Patching a hole in drywall!

CAUTION: Prior to 1980 many joint compounds and the Sheet Rock itself contained asbestos, which is a known carcinogen. Ensure you take all precautions when working with Sheet Rock installed prior to this date. Always use eye protection and a high quality dust mask.

Materials:
        Various size taping knives - 6" and 10" is most popular and easiest for beginners
        Mud Pan
        Sheet Rock Compound
        Self adhesive Mesh Tape - best for repairs
        Sanding Sponges or Pole sanding setup using mesh screens
        Dust barrier


          Most everyone gets a small ding in a wall. For the ones that are smaller than say a quarter of an inch, in diameter, you can use lightweight spackle. For anything larger go ahead and use the regular Sheet rock Joint Compound. There are basically 2 types - lightweight and regular, the difference is thickness and weight. We prefer the regular, but if you are not used to mixing joint compound and using a taping knife, then the lightweight is for you. It comes in a dry mixture in bags, or pre mixed in plastic bucket containers. The bags obviously will last longer, as you only mix what you need then store the bag until needed again. The plastic buckets come in 1 gal., 2 gal., and 5 gal., containers. As they are not ready to use out of the bucket, both types will require some mixing with water. Use only enough water to mix to a warm "cake icing" consistency. Too much water will dilute the product and cause excessive shrinkage and also dilute the adhesive. For a small amount you can mix it right in a metal or plastic drywall pan with your knife. But for a large job use a paddle type mixer attached to your drill and mix in the bucket. Be careful not to mix too air into it, you may get air bubbles in the finished product. Mix slowly. Keep the top on your container when not in use to keep mud from drying out. For smaller dents and dings just smooth the compound into the surface with your drywall knife, leaving a small amount above the surface to be sanded smooth when dry. For nail pops, use a smooth faced hammer and tap nails back into the drywall just below the surface. Try not to break the sheetrock paper when hammering. Never put more than an 1/8" inch layer of compound product on at the time. For actual holes, all the way through in the drywall, take a box knife and trim all the chipped or jagged edges around the hole creating a smooth edge. Cut a new piece of drywall board (patch piece) wit a screw attached to the middle of it, that will fit thru the hole  so you can grip it and pull it up snug from the inside of the wall to the outside. Then attach a couple of screws around the edges of the existing hole and thru the patch piece drawing the patch piece up snug, and sinking the draw wall screws just below the surface. Fill the hole area with mud compound up to and even with the surface (as compound will sag it may take a couple of applications to build it up even with the existing drywall surface. Then apply self adhesive drywall mesh tape. Over lap the hole by atleast 2" inches on each side of the hole. It may take more than one width to cover the hole. Apply thin coating of mud overlapping the tape by approx 8" to 10" inches on all sides. Feather the edges. Let dry,then sand if necessary and re-coat with compound. It may take up to 3 coats. Your mud pattern should be wide enough so as to give the appearance of the wall being a flat surface again, even though it will be a slight elevation in this section of the wall. Allow to dry for 24 hrs. between coats. There are also many excellant metal/fiberglass patches sold in the big box stores that are applied basically the same way.
          Always store left over material in a cabinet off the garage floor. 
       
          QUICKSET JOINT COMPOUND or HOT MUD
          A great product for the pro. It contains glue and dries much faster and harder than normal drywall compound. It is also harder to sand, so you need to be more exacting in it's application, and not put on too much. Has a range of drying time from 5 to 210 minutes and shrinks less than standard drywall compound. Not really recommended for the home owner or beginner.
          Sanding materials that are used for drywall are the basic sponge type sanding block, and the mesh type sanding screen that can be attached to a metal head to be used in conjuction with an extension pole, for large surfaces. These items come in all the grits that regular sand paper comes in. Depending on the size of the job you may want to set up a dust barrier this may be as simple as closing the room door or setting up a plastic wall.
          Check out these links:
                  http://www.dap.com/product_details.aspx?product_id=61 
                  http://www.buzzle.com/articles/quick-set-hot-mud-and-drywall-repair.html
                  http://www.askthebuilder.com/B387_Ten_Secret_Drywall_Finishing_Tips.shtml