Filling nail holes and patching-drywall
Now we’ll move on to patching-drywall holes and filling the nail and screw holes. I have found it to be better to run a vertical line down the wall covering a line of screws than to cover each screw individually. This helps to keep a uniform line of mud that’s easy to cover.

You can patch the nail holes with a 2-inch palette or a taping knife. Make sure the surface of the holes are even with the rest of the wall so the nail holes won't be visible.Push the mud into the nail hole so it doesn't leave an air space or open pocket. You will want to keep the mud fairly thick for filling nail holes. I personally don't thin the mud when I'm going over nail holes or other smaller holes and cracks.
It’s the same for covering nail holes as it is for mudding seams, except you don’t need tape.
If you can put three coats on, you won’t be able to see any nail holes through the texture or the paint.
It's not that necessary to fill nail holes by using long lines of compound. Many professionals just fill in the holes and run a light second layer over it.

The finished project should look something like this. At this point you may want to go back over a few lines and do some sanding if needed.Make everything as smooth as possible so you can't see any evidence of drywall tape or mud once the wall is painted.That's the idea of taping and mudding.
patching-drywall top of page
Next, texturing walls with compound
Back to drywall main page
|