1

Our house has peeling drywall tape in several locations. The house was built in 2004 and we have lived in it for the last 7 years during which time the peeling does not appear to have gotten worse. How do I repair this tape in preparation for repainting?

bathroom wall

bathroom ceiling

gnicko
  • 4,949
  • 1
  • 20
  • 35
P Schmurr
  • 99
  • 4
  • There could be a moisture/settling problem manifesting itself in the drywall tape failure. Check to see that you're not getting water in that corner or that part of the foundation isn't having trouble. It's likely poor workmanship but it might be caused by something else. – gnicko Jun 06 '22 at 14:00

1 Answers1

2

Step 1 - rip it out - remove all peeling, loose or damaged areas.

Step 2 - replace it correctly. Bed new tape in a thin layer of mud, let it dry completely, coat with progressively wider knives to blend, letting each thin coat dry completely, and lightly scraping off any high parts before the next coat fills the low parts. i.e. like doing any drywall repair properly.

Beware the common urge to try and make it perfect in one coat, or overworking ANY coat trying to "make it perfect" - perfection, such as it is, will be approached much faster by getting coats on, letting them dry, and getting more coats on.

If you are a video-type person, there are many out there, including ones from generally reputable sources.

Ecnerwal
  • 174,759
  • 9
  • 212
  • 440
  • 1
    I have experience with trying to take short cuts and not doing what is described here, and the outcome is always that you put in a little less effort but the results are not good at all. If you don't have the time or desire to do what's described here, IMO it's better to just leave it alone until you do. – jay613 Jun 06 '22 at 13:57
  • It is much faster and cheaper to do or have done a job right the first time, than trying short cuts or being cheap, and having to redo the job soon after. – crip659 Jun 06 '22 at 14:46