How to fix?

We bought a condo last summer and whoever did the dry wall didn't do a very good job. There's a place on the living room wall where the tape is lifting away from the drywall causing cracks in the paint. We've tried putty for nail holes and minor cracks, but the crack has reappeared. Is there a way to repair this without doing the drywall over completely? Please be detailed. I'm a novice at home repair.Dry wall tape peeling up under paint? How to fix?
The tape when it was applied most likly didnt have enough compound under it, so the best way is to use a small putty knife and lift it up and get some compound under the tape. Then work the knife back and forth over the surface untill its smooth. When its dry to the touch, use a wet rag or sponge to smooth it out or add more compound to match the finish you have, Then touch up the paint. The compound can be any spackle or regular drywall compound, very cheap and handy for nail holes or any fixups.Dry wall tape peeling up under paint? How to fix?
I would suggest you go to the BHG.com (Better Homes and Gardens) and take a look at the home repair encyclopedia. You will find a lot of useful information as well as good pictures showing you how to do things.





Home Depot also has Do It Herself workshops that help out a lot. I was able to redo some electrical wiring with their help.





Good Luck!!!
Small brush or Hypo needle with glue. Done with care.
You will need to pull off the drywall tape, retape it, do some texture repair (you can buy the stuff in a can that mimics the existing texture look) and repaint. Are you sure you do not have a leak behind your drywall that might be sending moisture to the area and causing the lifting?
There's a good chance that the foundation or the frame is settling which will cause the tape to crinkle and seperate from the drywall. If I were you I'd keep an eye on it over the course of the summer and see if it continues to seperate further. If it does then you have a bigger problem than just drywall tape peeling away. If it seems like it hasn't changed by the end of summer, and your neighbors have not had an increase in the same type of problem, what you need to do is to go ahead and strip away the old tape, use some 200 grit sandpaper to smooth out the area, re-tape it, and repaint. You are probably not going to have an exact match with your paint so you might consider repainting the whole living room, especially if you don't particularly like the color it was in the first place or if the paint seems to be old. It sounds to me like it's not a brand new property, so look into repainting your living area. Best of luck.
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