Drywall Repair, By Stu Silverman

So you've finally grown tired of that unusually low-hanging painting that's placed ever so strategically to hide the hole in the wall behind it. Or it's time to replace the water-stained section of the ceiling, or fix the hole in the drywall where the doorknob broke through the wall. Or maybe you have "nail pops" where the nails broke through the drywall, and you want to fix the place up.

Get the job done right

Whatever repair job your wall needs, you can get it fixed - by a drywall contractor for major or complex repairs, or by a handyman for smaller fixes. Most common drywall repairs - such as small holes or nail pops - are not difficult. Some ambitious homeowners even try to do the jobs themselves. But an experienced handyman or drywall contractor will have the proper tools and expertise to get the job quickly, with no damage or mess, and with great looking results.

Nail pops are a common problem

A common problem with drywall that happens in almost every house is nail pops. These are small round breaks in the wall's surface, caused when the head of the nail that holds the drywall in place breaks through the wall. This occurs for a variety of reasons, whether nails or screws were used to install the drywall.

Three common causes of nail pops are that the "popped" screw or nail was not driven in tightly enough, so the drywall is not held tightly against the stud, and movement or pressure on the wall at that point causes the nail to protrude; if the drywall was hung so it missed the stud altogether; or simply the settling of the ground can cause nails to pop through the wall. Indeed, it is more common for load bearing walls to have nail pops.

Natural ground shifting can cause cracks

The natural shifting of the ground can also cause cracks in drywall. Most often, these cracks appear around the top corner of a door or window, as these are the weakest points in the wall.

Repairing drywall isn't just filling a hole or crack, or patching over where a nail popped through. The job requires the finishing touch, which separates a good handyman or drywall contractor from a hack. And that finishing touch is matching the texture of the repaired area to the texture of the rest of the wall or ceiling. Also, most of the compounds used to resurface the area where the repair was made should be left to dry for about 24 hours between coats, so unless your contractor is using a special fast-drying compound, beware of anyone who wants to rush the job through in one day.

Repairing drywall...requires the finishing touch, which separates a good handyman or drywall contractor from a hack.

What other repairs can be made?

Finally, if you are hiring a handyman to do a small drywall repair, you might want to walk through each room in your home, as well as the outside of your home and the yard, and make a note of other jobs that can be done once your handyman is there.