Drywall How-to

How-To: Drywall Texturing

2011-11-02T10:09:00.000-07:00

Textures add a great deal of interest to walls. The most important thing to remember about texturing is to be willing to experiment: there are many interesting and exciting ways to produce beautiful and unique textures for your walls.

NAP TEXTURE

Nap texture, which is done with a paint roller, is perhaps the easiest kind of texturing. Certainly, it requires the least amount of tools. Different types of rollers, of course, make different textures. A leather roller, for example, creates a unique look. Texture thickness varies, depending on nap thickness of the roller and paint thickness. Paint can be thickened by adding joint compound to it.
The illustrations show different nap textures. The big pattern in Figure 7-1 was made with a thick roller and thick joint compound. The patterns in Figure 7-2 were made with a fine nap roller and thin and medium joint compounds. The differences in texture are considerable.

ROLL-ON TEXTURE
Rolling on the joint compound creates a foundation for a series of textures.

ceiling or wall joints absorbs moisture more quickly than drywall paper does. Therefore, this texture must be rolled on thick enough to prevent the drywall from showing through, and fast enough that it doesn’t start to dry in particularly absorbent areas. Beginners should apply a coat of white primer to the ceiling before starting these textures. It requires some skill to put these textures on properly without primer.

Make the joint compound thin enough that you can roll it on the ceiling, but not so thin that it falls off the roller. Pick an area about six feet by six feet at one end of the room as a starting place. Roll on the joint compound, no thicker than is absolutely needed. The thinner it is, the more attractive the texture will be. Roll in one direction, (say, north to south). Start at one end and then, with a second roller, full of joint compound, start at the opposite end. This way, you will distribute the thick areas from both ends. Do about six rows, and then start smoothing the joint compound across in the opposite direction (say, east to west). Don’t apply any more joint compound! Just smooth it across the opposite direction so it has a uniform thickness. (See Figure 7-3.)

When rolling the six-foot-area square, overlap the first area so the texture can be cut in without showing. Be careful not to daub on a half-dw area because that would change the texture, and the difference would be noticeable. Be careful to get the joint compound the same thickness all over the ceiling because different thicknesses change the texture. See Figure 7-3 for roll-on technique. If an area is partially dry by the time you start daubing there, simply roll over it again to moisten it.

BRUSH PATTERNS
After rolling on the joint compound, you can make interesting patterns with a brush. (See Figure 7-4.) If you want rows, make them straight for a pleasing appearance It’s better to stagger the brush marks, making an irregular pattern, which, incidentally is easier to repair than a regular pattern. This texture will get a lot of joint compound on the walls, which can be remedied by a process called glazing. The process is simple- just cover the lower part of the top angle with joint compound and drag it off tight. This joint compound can also be lifted off with a knife, but this method will leave edges and will have to be sanded. Choose the method you find easier.

SWIRLS
After rolling the joint compound, you can make swirls with a brush. Swirls are made best with the roll-on method. Instead of daubing the brush on the drywall, just place the brush and twist. Remember, when doing swirls, they must be lined up in straight lines. Use a chalk line to guide you. You can also twist the joint compound and pull it out in tips. For bigger tips, use thinner joint compound and put it on thicker. Different textures can be made with a small whisk broom, a brush, or even a lid. Try using different objects on a scrap piece of drywall.

A small kitchen scrub brush was used for the swirls here in Figure 7-5. Keep the swirls in the first row all about the same size, and make the row straight. Use the first row as a guide to keep the other ones straight. Check each row against the first row, not the one you just did, because you will begin to swerve. Overlap each row by the same amount to assure continuity and a regular pattern.

USING HOUSEHOLD OBJECTS TO MAKE PATTERNS
The textures in Figure 7-6 was made after rolling on the joint compound smoothly. Notice the household objects in the illustration. The small scrub brush

FIGURE 7-6 Using household objects for patterns.

was used to make the swirls. The lid was used in two ways: The flat side of the lid was pushed into the joint compound and pulled out, causing it to suck up some joint compound. The flower design in that texture was made with the underside of the lid. The glass was used to make design the left. Other effects can be achieved by pressing heavy woven materials against joint compound and taking it off, leaving an imprint. All kinds of objects can be used: sponges, paper, spatulas, screens and so on. Use your imagination, and create your own designs.

SPRAY TEXTURE ACOUSTIC

Acoustic-type textures can be rolled on with prepared mixes. These textures look better with a coat of primer underneath. You will need an air compressor and hopper. For spray textures shown in Figure 7-8 you will also need a roll of plastic to cover

FIGURE 7-8 (Courtesy Gold Bond and Wal-Board Tool Co.)

all your windows and doors. Cover any furniture or carpets because this texture sprays all over. A drywall knife will be needed to scrape the walls after the texture has been sprayed. A ten- or twelve-inch knife is best for this task. After you prepare the mix, fill the hopper about halfway and spray the ceiling. You must cover all the drywall.

You can make the mixture as thick as you want. However, don’t let it collect in globs that drip or run. Spray evenly and lightly, going back to make it thicker so it doesn’t run. Spray this texture in the same way that you would paint an area with spray paint. Don’t stay on one spot or even hesitate, or the texture will run. Experiment on a scrap piece of drywall for practice. If the texture is too thick, scrape it off with a knife and start over. After you complete one area, a helper can scrape the walls off. The texture comes off very easily.

SPARKLE
Sparkle can be used on any texture. Put it on while the joint compound is still wet, and it will stick easily. You can buy a tool at the drywall supply to throw the sparkle evenly. It’s just like a seed thrower. You can throw the sparkle by hand, but it probably won’t be even. If the surface will need paint, put the sparkle on while the paint is wet, and it will stick well.

THE STOMP TEXTURE
The stomp is an interesting texture. To create it, you will need a special tool. This tool I call the dobber can be made with scrap materials such as a round piece of wood, an old frying pan lid or anything round and about ten inches in diameter. In addition, you will need a one-by-one piece of wood about three feet long, or an old broom handle. You will also need a piece of insulation, carpet padding, or thin foam rubber to pad the dauber. Finally, you will need a plastic garbage bag and a piece of two- or three- inch tape about two feet long. Nail the pole onto the round
piece of wood, and cover it with your padding material. Cover that with plastic, pulling it down around the handle and taping it. This tool should fit into the bucket of joint compound you are using. (See Figure 7-9.)

You will also need to trowel the texture down smooth. To do this you can use a cement trowel or a ten- or twelve-inch knife. If you use a knife, bend each corner up a little so it won't cut into the joint compound.

There are tools you can buy to make the same texture, but they aren’t as effective. This texture can also be blown on with an air compressor and hopper, then troweled down flat, like the spray texture described (Figure 7-8 Wall Spray

Stomp texture is good for accent walls. Paint a wall in an accent color and then texture over it, allowing the color to show through the pattern. Textured join compound can be colored to give a two-tone color. This type wall must be sealed

For a fine pattern, use the joint compound straight out of the bucket; just mix it so it comes out more evenly. For bigger patterns, add some water to thin the joint compound. The thicker the pattern, the thinner the joint compound should be. Thinner compound goes on in bigger globs and spreads out more when it is troweled. The stiffer the joint compound, the finer the texture. Put the dauber into the joint compound and apply it to the wall. The joint compound should cover the dauber in globs. If you want to, hit the wall in circles. Overlap them so you can’t see definite circles. Hit the joint compound once and the wall three times for the best results. Don’t try making circles out of a texture unless you mark off the ceiling and get all the lines straight. Continue to refer back to the starting line to keep the pattern the same. It’s easy for the pattern to change a bit as you move around the room.

After you have daubed an area for about ten minutes, you will need to check where you started, to see if it is ready to start troweling down. If one person starts daubing a room, that person needs to finish that room. A different person will daub a different pattern.

TROWELING THE STOMP
When the edges start looking white where they are drying, you need to stop daubing and trowel down. If you start troweling and the joint compound flattens out to the drywall, it is too wet. The trowel should float over the joint compound and knock down the high areas, spreading them into a pattern. If you trowel it wetter, it will spread out more and be a bigger pattern. For a smaller pattern, let it dry more so it will be more set up. The texture should be about 1/32 inch thick after it is troweled down. This is ideal for painting, cleaning, and a neat appearance.

Start troweling from the edge of the area and move to the middle. This way, you won’t leave trowel marks in the joint compound. Around edges next to walls and corners, press some joint compound into the corner. The reason for this is that the dauber can’t get closer than two or three inches from the corner.

The wall shown in Figure 7-10 was painted brown and then daubed; it was not troweled down. The joint compound was Gold Bond joint compound, used straight out of the box. Taping joint compound was used because of its hardness. This texture needs to be sealed with clear lacquer so it can be washed. Otherwise, because the joint compound is water soluble, it would melt away and smear all over the wall when washed.

The background shown in Figure 7-11 was painted a dark color. The illustration shows the results of using two slightly different techniques. The left side was done by daubing the joint compound once and the wall five or six times. The right side

was done by daubing the joint compound once and the wall three to four times, spreading it out a little more.

The wall shown in Figure 7-12 was painted a dark color, then stomp-textured with Gold Bond taping joint compound straight from the box. The Wall has to be sealed with clear lacquer to make it washable.

COVERING OLD TEXTURES
The wall shown in Figure 7-13 was painted green; then the same paint was mixed into joint compound. When the wall was textured, is came out a two-toned green

The green textured surface was textured over with a regular white joint compound. The result was a three-toned wall. This texture was done to show how effective this texture could be in covering over another ugly texture or a wall damaged in some way, like a wall that has had glued panelling or something. A rough surface can be camouflaged very well.

The wall shown in Figure 7-14 is dramatic and unusual. First, it was painted gold, and then black paint was mixed into the joint compound. The combination creates a dark charcoal color. This wall must be sealed with lacquer. When you get tired of a wall like this, you can always paint it white; the texture will still make it an interesting wall. If you are in the remodeling business or are trying to sell your home, a wall like this can make a good impression.

How-To: Drywall Finishing (Part IV)

2011-03-08T14:30:00.000-08:00

SECOND COATING INSIDE WINDOWS
A six-inch knife is recommended. Spread joint compound on and smooth it down, watching for scratch marks and air bubbles. Don't build. any more than you have to and keep corners square and neat. Make sure the joint compound is filled all

the way to the bottom, if the area is getting a window seal. The inside of the window needs to look good, since it’s always well lit. Almost all builders check inside the windows. If you are doing a second coat, and they need a third coat, it would be worth your while to skim it again. They dry fast and can be coated again easily.

SECOND COATING DOORWAYS
Skim the sides of doorways with a twelve-inch knife in the same way as you did the outside of the windows. The inside of the doorways and ends of walls have a lot of joint compound in the narrow center, and it normally needs to be filled quite a bit on the second coat. The insides of doors, like the insides of windows, catch light and usually need a third coat. Closet doorways aren’t as important as the doorways between the kitchen and dining room, of course. While coating metal and butts that go to the floor, be sure to carry the joint compound to within an inch from the floor. Avoid leaving globs of joint compound at the bottom. This area needs to be kept neat, or it can interfere with the floor molding.

SECOND COATING FLAT JOINTS
Three different situations occur with flat joints:

Situation 1. Your first coat was done with an eight-inch knife, and you don’t need a wide joint. In this situation, use a ten-inch knife for the second coat.

Situation 2. Your first coat was done with a ten-inch knife. In this situation, use a twelve-inch knife for easy covering.

Situation 3. Your first coat was done with a twelve-inch knife, and you need a wide joint. In this situation, overlap each side two inches.

No matter how the joint is coated, when you’re skimming, it needs to be pulled off straight down the middle so your knife straddles the joint recess. Then pull the sides off with one stroke down one side and back on the other. By pulling joint compound off the center, you will be able to see all the high and low spots. If the area needs building on one side or the other, build accordingly. If the area will be getting only two coats, you will need to be careful and neat. If the area will be getting three coats, you can build it correctly now. (See Figure 6-31.)

SECOND COATING BOTH SIDES OF ANGLES
Two different situations occur when applying the second coat to both sides
of angles:

FIGURE 6-31 Second coating flat joints

After putting the joint compound on the joint, pull knife straight down the middle, going in one direction. Feather edge on top side; then, coming back , feather the other side. Turn knife over and smooth it down if needed.

Situation 1. The first coat was done with joint compound. In this situation make sure the center is dry. Otherwise, the joint compound will roll up in the center

Situation 2. The first coat was done with quick set, so you don't have any drying problem. In this situation, the second coat will be a tight skim done with a five or six-inch knife. While skimming the joint compound off hold your knife out with its side edge running along the center and braced against the other side. When you did your first coat, you skimmed off the same side first. On this second coat, reverse the procedure, skimming off the second side first. This way, if you have a crack to fill, you will be sure to fill both sides. If you used a soft joint compound on the first coat you will have to be careful when holding your knife straight out. When you use adjacent wall as support, you can cut a groove into the soft joint compound. In this case, you might have to make yourself a knife with straight sides simply by taking an old knife and cutting its sides down straight.

SECOND COATING ANGLES, ONE SIDE AT A TIME
The second side is done exactly the same way as the first side. Hold the knife out and let the side edge ride against the other side for support. Be neat, as this method has only one coat. You will need to spend some time on it to get it exact. Any flaws can be sanded out. If the angle from the first coat isn’t dry yet, don’t bother coating the second side. It will only make a mess.

SECOND COATING NAILS
Use the same procedure as you did for the second coat. Nails around doors don’t have to be coated this time unless they are fairly deep and you think they might show after the framing is in. Avoid having to come back just to coat a nail. You may have places where the rough edges have caught the knife and caused ripples. These areas need to be coated crossways. Unless the hangers have dimpled the nails too deep, this should be your last coat, so be neat and overlap any edges.

SECOND COATING RECEPTACLE BOXES
If the first coat was done vertically, the second should be done horizontally. This way, you will be sure to fill any ridges and imperfections. Skim off tight across the middle first, as this always needs to be filled.

FUR DOWNS
Apply the second coat to the fur down with a twelve-inch knife in the same way you did the first coat. Overlap by a couple of inches and pull the joint compound off loose so it can build where it needs to. Refer to Figure 6-24 for review.

SECOND COATING PIPES AND BATHTUBS
The areas around pipes and bathtubs need to be skimmed tight.

PATCHES
Any patches where the tape had to be overlapped should be coated the opposite way from the first coat. All bad places need to be coated both ways.

PREPARATION FOR THE THIRD COAT
I If the walls will be painted with enamel, you will have to be very neat with the third coat. You will need a tight skim with no sanding. If you sand a joint it will be smoother than the paper covering the drywall, and the joint will show up. Therefore if you plan to use enamel paint, sand very well now so the joints can be skimmed tight and smooth without sanding.

BUTTS AND METAL
Sand butt joints and metal the same way you sanded them in preparation for the second coat. The wall should be smooth all the way to the bottom. Cut away the globs, or the trim won’t be neat.

ANGLES
Angles won’t need another coat unless you have problems. If you have coated one side at a time, you can now skim both sides if they need it.

NAILS
Nails won’t need another coat unless they were very deep. You can tell if they need another coat by looking at a wall that has a window at one end of it This wall will show every flaw.

BASTARD ANGLES AND JOINTS
Any joint that has flex bead used on it must be sanded very carefully. Take care not to sand the paper edge on the joint compound.

RECEPTACLE BOXES AND FLATS
Receptacle boxes and flats must be sanded lightly. Joint compound should be cleaned out of receptacle boxes.

THE THIRD COAT

PREPARING JOINT COMPOUND
The joint compound for the third coat needs to be fairly thin because you will be skimming everything off tight. The goal is to fill any shallow joints, scratches, or nicks left from other coats. Doing this will cut your final sanding time by about 70%.

A METHOD TO MAKE YOU FASTER
If you have an untrained helper, you can utilize this person’s time in the following way. Have your helper roll the joint compound on the joints with a paint roller. Then, you follow and skim it off tight. Do not let the person rolling on the joint compound get too far ahead of the person skimming it off, because the edges dry quickly. The purpose of this technique is to produce a smooth job and to eliminate edges. If you do it right, you won’t have to use sandpaper at all. You should have two buckets, one to roll the joint compound from and the other to empty your pan into. Before reusing the joint compound, you will have to mix it up again to eliminate globs and make it easier to skim off smoothly. This method enables your untrained help to be more productive.

THIRD COATING BUTT JOINTS
A twelve-inch knife is recommended, since almost all butt joints need to be coated crossways. This is to eliminate the ripples in the joint compound caused by an unsteady knife. All receptacle boxes, butt joints, flex bead joints, and bastard angles need to be coated crossways.

The butts are always the first thing to coat, since they require the most drying time. If a butt joint still needs to be built a little, it might dry in time for you to skim it crossways again before you leave. Butts along the bottom of the wall have a common mistake: globs of joint compound on the bottom next to the floor. Eventually, you will have to clean this up, and it’s better to do it now. Scrape off this joint compound and coat crossways if needed. The trim must fit flush against the wall.

THIRD COATING METAL
In the kitchen, a receptacle box is often close to the door, which is wrapped with metal corner bead. This is a problem area. See Figure 6-32 for tips on how to coat this. Use a twelve-inch knife and coat it sideways.

THIRD COATING 45° ANGLES
Outside corners where flex bead was used will need to be coated sideways for the third coat.

THIRD COATING FLATS
Spread joint compound to overlap previous joint compound slightly, and skim it off tight. Always pull the knife along the recess to make sure it is filled in. Then skim off each side with the same stroke of the knife. Skim one side while pulling the knife one way, and then turn your knife around and pull off the other side on the way back. Save strokes where you can.

Switch box next to the metal corner bead-wrapped doorways usually are a problem area because the flat joint dead ends at the doorway, and the metal is filled vertically So this time coat is cross ways.

THIRD COATING ANGLES
The angles should be finished, unless you have a problem angle with a wide crack that needs to be filled. If anything, coat problem bastard angles crossways with a twelve-inch knife. If you have coated one side at a time, you should have both sides coated now. If at you have used quick set, you can follow the directions from the second coat for angles. Just hold the knife out from the wall so the angles will be square and the edge of the knife wont slide back into the recess. Hold the knife out straight from wall and skim.

THIRD COATING RECEPTACLE BOXES
If a third coat is necessary for the receptacle boxes, coat them in the direction most needed.

SANDING
Many people think that anyone can sand, but this is not true. Only a trained person should finish sand because this stage needs to be done right. This is your final product. See the next post or the chart in Figure 6-33 for the type of sandpaper you should use for each type of final coating. As you sand, keep an eye out for ridges, knife marks, and scratches. Also watch for problem spots such as the bottoms of butt joints, doorways, and end walls where the joint compound comes all the way down to the floor.

SANDING BUTT JOINTS
When sanding butt joints, be careful not to sand into the tape. If the butt joint is coated right, the tape will be close to the surface. If you do sand into the tape, coat it over with joint compound again so it won’t stick up and show when painted. Watch for ridges and scratches. Always check the bottoms next to the floor. Scrape off any globs of joint compound and coat crossways to fill any deep ripples.

SANDING METAL
When sanding metal, the edges of metal that are showing should be free of joint compound. When the metal is clean and shiny, it will look good, saving you a lot of trouble later.

SANDING INSIDE WINDOWS
Inside windows need to look neat. You should scrape off any joint compound against the metal window. As you do this, take care not to scratch the metal or the window.

SANDING BASTARD JOINTS AND 45° JOINTS
When sending bastard joints and 45° joints, be careful not to sand into the paper edge of the metal edge tape.

SANDING FLATS
Flats are usually the easiest to sand. Watch for any knife marks and ridges where a piece of joint compound on the wall has caught the knife and caused a ridge.

SANDING ANGLES
When sanding corners, do not sand into the center. If you push the sander into the center, the side of the paper on the sander will cut into the adjacent corner. If something is in the center or small pieces of joint compound are left on it, the best thing to do is to fold up a piece of sandpaper and run it down the center. A second option is to keep a corner on your sander worn (if you are using a hand sander) and use only that corner-not the side. Don’t try this with a pole sander
because you don’t have good control over it. A third option is to just carry a knife and run it down the center to knock off any pieces of joint compound.

SANDING NAILS
To sand nails, simply run the sander around the edges.

SANDING RECEPTACLE BOXES
Before sanding receptacle boxes, clean joint compound out of the inside; it will fall out with just a little help. Sand the area smooth, being careful not to sand into any tape, which should be close to the surface. It’s a good idea to take a utility knife and cut out the boxes that were taped. Sometimes, an electrician might pull the tape up while trimming the box. You don’t want to have to come back and fix it.

SANDING AROUND TUB AND SHOWER UNITS
In tub and shower units, the edges next to the joint compound should be cleaned off. Scraping with a knife or a sander will scratch into the fiberglass. The best way to clean the fiberglass is to wet it, let it sit a few minutes, and then lift it off with a knife.

CLEANING DOOR FRAMES
Plaster is easy to clean if you wet down the area that needs to be cleaned. After three or four minutes, the plaster softens and is easy to remove.

THE FINAL PRODUCT

QUESTIONS TO CONSIDER
Before you sand, you need to know how the walls will be finished. In preparing this job for the painter (or for yourself, if you will be painting it), you will need answers to the following questions:

What kind of paint will be used?

What kind of texture, if any, will it have?

How will the job be done-with spray or with a roller?

IF YOU’RE USING A PROFESSIONAL PAINTER
Some painters need to see sand marks into the paper or they aren’t happy. This is why you need to talk to the painter before you sand, if possible. Ask the three questions and discuss the kind of job the painter prefers. The painter can give you a lot of trouble, so it is in your own best interests to get along. If the painter isn’t sold on your job, you will probably have to come back and fix it.

PAINTING METHODS
There are two painting methods for smooth walls: spray painting and roller painting. To prepare for spray painting, do not sand into the paper-stay on the joint compound. Any paper fuzz will catch the paint and hold it away from the wall. The result would be that at different angles, dark places would be visible underneath.

If you fuzz up the paper by mistake, it can be fixed only by sponging the walls down with water, which can be time consuming. Sometimes, you will be asked to sponge the joints rather than sand them.

To prepare for roller painting, you won’t have to worry about fuzz because the roller will press it down. Roller painting hides much more than spray. It can hide even better if you put a little joint compound into the paint and mix it up about half and half or whatever thickness you want. This is called a roller texture.

Smooth Walls, Spray Method, Enamel Paint
This is the most difficult method because this procedure shows everything. Walls done this way need three neat coats. Any imperfections will show, so never sand.

If joints are sanded, they will be smoother than the paper surface on the drywall. This difference will show. Preparation for this method starts after the second coat. Sand very well, skim the third coat on tight, and don’t sand it again. Some finishers skim the entire wall, depending on what the builder wants.

Smooth Walls, Spray Method, Semi Gloss Paint
All smooth walls need three coats. For this method, sand very carefully, taking care not to sand into the paper. It’s important to avoid getting fuzz on the surface. For any spray paint and smooth walls, use 100 grit sandpaper; 80 grit will leave scratches that may show.

Smooth Walls, Roller Method, Enamel Paint
This situation requires three coats and is best without sanding. The roller will help, but it will still be hard to hide the differences in the surface between the joint compound and the paper.

Smooth Walls, Roller Method, Semi Gloss and Flat Paint
Use 100 grit sandpaper. Sand well and don’t worry about fuzz. This surface needs three coats or two neat coats.

Nap Texture, Roller Method, Enamel Paint
This situation requires three coats or two neat ones. Sand with 80 grit or 100 grit sandpaper because this texture is very light.

Nap Texture, Roller Method, Semi Gloss and Flat Paint
For this situation, use two neat coats. Sand with 80 grit or 100 grit sandpaper.

Light Spray Texture, Spray Method, Enamel Paint
This situation requires two very neat coats. Sand lightly with 80 grit or 100 grit sandpaper. This texture will hide small imperfections, but it will show bad joints.

Light Spray Texture, Spray Method, Semi Gloss or Flat Paint
This situation requires two neat coats. Sand lightly with 80 grit or 100 grit

Medium to Heavy Spray Texture, Spray Method, Any Paint
For any kind of paint, use two coats and no sanding. This texture will hide most bad joints, shallow metal, scratches, and so on.

How-To: Drywall Finishing (Part III)

2011-03-08T14:23:00.000-08:00

FIGURE 6-22 Applying joint compound to metal on wall ends

Some windows are not metaled all the way around, so they can have a sill attached. When coating the inside, coat all the way to the bottom of the sides. Make the corners square, neat, and clean of joint compound. Now continue at step 4. Fill sides 5 and 6 Feather edge and smooth down, as shown in step 5. If there is no windowsill, proceed to the bottom side. If there is a windowsill, proceed as in the center bottom picture. Make sure you blend in the bottom corner

FIGURE 6-23 Detail of metal wrapped windows

Sometimes the metal is bowed between nails. If the metal isn’t loose but still shows after being coated, try coating it more loosely. Fill with more joint compound, If you are having difficulty learning to build, take a knife, put joint compound evenly across the blade, and lightly cover the bad spot. Use the edge of the metal to brace the knife so you don’t dig into the fresh joint compound. This will look rough, but it’s more important to get this area covered. You can sand off the roughness later, before you apply the second coat. If the metal is loose, it will have to be taped and then covered.

FUR DOWNS IN KITCHENS AND BATHROOMS
It is very hard to build fur down corners straight and square. These corners will test your hand control. Fill all three sides and about two feet along the side of the end of the fur down with joint compound (see Figure 6-24). Feather edge all outside edges first. Now, beginning with side 2, start at the wall to get the feel of the proper knife angle. Pull the knife from the wall and float it past the corner. Keep the knife

resting on the metal, and avoid cutting into the joint compound at the corner. Now come down across the same corner, holding the knife against the metal to steady it. Float the knife over the metal. Fill the corner, making it square. Now start on side l. Pull the knife along the bottom toward the corner. Holding pressure against the metal, pull the knife past the corner, floating on top of the joint compound at the corner. Then float from the top across the corner in the same way as you did side 2. Now do side 3 in the same manner.

FIRST COATING FLAT JOINTS
Flats are the easiest joints to finish. Two coats on a flat joint will make only a small line down the middle-is the worst. (You get this only when you coat over the tape wet.) Use the recess to make a flat wall. Coat right across the recess. A good flat joint, taped correctly, should need a joint no more than six inches across to be perfectly flat. None of the joints will be perfect, though, so use a ten-inch knife to coat them. Spread the joint compound over the joint about three feet or as far as a knife-full of joint compound will go. Feather edge each side, and then lay the knife down and
smooth it down. You shouldn’t be leaving any joint compound anywhere but in the recess. The knife should be touching the board on each side of the recess. By the time you’re done, you should see only six or seven inches of solid joint compound. Spread joint compound as far as you can along the flat joint. (See Figure 6-25.)

Clean both sides of the knife. Feather edge the top side going in one direction. When coming back, feather edge the bottom side. You’ll have joint compound on the other side of the knife, so flip it over to the clean side and lay it down to smooth the center. If you always feather edge with one side of your knife and smooth with the other, your knife will develop a bow, which will make your work easier.

TWISTED JOINTS
In commercial work where the walls are framed with metal studs, you’ll find a lot of bad flat joints (see Figure 6-26.), usually caused either by the hangers or by poor materials. Even though the joint is perfectly flat from recess to recess, the wall changes direction at the side of the recess. A yardstick placed across the joint will show that these joints need to be rounded out. It’s impossible to make a flat joint where the wall comes to a point, so it needs to be camouflaged to look flat. This type of wall casts a shadow. If you can catch this type of joint while the job is being

FIGURE 6-25 First coat on flat joints

with metal studs. Metal studs twist easily if they are made of low-gauge materials. For a twisted metal stud, you need to coat around the high recessed edge. If you can’t avoid the problem at the hanging stage, the joint must be built out, just like a bad butt joint. Keep in mind that the low side gets built up to 'meet the high side. If these places are extremely uneven, build them out with building strips just like the butt joint. The high point will be one side of the recess (Figure 6-26).

COATING ACROSS WET BUTT JOINTS
Often, the joint compound on a butt joint will still be wet when you are ready to first coat the flats. If so, spread joint compound right across the wet butt joint, trying to spread evenly and not leave globs on the wet part. _Feather edge, except across the wet joint compound. Skip that part. Lay your knife down and smooth the joint compound across the joint, putting pressure on the opposite side of the knife when crossing the butt joint. If you leave a small ridge but it ‘is built right, leave it. You can take care of the ridge later, but you can’t build later without wasting time and causing trouble.

COATING BASTARD ANGLES
At this point, bastard angles should have some sort of metal edge tape on them. Coat loosely and don’t put pressure on the edge of the paper because it will skin up leaving a rough edge. If you have taped the flex bead properly, it will be easy to coat. Watch this edge when sanding or scraping it after coating.

COATING INSIDE ANGLES ONE SIDE AT A TIME
Two different procedures are used for coating angles: coating one side at a time perfectly, so it needs only one coat, or coating both sides at once and coating them twice. Really good finishers can coat both sides at once with only one coat. Most finishers coat one side at a time, usually with a six-inch knife. The goal of this method is to coat one side perfectly smooth, and then go back after that dries and coat the adjacent side. The angle has to be coated perfectly smooth, because it takes too much time to dry two coats (unless you’re using quick set method)

Here’s the procedure: First, spread joint compound on one side of the angle. Then feather edge down the outside. Lay the knife down, and very carefully pull it down the angle. When this side is the way you want it, clean the opposite side the knife against the opposite side and pull joint compound down it. Take care not to scrape the first side. Then feather edge and smooth down, the same as the first side. This procedure is by far the easiest way for a beginner to turn out a neat angle-but it is more time consuming than coating both sides at once.

COATING BOTH SIDES OF AN ANGLE AT ONCE
This procedure is most effective if you use thick joint compound and spread it thin. If you put on a heavy coat, you will create a line down the center of the angle, which will call for another coat. You don’t need to cover the tape completely in the corner: if the tape has been put on correctly, it will look fine by the time it is painted. To ensure that your angles are square, use a four-inch knife, it allows the best control and accuracy.

Here’s the procedure: First, spread joint compound on both sides of the angle. Feather edge both outside edges. Then hold your knife at a 90° angle from the wall and pull down the first side, resting the knife against the opposite side. This will smooth the first side and take off about 1/4 inch of joint compound from the center of the second side, preventing build-up in the center and keeping the angle clean and neat. When you smooth the joint compound on the second side, hold the knife at a 45° angle (or less) and at an outward slant (point your guide finger into the center).

This way, only one corner of the knife will be working the center. As you pull the knife down the angle, put pressure on the inside corner, forcing the joint compound to become smooth in the center and pushing the excess outward. (See Figure 6-27.)

Work to perfect your technique so you don’t need any feather edging at all and you can produce excellent angles with only one coat. It pays to make a habit of skimming the right side first with the first coat, and the left side first with the second coat. This way, any center line is eliminated.

PROBLEM AREAS IN INSIDE ANGLES
It is common for two pieces of corner drywall not to fit tightly. Drywall is hung with a gap between boards to allow for house movement and settling. However, some cracks are larger than they should be. These should have been prefilled before taping, but if they still need work, they can be filled and taped a second time. If the crack is really wide, it can be flat taped. (If you’re in a hurry, use quick set.) Here’s the procedure: Spread joint compound on both sides and feather edge each outside edge. Smooth the good side first, holding the knife out at a 90° angle from the wall. This way the side of the knife is fairly straight and will

FIGURE 6-27 Knife positioning for inside angles

the second side (the deep crack), lay the knife down and use the corner of the knife to smooth it out. Take care not to dig into the Center and pull out any joint compound-stay on the solid drywall. This side will probably have to be coated again when the joint compound shrinks.

FIRST COATING TOP ANGLES
A top angle is the corner that touches with the ceiling. In this angle, butts angle. When coating these angles, you can coat right across partially set joint compound. If you leave a knife mark across the joint, don’t worry about it. If you use a four-inch knife on the first coat and a six-inch knife on the second coat, the knife will overlap this area, filling the low spot.

FIRST COATING 45° ANGLES
Coat one side of a 45 ° angle at a time unless it is a very good angle. If a weaving in it makes it crooked, build with your twelve-inch knife sideways. Build it right with this first coat. You will need to use the second coat for smoothing it out. If the angle is really crooked, you may need to put flex bead on it.

FIRST COATING ELECTRICAL OUTLETS (LIGHT BOXES)
Electrical outlet holes tend to be uneven, with a high and a low side. They need to be coated in two directions. Get into the habit of coating them in one direction for the first coat and then in the opposite direction for the second coat. For example, first coat horizontally, and second coat vertically. Use a twelve-inch knife, spreading joint compound completely across the outlet. If wires are sticking out, roll them up and push them inside so your knife will float across it. Feather edge each side and smooth over, making it no thicker than necessary. The joint compound will fall out of the hole when it dries, so don’t worry about covering it.

FIRST COATING PIPES
Use a five- or six-inch knife and spread joint compound around the pipe, feather edging and smoothing around it.

FIRST COATING AROUND BATHTUBS
Spread joint compound on with a four-, five-, or six-inch knife; feather edge and smooth by laying the knife down.

FIRST COATING NAILS
When the house was taped, all the nails should have been hammered and coated with joint compound, so now you need to take a hammer through the house and tap in any paper that is torn or sticking out. Hammer in any nails' that might have

FIGURE 6-28 Knife position for coating nails

of the board. Now coat the nails again, using one stroke across and one back. If you coat each set of nails separately you will be making six strokes. Save yourself some time! (For more details about this procedure, see also Figure 6-19.)

PREPARATION FOR THE SECOND COAT
When you applied the first coat, you put on a thick layer of joint compound. That thick layer will shrink, crack, and harden, making the edges stick up and catch your knife when you are applying the second coat. This will create lines of joint compound that will have to be sanded out later. Avoid this problem by sanding off those edges before you begin applying the second coat. You are sanding not for smoothness but to get anything off that might catch your knife. You also want to remove the small hard pieces of leftover joint compound that will break off and cause
streaks in later coats.

SANDING BUTTS
Just smooth off the top edges of butt joints. Then run over lightly to remove any pieces that are sticking up.

SANDING METAL
Metal needs more sanding than anything else. Be sure to clean off the corner edges of the metal; these pieces will fall off in the joint compound when second coating.

SANDING INSIDES OF WINDOWS
Push the sander against the insides of windows to break off any joint compound pieces that are sticking out. Also, clean the inside corners well: these areas really need to be square. Any joint compound left in these corners will cause ugly drag streaks. Look for ridges where the knife left off.

SANDING FLATS

SANDING ANGLES
It usually is not necessary to sand angles unless they have been coated with thick joint compound. Don’t sand the edge where flex bead was used. It s made of paper, and it will tear easily.

SANDING RECEPTACLE BOXES
Break loose all the joint compound that’s inside the receptacle boxes. It usually sticks out where it settles. Sand these areas well.

SANDING PIPES
Press the side of the sander against the pipe to break off the edges and any globs of joint compound that are on the pipe.

SANDING NAILS
Sometimes the paper doesn't stay tucked in, so just tap such pieces with the end of the knife. In addition, if a ridge was made where the knife was caught by the paper, sand it.

SANDING AROUND BATHTUB AND SHOWER UNITS
Sand lightly around bathtub and shower units, making Sure not to Sand into the tape. Break off the joint compound around the edges of the shower unit. Obviously, you don't want to sand the bathtub or shower unit itself because it scratches easily.

THE SECOND COAT
For the second coat, the joint compound needs to be thinned down a little, so it spreads smoothly and leaves no air bubbles. The purpose of this coat is to smooth the surface. If the first coat was done correctly, you wont need to worry about building anything up. There are three different situations you might face with the second coat.

THE FIRST SITUATION
If the first coat was done with quick set and you are doing only two coats, you only need to smooth the surface and make it look good. Build only when absolutely necessary. This coat should be a loose skim coat.

THE SECOND SITUATION
If the first coat was done with joint compound and you are doing only two coats, the joint compound will probably have shrunk, and you will still have to build some. It’s difficult to apply a lot of joint compound and still keep it smooth. You may have to work with it.

THE THIRD SITUATION
If the first coat was done with joint compound and you are doing three coats, you can build with the second coat and not worry about it looking perfect. The third coat will cover any scratches and problem spots. This is where you can save time: you don’t need to play with the second at all.

SECOND COATING BUTT JOINTS
A twelve-inch knife is recommended. Cover the entire butt joint with joint compound, keeping in mind where you have built and where you still need to build. (See Figure 6-29.) Skim the entire joint, pulling joint compound off, but remember where the low areas are. Straddle them, leaving the joint compound there. If you are doing only two coats, you will have to be neat. Bad butt joints usually don’t look good unless they have a third coat. If you have a really bad joint and are doing only two coats, you might mix some quick set so you can skim the surface again before you leave. Also, where the joint compound is thick, it will have some ripples, so a sideways coating will look better. A receptacle box in the middle of the joint should be coated sideways.

SECOND COATING GOOD BUTT JOINTS
For good butt joints, use a twelve-inch knife to spread joint compound, overlapping at least three or four inches each side. When pulling the joint compound off, you need to straddle the middle and sides of the joint with the knife. This joint should be flat across the top with a gradual slope at each side. This coat should ill all the low spots and skim the high ones, leaving the surface flat and smooth.

FIGURE 6-29 Second coating butt joints

SECOND COATING METAL
Metal should be skimmed very loosely with a twelve-inch knife. Joint compound should be thinned a little and mixed smooth to avoid air bubbles. Metal picks up small pieces of dried joint compound, making it difficult to keep out the streaks. When the joint compound picks up a lot of dried joint compound, you should dump it into an extra bucket and get some fresh joint compound. The problem of streaks in the joint compound can be minimized if you hold your knife down. This leaves the right amount of joint compound on the metal and also pushes the small pieces of dried joint compound down, burying them instead of dragging them along. Don’t
put too much pressure on the knife, or it can pull off too much joint compound. Most metal will still need some building to make it square.

SECOND COATING WINDOWS AND DOORWAYS
Windows and doorways are the most difficult areas to build. Spread joint compound in the same way as you did for the first coat. Corners that have been the first coat. Remember when pulling joint compound off, hold the knife down loosely. Spread joint compound, feather edge, and smooth down loosely. If the of the window has not been built right or if it has a low spot, you can smooth it out and fill the low spot, as shown in Figure 6-30.

How-To: Drywall Finishing (Part II)

2011-03-08T14:15:00.000-08:00

STEP 1 Remove the drywall that has been broken.

STEP 2 Put only enough tape across the hole to hold in the joint compound that we are prefilling with.

STEP 3 Press the joint compound in the hole over the tape we have just put down.

STEP 4 Tape the entire problem area by overlapping the tape only half the width
of the tape. This will make the area as strong as the regular board.

To prepare a hot patch, follow this procedure: First, cut the hole out square with a utility knife. This is so you can measure it easily and cut a patch the right size. Cut out a piece of drywall larger than the hole, leaving about two extra inches all the way around. Turn the drywall so you are looking at the backside. Measure from each left and right side, come in two inches, and draw or score a line with your utility knife. Cut along the line and break the drywall along that line. Peel off the drywall, leaving the front paper intact. (See Figure 6-13.)

Now, score two inches in toward center, from the top and bottom, and peel these parts off the front paper. This piece of drywall should fit into the hole, with two inches of paper around it. Put joint compound all around the hole. If you have torn any paper from the front of the drywall, put joint compound under the paper to avoid a blister. Place the patch into the hole and wipe down the paper around the hole. If it is done right, the patch should be flush with the paper, and a light coat of joint compound will cover it neatly.

PLUGGING A HOLE
A hot patch is best because of its strength, but some holes are too big for this method. Sometimes hangers make receptacle boxes (light box holes) by mistake. Then they simply leave the cutout piece of drywall in the hole. To fix this, carefully remove the drywall plug and put a long piece of tape across the hole. Use as many pieces of tape as necessary. To hold the plug from falling through the wall, then push the plug into it. Then wipe down the tape on each side where it is showing, to prevent the plug from falling back into the wall. Now tape the front as if it were
a receptacle box hole to cover. (See Figure 6-14.)

TAPING METAL CORNER BEAD AREAS
All corners inside windows and doorways need to be taped, or they will crack as the house settles. Outside corners that corner bead doesn’t cover will also crack unless they have been cut correctly (See Chapter 3). Any hole in an outside corner should be taped, or the joint compound will crack and fall out.

You will also find places where the drywall wasn’t cut right and the corner bead doesn’t overlap. You can tape these places to help hold the metal. If the metal is solidly attached but is bent and doesn’t fit tight to the drywall, it can be reinforced

STEP 1 Here's a receptacle box cut out accidentally, in which the hanger has
put a plug (piece of drywall).

STEP 2 Remove the plug carefully and put a piece of tape across the hole.

STEP 3 Leave it long on each side, and leave slack in the hole part of the plug.
Push the plug back into the hole until it's flush with the wall. Tape the
entire hole as if it were a patch.

STEP 4 Overlap the tape by at least half the width of the tape.

FIGURE 6-14 Plugging a hole

the joint compound. Since tape won’t hold solidly, this should only be done for small areas. If the corner bead is not on tight or is otherwise faulty, it should be fixed.
(See Figure 6-15.)

TAPING AROUND PIPES
Drywall around all pipes should be made airtight. Holes should be prefilled and taped. Round tape, which comes in sizes to tit all pipes, can be bought at a drywall supply store. It saves enough time to be worth buying. If you don’t have round tape, you can make some by taking a short piece of tape and tearing out a hole the size of the pipe. If the pipe is big, take a piece of tape as large as necessary and tear out a half circle to tit each side of the pipe. You may need two or three pieces. (See Figure 6-16.)

TAPING AROUND BATHTUBS AND SHOWER UNITS
If the drywall doesn’t tit in behind the shower unit, it needs to be taped. Some

FIGURE 6-15 Taping corner bead

FIGURE 6-17 Taping a shower unit
the drywall, but sometimes it will be on top (in front) of the drywall. In. any case, it needs to be filled and taped in airtight to the bathtub or shower unit.

CRACKS IN BOARD
Sometimes drywall gets cracked on the back as it’s hung. Though the paper on the front side might not be broken or twisted, this area needs to be tapped.

NAILS AND SCREWS
For covering nail and screw holes, a seven- or eight-inch knife is better than a four-, five-, or six-inch one. The smaller knives are too stiff and will take off too much joint compound as you’re covering the holes. The seven- and eight-inch knives are more limber and will leave more joint compound without creating an edge.

When taping a house, you should hammer all nails in if they are sticking out past the board. You should also coat all nails when taping. If the paper is broken where a nail or screw missed the stud and was pulled out, it should be coated now and hammered later. After it is coated with joint compound it stays in better, so hammer the paper the second time around. Spotting nails takes some practice. All two or three sets of nails should be coated with two strokes of the knife.
Hold the knife vertically with the blade facing you (see Figure 6-18). Put joint compound on the top corner of the knife. Place the knife at the bottom of the first set of nails and spread upward, keeping pressure on the bottom edge of the knife.

When you reach the top, move the knife straight to one side, pulling it away from the joint compound, thus cleaning the joint compound from the edge of the blade. Now place the knife at the top of the joint compound you have just spread and pull straight down to remove any excess. In this way, you coat two or three sets of nails in one smooth action (see Figure 6-19).

Step 1 Spread the knife with joint compound upward.

Step 1A Joint compound is now spread over the nail area. Bring the knife off to the side, removing any excess joint compound from the knife.

Step 2 On the return trip, wipe joint compound from the wall.

Step 2A You will now be able to see the nail holes filled with joint compound and
no edges of joint compound on the wall.

Step 3 For the lower set of nails, spread the joint compound down the wall
as shown.

Step 3A You now have a layer of joint compound spread over the lower
set of nails.

Step 4 With the return stroke, wipe joint compound from the wall.

Step 4A Filled nail holes are visible.

THE FIRST COAT
Applying the first coat is often called “bedding in.” Some people consider taping the first coat, but in this post series the first layer of joint compound placed over the tape will be called the first coat. There are several ways to coat. The type of job you are doing will determine the best method. Time studies of the different ways to finish drywall have revealed the most efficient and effective methods. A house that will have textured ceiling and walls needs only two coats. Quick set joint compound is a good choice for the first coat because it doesn’t shrink. A house that will have smooth walls needs three coats over bad butts and problem flats. The last coat is a very thin skim coat. Three coats can be done as fast as two because you don’t have to spend time making the first two neat. Remember that the third coat will smooth any scratches or lines your knife might leave. If you have to build up a lot of joint compound and need to leave an edge, you still have two coats left to smooth it out. A few terms need to be explained. These common practices should become habits.

FEATHER EDGE
When you spread joint compound over a joint or other area, run the knife along the edge of the joint compound, putting pressure on the outside edge of the joint compound. This blends the joint compound into the drywall without leaving a raised edge. This procedure is called feather edge.

BUILDING STRIP
A building strip is a strip of joint compound the width of the knife and feather edged on each side. It is useful for building a troublesome joint out farther.

THINGS TO WATCH FOR
Watch for ripples! Anytime you are spreading large amounts of joint compound, you will get ripples. They occur when you apply uneven pressure or tilt the knife slightly as you spread and work the joint compound. Many butt joints or trouble areas that require a lot of joint compound should be coated sideways for the third When coating butt joints, spread joint compound up to and across the adjacent flat joints, creating an overlapping effect.

When you are laying the first coat, the consistency of your joint compound should be as thick as possible. This minimizes shrinkage. (Less water, less shrinkage.) If you are using quick set, keep it neat because it is difficult to sand. Quick set doesn’t shrink, so when you are coating with it, don’t build up the joints any more than necessary. When using joint compound, build a little extra to allow for shrinkage. Some new joint compound products have very little shrinkage, so know the products you are using.

Where a flat joint meets an angle, coat the flat joint all the way into the center of the angle. You will still have to fill the beveled edge to the end of the wall. If the joint compound is wet when you coat the angle, cross right over the flat joint. Use a four-inch knife for the first coat and a five- or six-inch knife for the second coat. This way, the coats will overlap to the flat joint and fill completely. If you’re coating the angle only once, be sure to fill it sufficiently. For flat’s and butt’s first coat, use an eight-, ten-, or twelve-inch knife. For residential work with good hanging and tight joints, an eight-inch knife is fine. In commercial work with metal framing, the wider the joint the better, so a ten- or twelve-inch knife is recommended. If you are working for someone else, he or she might prefer a particular joint. Some architects, for example, will settle for nothing but a wide joint.

FIRST COATING BAD BUTT JOINTS
Butt joints are always coated first because they need extra drying time. Two basic methods are used to build a butt joint. Every butt is different. If you are just learning to be a finisher, you might wish to carry a yardstick with you. If you put the yardstick across the joint, you can see where the joint needs to be built up. A bad joint often has a high side and a low side. Build it in from the high side, and then bring it in gradually to the low side. How far out you build it depends entirely on how bad the joint is. The joint might require a lot of build up to camouflage the bulge. If the joint comes in sharp, it will have a shadow. (See Figure 6-20.)

A twelve-inch knife is best for coating bad butt joints. Fill the knife with joint compound and start at the bottom of the joint with the edge of the knife running along the tape. Spread the joint compound as evenly as possible. Now spread the joint compound on the other side of the tape. Feather edge along the outside on the high side (just along the outside edge of the joint compound). With the knife laid down, smooth out the high side of the butt, leaving just enough joint compound to cover the drywall and the tape. Now feather edge the low side of the joint compound. you get the joint built right but leave an edge of joint compound along the side, don’t worry about it. You can always cover it up with the second and third coats.

FIGURE 6-20 Applying the first coat to had butt joints

BUILDING STRIPS
If you have a really bad butt joint that needs more than twelve inches to build it out, you may have to use building strips to build it out farther. If so, spread joint compound along the side of the joint coated. Feather edge on both sides and second coat will be built from the high spot of each strip. This will fill in the middle and make it flat. You can use building strips to build any wall any distance.

FIRST COATING HEADERS TRIP
Headers are short butt joints over doorways and windows. When coating a header, extend the joint right into the center of the angle along the ceiling. If the door frames are are already on, it’s troublesome to work around them, but if you take the time to keep the door frame clean, you will save time later. If you have a butt or header to coat over a framed door, you will coat the header in a horizontal direction; later, you might need to coat downward from the top corner.

FIRST COATING GOOD BUTT JOINTS
Because a good butt joint leaves the tape sitting above the board, it should be built up on each side of the tape. This spreads out the joint and makes it less noticeable. If a joint is built up too much, it will cast a shadow on one or both sides of the tape and be very noticeable. It’s impossible to change the fact that the wall is built out around a joint, but it is possible to camouflage this buildup by keeping it as thin as possible.

Fill the knife with joint compound. Spread from one end of the tape to the other, keeping the edge of the knife along the tape. Now feather edge both sides of the joint compound. Lay the knife down and smooth the joint compound (The highest point of the joint compound should be just a little higher than the tape. It’s best if the tape is covered slightly.) Now spread the other side. Feather edge only the outside and smooth it down. If the joint is built right but the tape is showing, don’t worry-it will cover next time. If it’s not built high enough, the tape will be difficult to cover with the second coat. (See Figure 6-21.)

JOINT COMPOUND SPREADING TECHNIQUES
Metal on the ends of walls is coated next because it requires a lot of joint compound and takes a long time to dry. It’s best to learn with an eight-inch knife. Use the joint compound straight from the box or mixed with a small amount of water. The less water you use, the less shrinkage you will get. The object of coating metal is to produce a square corner. If the metal isn’t straight, you must build it straight with the joint compound. Sometimes the metal has a bow in it and needs to be built out around the bow.

FIGURE 6-21 Coating butt joints

Almost all outside corners of windows and doors need to be built out so they have a square surface. Most people coat metal a knife’s-length at a time across the metal Then they spread it out by running the knife straight down the metal. This procedure gives the inside of the metal too little joint compound and the outside too much. It's also a slow and difficult method.

Metal should be coated loosely. Too much pressure on a long knife bends it and gives an unsquare coat. Here’s the best way to coat metal. Take a knife-full he metal, scraping the joint of joint compound and slap it across the width of the compound onto the metal. Now you have a whole knife~full of joint compound at the top of the coating area. Place your knife above this joint compound and spread it down the metal, keeping pressure on the outside of the knife. As you pull downward keep the knife’s outside edge slightly in front, pushing the joint compound to the
center where it is needed. Now take another knife-full of joint compound and slap it on the drywall about halfway down the drywall. As you bend down, spread the joint compound until you reach the bottom of the wall. When you get close to the floor, you will still have a lot of joint compound on the knife. Scrape the remaining joint compound off on the metal. Quickly turn the knife around and spread the joint compound evenly up to meet the joint compound just spread on the top half of the metal. The knife should be held in the same manner, with pressure on the outside and the outside edge ahead of the inside edge pushing the joint compound to the inside where it is needed. Now the entire stick of metal is filled with joint compound. Feather edge along the entire length of joint compound along the outside edge, then smooth the joint compound over by laying the knife down and running it over the surface.

COATING METAL ENDS AND DOORWAYS
When coating a doorway or other area with more than one side, spread joint compound on two adjoining sides before smoothing it down on the first side. Otherwise, you will create problems on the first side when you’re spreading joint compound on the second side. When coating metal, slide a knife along the edge of the metal to take off excess joint compound. Don’t use the blade of the knife because this procedure will dull or nick it. (See Figure 6-22.)

METAL WRAPPED WINDOWS
A six-inch knife is best for the inside of the window, and a ten- or twelve-inch one for the outside, as joint compound usually needs to be built around the corners. Spread joint compound as shown in Figure 6-23, step 1. Fill areas l, 2, 3, and 4 with joint compound, feather edge the outer side of the joint compound, holding pressure on the outside edge of the knife. Smooth the joint compound down from area 1A to area 2A by pulling the knife across the top. Keep pressure on the outside of the knife for support. Don’t rest the other side of the knife against the metal.
This is a difficult procedure, so when you’re learning, it’s best not to pull around the corners. Just pull straight across, as shown in step 2. (If you go around the corner, you must change pressure and direction, and this will adversely affect your control.)

Now, place the knife above the top of the joint compound on the side of the window. Using the same technique, pull the knife from the top down the side of the window, as shown in step 3. The corners IA and 2A in the picture almost always need to be built up. (Note that if the knife is resting against the metal edge, it will leave a dent where it goes from one piece of metal to the other.) Make sure the knife floats over these corners.

Now go back with a six-inch knife and smooth down the inside of the window. Hold the knife down so it will leave as much joint compound as possible. If you have metal inside the windows against the glass, do not cover the strip-it will only crack later. In a case like this, coat up to the metal or plastic sweat strip (see L bead, Chapter 5). If there is no sweat strip against the window and the drywall board doesn’t fit tight against the window, it should be taped close enough so it can be caulked.

How-To: Drywall Finishing (Part I)

2011-03-07T13:11:00.000-08:00

THE FOUR BASIC JOINTS

FLAT JOINTS
Drywall is made with two beveled edges. When the beveled edges of two pieces of drywall come together, they form what is called a flat joint (it isn’t really flat; see Figure 6-1). Flat joints are the easiest of all joints to finish because the recess that is formed is about % inch. This leaves plenty of room to embed the tape, cover it with joint compound, and still end up with a flat wall. However, if a stud is out of line or the hangers made a mistake, it’s the finisher’s job to straighten it out.

BUTT JOINTS
Butt joints rarely are found perfectly flush (see Figure 6-1). One board usually will sit slightly higher than the other, creating a high side and a low side. Bad butt joints are the most difficult to cover. With no beveled edge to set tape into, the tape has to sit on top of the board, with joint compound layered over that. Thus, bad butt joints cannot be made completely flat no matter what you do, but you can camouflage it to look flat.

FIGURE 6-1 Butt joint and flat joint cross section

ANGLES
The corners are very seldom taped square even by people trained in this field. If the tape is rounded, it will need to be finished with thick mud to look square. Too much mud will later crack. I will explain later in taping.

METAL OR CORNER BEAD
To save money on wood, builders are using more metal for framing windows and doors. Metal requires a lot of joint compound and is frequently shallow. Special care should be taken when coating windows and doors because it looks cheap when they are not square.

BASTARD ANGLES AND JOINTS
The term bastard angle refers to any joint that does not form a 90 ° angle. They take special attention which will be explained during each phase of this book.

PREPARING THE JOB FOR TAPING
Before you even get your tools and materials unloaded, check the house to make sure all boards are nailed off tight and all metal is on. Check to see if the job can be completed. If any boards are hung improperly, you will have to make two or three extra trips back after you finish to fix it. This is what finishers call punch out, things to fix after the job is done. Punch out wastes time and money; my motto is “Knock out punch out.”

Once you decide to go ahead with the job, make sure you have enough tools and materials to finish. Put them in a central location that can be reached easily from all over the house. Use this location as a work area. Since someone will be working on the ceiling in this room, check this room first and arrange the tools on the floor directly under one board. This will make it easier for the person on stilts to reach the ceiling joints.

Then go through the rest of the house, checking it carefully. Pick a starting point and follow the wall all the way through the house. Anywhere the board is broken or cracked, pull it off and prefill it. It will never finish properly if it’s loose and moves at all. Remember, the house will be settling. Often, the drywall has been pried with something, and the edge is broken. Tear the paper off and prefill it. Check all butt joints. Bad butt joints should be prefilled. Receptacle boxes (the holes through which the wires are threaded) should be prefilled with joint compound along the edge that needs repairing. Make them strong enough to hold when the outlet cover goes on. Receptacle boxes are sometimes forced when they are covered with drywall. Maybe a wire doesn’t fit right under the drywall. Sometimes a hanger puts the drywall on and nails it tight. Then it cracks behind the board. The paper may the broken drywall and prefill it so it can be taped later on. Prefill any big cracks. (See Figures 6-2 through 6-4.)

FIGURE 6-2 The receptacle box shows a soft spot where the board has been broken underneath. The drywall immediately around it must be cut out and repaired. Hangers often break the corners

FIGURE 6-3 Loose drywall has been removed from the receptacle box. If the hole is too big and the joint compound falls behind the wall, place tape across the hole and push it in a little to act as a holder for the joint compound.

FIGURE 6-4 The receptacle box has been taped to act as a holder for the joint compound. If the joint compound still won't stay in place use more tape on top of it to hold it in.

TAPING

TAPING ORDER

When you tape, you should use a four-, five-, or six-inch knife, and you should
tape the room in an orderly and efficient manner.

Butts and Headers
Headers are the vertical joints over doors and windows. In a house, butts includes all vertical joints except the corners. These are all joints that are not made by factory (beveled) edges. These are all taped and coated like butt joints. When taping, always do butts and headers first, since they require the most joint compound and drying time.

Flat Joints
Flat joints are those that are made by factory (beveled) edges. These are taped
second.

Angles
Angles are the corners. They should be taped third. Receptacle Boxes, Etc. Receptacle boxes, switch boxes, metal, pipes, and the like should be taped last. If you tape in this order, you will gain speed and efficiency. Also, your chances of forgetting something are minimized. Remember, you want to work as fast as you can but still do the job right. If you work too fast, you’ll do sloppy work, and it will slow you down during the following steps of the process. Any joint compound that goes on where it doesn’t belong will have to come off sooner or later. There are three ways to tape. The first is to do it by hand, the second is to use a banjo (which is much faster), and the third is to use the automatic taping tools. The third method is for the professional. I will explain hand taping and the banjo as I describe each kind of joint.

TAPING BY HAND
Work with joint compound straight out of the box, or as thick as possible. Never it down. The reason for this is that when the joint compound starts to dry, it doesn’t stick as well. It also leaves air pockets, which develop into blisters. Spread the joint compound along a joint. Place the tape on top and use the knife to smooth the tape, leaving the tape smoothed out on top of the joint compound.

USING THE BANJO OR TAPING TOOL
The banjo is fairly inexpensive at about $85.00. If cared for properly, it will last indefinitely. This tool can be filled with joint compound with tape threaded through it. When you pull the tape out the end, it is already covered on one side with joint compound. This makes taping twice as fast.

Taping tools must be watched carefully when you’re first learning to use them. If you run low on joint compound and you’re not aware of it, you can have pieces of tape with no joint compound on them. This will leave blisters. So as the joint compound runs low, you will need to watch the joint compound-coated side of the tape as it comes out of the banjo.

Joint compound for the banjo should be diluted with water so it will pass through the tool more easily. However, if it’s too thin, it will drip on the floor as you tape, making quite a mess. Depending on the type of joint compound used, you will have to adjust the amount of water to thin it just right.

TAPING BAD BUTTS AND HEADERS
As a result of your earlier preparations, all bad butt joints should now be prefilled. Now go ahead and spread more joint compound right over joint compound that’s already there-even if it’s not dry. You want only the thinnest layer of joint compound between the high side of the joint and the tape, because you’re trying to make this as flush as possible. Make sure the tape is in contact with the joint compound, or it won’t stick. The low side should be as smooth as possible, with the tape sitting on the built-up joint compound. When smoothing excess joint compound from under the tape, hold the knife in a laid-down position. (See Figure 6-5.) Hold the knife with light pressure on the high side of the joint, floating over the built-up low side so you don’t pull any joint compound away from it. Don’t put too much pressure on the high side or you will take too much joint compound out from under the tape and cause a blister. By laying the knife down, you can control the amount of joint compound taken from under the tape. The more the knife is held out at an angle.

FIGURE 6-5 Knife positioning

USING THE TAPING TOOL TO TAPE BAD BUTTS
Bad butt joints must be prefilled before you use the banjo. The reason for this is that the banjo doesn’t lay down enough joint compound to build with. Be extra careful wiping them down: because butts create such an uneven surface, they blister easily. It’s easy to push out too much joint compound on the high spots. A knife will put even pressure on an uneven surface. Sometimes when the butt joint is bumpy and rough, it’s better just to run your hand over the tape and press the joint compound into all low areas.

TAPING FLUSH BUTT JOINTS
Flush butt joints are rare, and they must be coated differently than bad butt possible. This will make it easier to achieve a flush finish. You will probably have a few blisters before you find out how close you can get the tape. You need to build joint compound up on both sides of the tape in order to make it appear flush. (See Figure 6-6.)

FIGURE 6-6 Taping butt joints

TAPING FLAT JOINTS BY HAND
If they are hung and taped right, flat joints are the easiest part of drywall finishing. Flat joints are those made by the beveled edges of the board. (See Figure 6-7). Spread plenty of joint compound along the flat joints to secure the tape to the joint. When you roll out the tape, stretch it out, leaving no slack. Otherwise, you

will end up with wrinkles when you start wiping the tape down. A four-inch knife is the best tool for pressing the tape inside the recess. You can use a six-inch knife, but it needs to be limber and you have to apply quite a bit of pressure on it to push it in deep. If the tape sits above the recess, the joint must be built round instead of flat, so be careful. For a better finish, make the best use of those beveled edges.

TAPING FLAT JOINT S WITH A TAPING TOOL
When taping flat joints with the banjo, hold the banjo by the handle at the top. Pull a few feet of tape out, and place the end of the tape on the flat joint at a starting place. Then run your hand over the tape to stick it to the joint, keeping pressure on the tape while pulling the banjo along with the other hand. Hold the tape tight so it doesn’t slip. Repeat this all along the wall. When you reach the end of the wall and are ready to cut the tape, hold the cutting blade against the tape and twist.

The blade will cut easily if it is kept sharp. When taping with the banjo, you don’t have to worry about having too much joint compound in the recess, as the tape will at nicely into it. You can use a six-inch knife quite comfortably.

TAPING ANGLES OR CORNERS BY HAND
For taping angles or corners by hand, a four-inch knife is recommended because of the straighter edge on the side of the knife. Many finishers make their own knives for corners, cutting the sides of regular knives so they are straight. Because you turn your knife around to put joint compound on the wall, you might forget which corner of the knife to put the joint compound on. Put joint compound on the left corner of the knife to coat the right side of the angle, and on the right corner for the left side of the angle.

Spreading joint compound on the first side of the angle is easy. When spreading the second side, though, be careful not to let the side of the knife scrape the joint compound off the first side. Otherwise, you will have a blister where there’s no joint compound. When spreading joint compound on the second side, hold the knife down flat, tilting it sideways away from the adjacent wall. This way, only the corner of the knife will be working in the center. (See Figure 6-8).

Wiping down corner tape can also create problems. Use a four-inch knife because the side of the knife is straighter and helps prevent pushing the tape back into any cracks. Holding the knife out straight from the wall helps make the corner square. If a corner is rounded, it has to be built up thick with joint compound to make it

FIGURE 6-8 Spreading joint compound on angles

To fold the tape for angles, you can thread it through a tape creaser tool, or you can simply pull it through your hand, as shown in Figure 6-9.

TAPING ANGLES WITH TAPING TOOLS
Hold the banjo by the side handle (there should be a cloth handle through which you can slide your hand). Pull out some tape and push it into the corner, running your fingers down the center to stick the tape well into the corner. As you do so, keep the tape pulled out tight, maintaining pressure on it. Continue pressing into the center. Pull the tape out another few feet and repeat the procedure. When you get to the floor, twist the blade to cut the tape. The tape should always be left an inch or so from the floor. You never know what kind of trim will go around the base, so tape down as low as you can. Push the tape in tight the rest of the way

CREASING TAPE

FIGURE 6-9 To fold the tape for angles, thread it through a tape creaser tool, or simply pull it through your hand in this fashion: Hold your hand around the tape as shown. Close your thumb and pull the tape through your hand, taking care not to cut your hand.

TAPING CEILING ANGLES
Where different angles join (such as ceiling corners), be sure to get the tape all the way into the corners. Otherwise, you will leave a hole that will be visible from across the room. Merely pushing joint compound into the corner without taping it won’t work because the joint compound will fall out of the hole. (See Figure 6-10).

BASTARD ANGLES, INSIDE AND OUTSIDE
A bastard angle is any angle that is other than 90°. It usually has a big crack

FIGURE 6-10 Taping ceiling angles

bad inside angles should already have been prefilled with joint compound when you prepared the job for taping. If it is a fairly straight angle, it can be taped in the usual way. If it has a deep side, prefill and flat tape it, and then apply an angle piece of tape. Take care to avoid pushing the tape into the deep crack. If the angle is crooked and has big pieces broken or cut out of it, you should use flex bead on it.

USING FLEX BEAD ON INSIDE CORNERS
To use flex bead, measure and cut the strip to the necessary length with tin snips. Crease it by folding it in the middle, keeping it as straight as possible. Spread on a lot of joint compound, place your creased flex bead in position, and wipe it down.

USING FLEX BEAD ON OUTSIDE CORNERS
Flex bead on an outside bastard corner is applied in the same way as it is on an inside corner, except that you must pinch the edge and check for straightness. Flex bead twists very easily, and if it isn’t straight, it will adversely effect the appearance of the job. Flex bead also needs to be pinched out just enough to allow the joint compound to coat the angle and clear the tape. (See Figure 6-11.)

You might need to use metal corner bead. Corner bead comes only in a 90° angle. Here’s how to bend it to the angle you need: Lay the corner bead on the floor, take a piece of one-inch pipe conduit about a foot long. place this inside the

FIGURE 6-11 Flex bead

can use this metal on inside or outside bastard angles and corners. A flexible plastic corner bead is now available. You may find this easier to use.

TAPING RECEPTACLE BOXES
Receptacle boxes are difficult to get exact each time and they are frequently missed by the hanger. If missed by more than a quarter inch, they should be taped, you don’t know which outlet covers will be used, it’s better to just go ahead and tape them. If you have to come back later and fix the job, it will cost you. Any broken board should have been repaired already. If the prefilled hole is three inches in diameter or bigger, it must be reinforced. A good-sized hole can be made as strong as the rest of the wall if it is done right. If a hole is bigger than about five inches across, it will need a hot patch.

When taping these holes, overlap the tape, making sure the back of the tape is coated with joint compound even over the hole. Tape at least three inches past the hole on each side to secure it well. Overlap the pieces of tape by at least half of the tape’s width. When this is dry, you should be able to press the middle in just a little. When filled with joint compound and coated, it will be strong. If the hole is deep, it may need to be taped again to reinforce the joint compound. If you retape do it in the opposite direction for extra strength. (See Figure 6-12.)

THE HOT PATCH
The hot patch is a method used to fill and smooth holes in the drywall up to about a foot square. For ceilings, though, this method can be used only for small holes because of the weight of the drywall used for the hot patch. On the walls, any hole bigger than a foot should be cut back to the stud. Then the drywall should be nailed or screwed into place.

How-To: Drywall Finishing Materials

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INTRODUCTION TO FINISHING
Finisher, taper, floater, and mudder are all names for the person who puts the finishing touches on wall construction. The process itself is best described as finishing, since that is what it does: it finishes the wall in preparation for the final covering (paint, texture, paper, or paneling). The goal of finishing is to cover all cracks and crevices in the wall and create a flat surface ready to receive a final covering.

Finishing is an art that has been handed down through many generations. It is usually learned on the job, through demonstration, and until now, there have been no books to reinforce knowledge for the beginner. Although technology has advanced in recent years, many finishing methods and techniques have not. Thus, if you learn from a hand-finisher who uses traditional procedures, you risk learning to finish incorrectly.

Originally, the recessed edges on drywall were constructed to allow room for the recess to be taped and covered with joint compound and remain flat. Many years ago, joint compound would shrink a lot, so the finisher would completely fill the recess and put the tape on top of the board. As it dried, the plaster would shrink and pull the tape back into the recess. Then, when the drywall was covered with a second coat of joint compound, it would finish out flat. In recent years, however, technology has produced higher-quality joint compound, which shrinks very little, if at all. Thus, finishers who use old procedures with new materials make joints that
bulge out from the wall and must be treated as butt joints. This post is an introduction to the art of finishing.

FINISHING MATERIALS
Here are the basic materials you will need to finish your walls. They are available at most hardware and drywall stores. Many other materials are available, and more are added to the market all the time. As you learn the trade, you may wish to try other materials as well.

JOINT COMPOUND (PLASTER BASE)
After drywall is hung, large cracks and crevices might remain in the joints. These need to be prefilled and smoothed over. Joint compound is used for this task. Finishing joint compound contains a glue that makes it adhere to the reinforcing tape. When applied correctly, joint compound gives a smooth and straight finish to the wall. Joint compound generally comes premixed in boxes and buckets, but you can also buy it in powdered form.

TAPE
All cracks filled with joint compound (as well as small, nonfilled cracks) must be covered with reinforcing tape (usually called Perfa tape). If these filled cracks are not covered with tape, the joint compound will crack as the house settles and shifts. Tape usually comes in 250- and 500-foot rolls, about two inches wide. It can also be purchased in circles (to slip over pipes), and in squares (to fit around light boxes), allowing for tight fit. A self-adhesive fiberglass mesh tape is also available. Many people find it easier to use, but it is rather expensive.

CORNER BEAD
Corner bead is a V-shaped metal strip that fits on 90° corners. Highly resistant to wear and tear, it gives more solid reinforcement than paper does. When used wood studs, corner bead framing must be nailed on or put on with a clincher (see Figure 1-7) or screw attachment.

FLEX BEAD
Flex bead is tape with two parallel metal strips sealed lengthwise down the center, providing strength and flexibility. It is used for rounded fur downs and bastard corners (non-90° angles).

L BEAD
L bead is an L-shaped strip made of metal, plastic, or papered metal. It is put on the edge of drywall where it fits against metal, concrete, or even acoustic ceilings. In houses, it is used inside windows as a sweat strip to prevent moisture from damaging the drywall and causing deterioration. Papered metal L bead is also used as corner bead in places that regular corner bead would have to be mudded for application.

JOINT COMPOUNDS
The three main types of joint compounds are taping, topping, and all-purpose. Taping joint compound is used for taping and first coat. Topping joint compound is used only for second and finish coats. All-purpose joint compound is used for taping, first coat, second coat, and finish coat. When you are starting out, all-purpose joint compound is the best one to use. You can use taping compound for a finishing coat, but it will be hard to sand. You cannot use topping compound for taping and first coat because it is very soft, doesn’t hold together well, and crumbles easily if it gets wet.

A product called Plus 3 is a joint compound that is lightweight (about 35% lighter) and shrinks less than other brands. It is good for textures, and it also sands well. Quick set joint compound is a product you will use often. Because its drying time is short, quick set (Durabond is one brand name) is used on jobs that need to be finished quickly. It sets like cement, doesn’t shrink, and can even take a second coat while it’s wet. It comes in powder form, and you mix it yourself. United States Gypsum Company puts out a product that weighs 25% less than other quick set
joint compounds, and, unlike older versions, it can be sanded easily. You may choose from the following set-up times for lightweight quick sets: 20-30 minutes, 30-60 solid and enables the finisher to tape, coat, recoat, and finish a job in one day. (United States Gypsum Company products are also known as sheetrock.)

FINISHING TOOLS
There is a vast array of tools on the market. Here are some of the most useful ones. But look around for yourself-you may find others that you’d like better.

PANS
You’ll need some pans to hold the joint compound while you are using it. The size you choose will depend on the size of the knife you’re using. They come in metal or plastic. You will find that plastic is more comfortable in the winter.

TAPE AND PAN HOLDER
If you will be taping by hand and working on stilts or scaffolding, you may find a tape and pan holder helpful. It fits easily on a belt.

TAPE CREASER
A tape creaser is handy for taping corners because it folds the tape as it feeds it out. This allows you to put the tape directly into a corner. You can get the same results if you run the tape through your hand, as shown in Figure 5-2.

CREASING TAPE
To fold the tape for angles, you can thread it through a tape creaser tool or simply pull it through your hand in this fashion. Hold your hand around the tape as shown in the figure on the left, then close your thumb and pull the tape through your hand as shown on the right. Be careful not to cut your hand. This method is much faster and requires no tools.

BANJO
The banjo tool speeds up the process of taping. It precoats the tape with joint compound as you lay the tape down, allowing you to put the tape directly on the wall. This tool is explained later.

HAND MIXER
The hand mixer looks like a giant potato masher; it’s used to thin and dilute joint compound according to the particular job. For bigger jobs, you can get a paddle mixer, which attaches to an electric drill, making it easier to mix the joint compound.

KNIVES
Knives come in sizes ranging from one inch to 24 inches long. Each has its use, as you will see.

HAMMER
A drywall finisher shouldn’t have to carry a hammer, but you may find it necessary anyway because you will occasionally find nails that haven’t been driven far enough into the drywall. A drywall hatchet it the most useful type, though, because the hatchet part can be used for opening various containers, such as joint compound buckets. The head of this type of hammer is rounded to dimple the drywall without cutting into the paper.

CLINCHER
The clincher is a piece of metal bent to 90° with two sharp protruding edges. It is used for putting corner bead on corners. You simply place the protruding edges of the tool on the corner bead and strike the clincher with a mallet. It will push a little piece of the corner bead’s edge back into the drywall. Repeat this up and down the corner bead. Check building codes in your area. Some areas require that you use screws.

STILTS
Stilts save you time and money. With stilts, you can do ceiling work without the time consuming hassle of moving around scaffolding and boards. Contrary to popular belief, walking on them isn’t at all difficult. They are made to extend to different heights, and springs on them adjust to the way you walk. However some states do not allow them.

TIN SNIPS
You will be using these to cut metal corner bead to suit your needs.

RASP
A rasp is a very strong file-like device used to shave off excess edges of drywall that may protrude on some corners. `

UTILITY KNIFE
A solid utility knife is useful around for cutting drywall and other items.

POWER MIXER
The power mixer is, of course, a large drill with a paddle that fits on it. It is used to mix joint compound.

HAND SANDER
The hand sander allows close control and enables you to feel what you are sanding. For instance, you can tell if a butt joint is rounded, if metal is not filled square, and if you have ripples at the bottom of a butt joint.

POLE SANDER
The pole sander allows you to reach the ceiling and other high areas. It works best on flat areas. If you have a bad butt joint. you might want to check it by hand.

How-To: Drywall Repair and Shortcuts

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REPAIRING DRYWALL

Hot Patches
Repair work, such as fixing a hole in the drywall, is sometimes necessary. One way to fix a hole is to cut out the drywall from stud to stud and nail another piece in its place. This is a difficult and time-consuming procedure. A better, faster, and easier way to do the repair is called hot patch.

If there is a hole in the wall, draw a square around it. Keep the square as small as you can but go past the edge of the hole. Saw this square out. Cut a piece of board two inches bigger than the hole in the wall. Score the board on the back to the size of the hole, and then pull it loose from the patch. You want to end up with a piece of drywall the size of the hole, but you want the paper on the front of it two inches bigger. This is a hot patch. The paper on the front keeps the patch
from falling into the hole and also takes the place of drywall tape. All the finisher has to do is spread joint compound around the hole, place the hot patch in the hole, and wipe down the paper as if it were tape. After it is finished, the patch will be as strong as the original board. (Refer to Hot Patch, Figure 6-13).

POPPED NAILS

Another problem that you will run into is popped nails. When you look at the drywall, you might notice small round areas sticking out from the board. If you press against the board, the area will move. This indicates that a nail has popped. A nail pops because the board was not held tight to the stud as it was nailed. The nail might have been dimpled, but there was a space between the board and the stud. The solution to this problem is to renail the area, but push the board up tight to the stud as you nail.

Sometimes the insulation is covering the stud and, when the board is nailed, the nails will pop. Another possibility is that the hanger did not sweep the house out before hanging the drywall. Any trash behind the board would keep the board away from the wall when it is nailed.

HANGING SHORTCUTS

If you plan on hanging the walls only in your own house, then speed is of no real concern. But if you plan on making drywall installation your life’s work, then sneer] matters. Hanging drywall can be a lucrative trade. but speed is essential. The methods explained so far are the basics. Here are some shortcuts that, coupled with experience, will help make you a quicker and more efficient hanger.

MARKING JOISTS

When you go through the house to mark the ceiling joists, use neither a pencil to mark nor a bench to stand on. Simply take a hatchet and make a chop mark under each joist. This way, you can reach the ceiling without getting up and down off the bench-the hatchet handle is long enough to reach the ceiling easily.

NAILING

Nailing consumes more time than any other phase of hanging. Almost all beginning hangers will hit a nail eight to ten times. Try to hit the nail only three times: once to start it, once to sink it, and a last time to dimple it. Speed will come only with experience, but there is a way to speed up your nailing now. Take a small box of nails home with you. As you watch television, grab a handful of nails and practice with them. Bring the nail into position for nailing without the use of the other hand.

You will be surprised how much faster you are within a week. When hanging the top board on a wall, always start the nails along the top first. A few of these nails may be knocked out or fall out before you get the board completely hung. These nails need to be replaced. Most hangers would stop what they are doing, get a bench to stand on, and renail. To save some time, drop a nail on the floor, hold the hatchet by its head, and let the end of the handle drop down onto the nail. The sharp head of the nail will stick in the wooden handle. Reach up with the hatchet and start the nail, pull the handle away and the nail will stay in the board. Now you can drive the nail in quickly.

MEASUREMENTS

Another time-consuming phase of drywall installation is making measurements. When you measure for a board, you should take all measurements for that board and mark them on the scrap piece. If you forget a measurement and have to go back to the room and measure again, you’re wasting a lot of time. It will take a lot of practice before you will be able to take four or five measurements and cut the board without forgetting half the measurements. Until then, pick a piece of scrap drywall and write them down. Then you can put the scrap piece on top of the stack of drywall and refer to it as you cut the drywall board. When you are hanging drywall on the walls, the board is hung horizontally.

However, if an area is less than 48 inches wide, the board should be hung vertically. This is a good way to hang closets. The problem is getting the board through an opening only 82 inches high. To solve this problem, score all the way across the board on the back side, bend it, bring it into the closet, and then unfold it. Now you can nail it up, and if you are careful, the score line won’t even have to be finished later.

Each time you cut a board, try to figure where the cut-off piece can be used. Otherwise, you might run out of usable board and end up with a huge pile of useless scraps. A lot of the end pieces can be used in hallways and in closets.

CUTTING DRYWALL

With practice a T-square is unnecessary to cut drywall. Use a tape measure and a knife instead. Draw a line with your pencil, then cut it with your knife. This will be slower than using a T-square, but after you have used the pencil for a while, you will become skilled enough to use the knife in its place.

When cutting a hole out for a water pipe, make the center points on the board, and use the keyhole saw to knock them out. If you look at the keyhole saw, you will see a long round wooden handle with a small shorter piece of metal at the front end of it. This is the perfect size for smaller pipes, and the handle is good for the big pipes. Make sure to knock the saw all the way through the board for the larger pipes.

SYSTEMS

Use a system in hanging. Give each person a job to do. When you walk into a house, one person should start marking ceiling joists while another begins sweeping the house so you don’t stumble over any trash. A third person could be taking measurements in preparation for hanging. Work out a system and stick to it so it becomes a habit. Be efficient!

How-To: Drywall Installation Metal Trim and Corner Bead

2011-03-07T11:49:00.000-08:00

FIGURE 3-1 Two types of corner bead (Courtesy of U.S. Gypsum Co.)

Corner bead is a strip of metal that has a 90° bend in it. The strip is usually eight to ten feet long. It’s made in different widths. The most commonly used is 1 1/4 inch. (See Figure 3-1.)

The edge of the corner bead sticks out enough so that when the bead is nailed to the wall and then covered (floated) with joint compound, the metal will be covered. This is done so the corner will have a hard edge, but it will not show when the wall is painted.

Corner bead is used not only for wall corners but also for window and door frames in place of wood. Figure 3-2 shows how to apply the bead to regular corners, and

Figure 3-3 shows how to apply the bead to window and door openings.

FIGURE 3-3 Corner bead details on windows

APPLYING THE CORNER BEAD
Before hanging drywall on the inside of a window, you must rasp the drywall around the edge of the window. If the drywall goes past the window edge. it will before you apply the corner bead that you check all the corners. Make sure that one drywall edge is not sticking out past the edge of another. Unless the corner joint is smooth and square, the corner bead will go on crooked.

Corner bead is difficult to apply correctly and requires care. If it’s done incorrectly, the bead won’t get covered when joint compound is floated over it. When applying the bead to a corner, put pressure against the bead as you nail it. Start nailing in the center of the bead and nail all the way to one end. Then nail the other end.

Each nail in a pair should be directly opposite the other, and the bead should be nailed about every twelve inches. Any loose part of the bead must be nailed down. When using the clincher or screw attachment, follow the same procedure. The corner bead on a soffit is nailed the same way as the other corners, but there is usually a corner of the soffit that uses three pieces of bead joining together from three different directions. These corner pieces are cut as shown in Figure 3-4.

Sometimes a builder will use plywood to cover the soffit. Most hangers will nail just anywhere, believing that it is acceptable to nail into the plywood. It is not. The plywood bounces when you drive a nail into it. This keeps the nail from holding tight. Even if the soffit is covered with plywood, you must place the nails in the stud. You will be able to tell where the studs are because the plywood will be nailed there. Some corners are less or greater than 90, so regular corner bead will not work on them. The finisher will have to use what is called flex bead. Such corners are called bastard angles. (See Figure 3-5.)

If you come upon a circular opening or archway that requires corner bead, cut the bead at one-inch intervals along one side of the angle so it can be bent around the opening. Refer to Figures 2-42 through 2-44.

A plastic corner bead is available now for corners that are not square. If you cannot find it, the angle of a piece of metal bead can be made wider by fitting a one-inch piece of pipe inside the metal corner bead. Tap it with a hammer until the angle is the desired size.

Another convenient new product is the bullnose corner bead. This gives a rounded-off look. This metal is put on in almost the same way as regular corner bead except, of course, the angle cuts are much harder to make. Flannery, Inc., also sells two metal pieces that help match the corners so they can be finished properly.

See Figures 3-6 and 3-7.

OTHER METALS YOU SHOULD KNOW ABOUT
Expansion Joints or Control Joints

CUTTING THE MITER
1. For cutting miters in an archway, install the header bead first. The bead should extend from the framing on one side to the framing on the other side with a simple straight cut.

2. Cut a small piece of bead approximately 6" long to be used for a guide. With a pair of snips cut a half moon section out of each end as shown in the illustration, and trim to fit the header bead. When you have accomplished this, simply cut the two vertical beads to length and with the small guide, place it over the bead, and scribe the half moon shape. Cut on the line and nail the beads in place.

FIGURE 3-7 Bullnose corner bead (Courtesy Flannery, Inc., Pacoima, CA)

METAL FURRING CHANNEL
Metal furring channel can be used to build suspended drywall ceilings. It also can be used to furr a wall area, creating air space for soundproofing. This channel is used for many other things as well. (See Figure 3~8.)

METAL STUDS AND RUNNERS
Metal studs and runners are used in the metal framing industry. You will see metal framing on most commercial job sites. Metal framing will affect your work as the work. If you push in too much when driving the screws, the studs will twist; this in turn twists the drywall. The problems caused by twisting the studs usually aren’t noticed until you start finishing. Even though the recess is filled and smoothed out, the edge of the recess is showing and it may be difficult to figure out the reasons for this. If you take a long piece of metal and place it across the wall, you will understand the problem more clearly (Figure 3-9).

FIGURE 3-9 Sometimes these joints take in the entire piece of drywall to break the section out

How-To: Drywall Installation

2011-01-26T11:07:00.000-08:00

HANGING THE CEILING
The first thing to hang is the ceiling. Keep in mind that there is no such thing as a perfectly square house, so your drywall won’t fit exactly square to the framework. Cut it to it as well as possible. When hanging the walls later it will fill up 1/2 inch of ceiling space. Any big spaces will need strips of drywall cut and nailed into place.

MARKING THE CEILING JOISTS
Before hanging the ceiling, mark the ceiling joists throughout the house. When you hold a sheet of drywall against the ceiling, you are unable to see the joists to which you will nail it. The joists rest on a horizontal board called the top plate. If you draw a line on the top plate directly beneath the center of the joist, you will be able to see where to nail. This must be done throughout the house, including the closets. Figure 2-1 shows ceiling joists and where to mark them.

CUTTING THE DRYWALL
After marking the ceiling joists, place your benches in one of the back rooms.

FIGURE 2-1

will not be as much drywall in the way when you get to the front. The drywall will be hung in the opposite direction that the joists run. Place the bench along the outside wall about two feet away from the end. If you do this, you will be under the center of the board when you are standing on the bench.

When you step up onto your bench, have your helper take the end of the tape measure and hold it against the top plate of the wall. You take the other end of the tape and stretch it to the last joist that a twelve-foot sheet of drywall will span.

Read the measurement at the exact center of that joist. Step down and go to the stack of drywall. Hook the end of your tape on the end of a sheet of drywall and pull the tape across the board, placing a mark at the correct length. Take a T-square and put it on the drywall with the edge touching this mark. Hold the T-square tight to the board by putting your toe on the bottom and your knee in the middle of the T-square. Hold the top of the T-square with one hand and score down the side of the T-square with your utility knife. Remove the T-square and bend the board back at the score line. Go around to the back side of the board and score along the groove made when it was bent back. Bend it again and it will break off. Set the excess aside to use later. Figure 2-2 shows how to cut the board. Rasp the end of the board so that it will be smooth. If you have any openings to cut out of the drywall, measure and cut them now. Do not draw the lines for a cutout until the board is cut to the right length.

Cutting Out Openings in the Drywall
To cut out a round hole in the drywall, you must measure from the outside wall to the middle of the hole. Then you must measure from the bottom of the upper board to the middle of the hole. Connect the two points on the drywall and use a circle cutter to score around it. Always allow an extra 1/4 inch. For example, if the diameter of a receptacle is four inches, the opening should be 4 1/4 inches. To cut a rectangular opening in the drywall, you must measure all four sides. After the lines are drawn on the board, use a keyhole saw to cut out the opening. If you put the point of the saw against the board and push against it, the saw will push through the board and you can start sawing from there.

DRAWING THE CENTER LINE
After the drywall is cut and the openings are cut out, draw a line along the center of the board. You will use this line as a guide for nail placement. One way to draw this line is to place a T-square on the drywall. Hold a pencil against the T-square at the 24-inch mark. While holding the pencil tight to the square, slowly slide the T-square across the board. A better way to draw this line is to use a tape measure as a guide. With one hand, hold the pencil at the end of the tape, placing the pencil on the 24-inch mark on the drywall. Hold the tape in the other hand, resting that hand on top of the board. Stretch the tape taut and slide your hands across the board, keeping your hands parallel to each other. This method takes practice, but it is worth learning. It is much faster than using the T-square. Figure 2-3 shows where to draw the line and where to place each set of nails.

HOW TO HANG DRYWALL ON A CEILING
When hanging drywall on a ceiling, you will use a special method of nailing. The proper way is to hold the hatchet in front of your chest with the head pointing up. Grip the handle so that your thumb is on the side pointing toward the head of the hatchet. To drive the nail, keep your arm straight and use a wrist action to drive in the nail. This will be awkward at first, but you will improve with practice. Screw attachment is not as difficult to learn. However, the worker usually will nail around the perimeter of the drywall, finishing the job with screws. Of course,
screw attachment holds better. When you are shorthanded, the tee brace can be a great help in hanging ceilings. The tee brace is simply a two-by-four board of ceiling height, with a two-by-four about end of the drywall and braces it against the ceiling, the tee holds one end in place while the worker hangs the drywall.

FIGURE 2-3 Drawing the guideline and nailing sets

Hanging the Board
Now you’re ready to hang the drywall. If the room you are hanging is longer than twelve feet, you won’t have any trouble taking the board into the room. Have your helper pick up one end of the board, and you pick up the other end. If you use your right hand, your helper should also use the right hand. Otherwise, you’ll be walking against each other, and this is very awkward. As you carry the board into the room, lift it up to the level of your head, as your helper does the same. Without breaking stride, step up on the benches. When you are on the benches, place the board tight to the outside wall and tight to the side wall. You should brace the board on the outside wall. Hold the board tight to the ceiling with your head as your helper does the same. Then reach out and drive a nail through the drywall into one of the joists, then into a second joist. After you have nailed the board to the joist, twist around and nail it to two more joists on the opposite side of the board. When you have two joists nailed on each side, you can stop holding the board with your head. Now you can nail the rest of the board. Each time you drive a nail, you must push up on the board to make it tight to the joist. If you fail to do this, the board will not be nailed properly.

The nails on the ends of the board should be seven inches on center, which means you should have seven nails there. the rest of the board. Set of nails is two nails driven one to two inches apart. Each joist must have three sets of nails in the area between the nails on the edges. These nails are placed at intervals of twelve inches. The fastest way to place the sets in proper positions is to nail the first set at the line you drew on the board. The second set can be placed approximately halfway between that set and the edge of the board. The third set will be placed between the center and the other side of the board. The illustration in Figure 2-3 shows the correct method of nailing sets.

After the first board is hung, you are ready to hang the other boards. To hang second board, measure from the end of the first board to the side wall. This board does not have to it tight to the wall, so you should allow 1/4 inch. If there is a small crack, the board hung on the wall will cover it. This board will be nailed the same way that the first board was nailed. You will also use the same method to cut this board as you did for the first one. When you hang this board, make sure that it butts up tight to the end of the other board.

The next row of drywall is hung so that the butt joint is on the opposite end of the room. The best way to do this is to hang the first row from right to left and the next row from left to right. Figures 2-4 through 2-7 show how to hang each board on the ceiling. All ceilings are hung using the same system.

Hanging in a Small Room
If the room you are hanging is less than twelve feet long, it will be difficult to get the board into the room. When you walk into the room with the board, the first person should hold the end of the board up to the top of the wall next to the ceiling, while the other person bends down with the other end. While the first person holds the board up to the ceiling, the other one walks around to a bench. After both are next to the benches, the second person can then raise the board up. Both can then lift the board up to the ceiling.

When hanging drywall in a closet, don’t use just little scraps. This is one of the worst mistakes a hanger can make. The closets should be done with the same care as the rest of the house. Too many small pieces of drywall can make the finished job look unsightly. For a more attractive appearance, use the largest excess pieces you can find for small areas like closets.

It’s important to check all the nails and pull out any that missed the stud. When you pull a nail out, it will leave a small piece of paper sticking out. This piece of paper should be tapped in with a hammer so that the finisher can cover it with joint compound. Any bent nails with the paper torn around them must be replaced because they won’t hold, and the board could crumble around it. Always use a screwdriver, not a hammer, to drive in or take out any screws that have missed studs. When you hang the first board, you may find that the wall is crooked. The way to alleviate this is to hang the board so it is square in relation to the center of the joist. You can put a piece in later if there is a space at the outside wall.

THE WALLS
After you have finished hanging all of the ceilings, you are ready to hang the walls. This section shows you how to hang a wall without any openings in it. The other types of walls will be discussed in the next section.

HANGING THE TOP ROW
Start hanging the walls in one of the back rooms just as you did for the ceilings. Hang the outside wall first, then the side walls, and the wall with the door opening last. This is done so that each board can fit tight to the previous one. When you hang a wall, always hang across the entire wall with the top boards before you start hanging the bottom boards.

The drywall on the ceiling needs three sets of nails in the field. The walls need only two sets. You can use guidelines drawn across the board in the same way you did on the ceiling, except these boards need two lines drawn on sixteen-inch centers.

After you have hung a few houses, you will find that you don’t need the lines for guides anymore-experience is the best teacher. Check the nails each time you finish nailing off a board. Pull out any nail that missed the stud, and replace any nail that tore or broke the paper. Make sure that all nails are dimpled (sunk into the drywall). Later, this indentation can be covered

If you are using screw attachment, use a screwdriver to place the screw deeper. Pull out any screw that missed the stud, and tap in any loose paper. Check and trim all outlet holes before nailing off the board. After the ceiling is hung, you will notice that the top plate runs the length of
the wall, just under the ceiling layer of drywall. The top plate is helpful because you can start nails on the top of the board before hanging it.

To measure the length of the board, have your helper hold the end of the tape to the side wall as high as possible. You stretch the tape out to the last stud that a twelve-foot sheet of drywall will span. Read the measurement at the exact center of that stud. Go to the stack of drywall and cut the board to fit, as you did for the ceiling board. Start a row of nails that will fit to the top of this board against the ceiling.

When you and your helper carry the board into the room, the first to enter the room should walk directly to the corner. Then both of you should pick the board up to the ceiling. After you have the board up, hold it tight to the ceiling, reach up and drive in a couple of nails that you started on the top of the board. Once you have two or three nails driven in, you can let go of the board, but you must push the board up tight to the ceiling each time you drive a nail in until the top
is completely nailed off.

Sometimes the ceiling may be bowed in places, and the top board may not fit tight to the ceiling. When this happens, make sure that the ends of the board are level. If there is a space at the top of the board, you can put a piece of drywall there.

When you need to cut a piece of drywall for a space, you should try to cut it from a piece of board that still has the factory edge. It will hold together better. When you nail off the board, the nails on each end should be eight inches on center, which means you should have eight nails there. The field is nailed with two sets of nails on sixteen-inch centers from the edge of the board. The best way to nail on the wall is to stand in front of the stud. Hold a nail against the wall in the approximate area of the stud. Glancing up and down a few times will enable you to see where to nail. To determine if the nail missed the stud, look at the head of the nail. If the head is sunk into the board more on its right side, then that means it is to the left of the stud and vice versa.

A good way to utilize time is to have your helper finish nailing off the board while you cut the next one. When you measure for the next board, remember that you can cut it a quarter inch short to make the board fit into the corner more easily. Also, a quarter inch leaves a little room for settling of the house.

HANGING THE BOTTOM ROW
After the top row is hung, you are ready to hang the bottom row. On the ceiling, of the first row. You should not do this on the wall because you must keep each board tight to the previous board. Hang from the wall that has already been hung, taking care not to break the joint on the same stud as in the first row. Butt joints should be at least three studs apart.

When you are nailing the bottom board to the wall, do not put the bottom nail any higher than three inches from the floor. The best way is to nail to the bottom plate on approximately twelve-inch centers. If you bend one of the nails, don’t worry about pulling it out because it will be covered by the baseboard. But be sure to sink each nail well.

The bottom of each wall usually will have one or two electrical outlets. You can measure and precut the hole for each outlet. This method works because you can get an accurate height measurement from the top. However, the side measurement often will be inaccurate if the wall is off the stud or if the stud is twisted. There is another way that is faster and easier, and the hole will be more on center than it would be by precutting.

Cut the board to the correct length. Then measure from the bottom of the top board (not from the floor up) to the top and bottom of the outlet, drawing a line at these points across the board. Carry the board into the room and put it in place. Using the hatchet, grasp the top of the board and hold it out from the wall just enough to see clearly behind it. Look down at the electrical outlet, then glance from the front side of the board to the back. This should enable you to see where to mark the front. Use the blade of the hatchet to mark the location for each side of
the electrical outlet. After making the marks, pull the board out from the wall and saw out the hole. The first few times you do this, you will probably miscut, but don’t be discouraged. It takes practice. For more guidance, refer to Router Tool, Figure 1-7.

When you are ready to hang the board, place the toe jack on the floor in the center of the board. Kick it under the board and then step down on it, raising the board up tight to the bottom of the hrst board so you can nail the board off. Before you finish nailing off the board, check the outlet holes and trim them if necessary. The side walls will be hung the same way, but be sure to keep each board tight to the adjacent boards. Some builders do not use baseboards. When this happens, the bottom row is set on the floor and nailed into place without picking it up to the
other board. A board % inch thick is usually ripped and used in the crack between the boards (Figures 2-8 through 2-12).

USING ADHESIVES
If you want to use glue on the wall, apply it only to the studs or to a board that you will be hanging within a few minutes. After the glue is in the open air for fifteen

FIGURE 2 - 12

the gun up the wall with the nozzle pointing forward. Hold it at an angle to the stud. Place the glue in the general area that the nail sets would be. Do not put glue in an area larger than this. The ends and sides of the walls still will have to be nailed, so there is no need to put glue in this area. After the board is nailed on the ends, go back and put one set of nails on each stud to hold the board tight to the wall until the glue sets.

WALLS WITH OPENINGS
You have seen how to hang a wall without any openings, but a wall with an opening, such as a window or a door, will be hung in a different manner. There are two ways to hang a wall with an opening. One way is called picture framing, and the other way is called headers.

PICTURE FRAMING
Picture framing is a method in which you hang the board all the way across the wall and then saw out the opening for the window or door. This is by far the you must make the joint over or under the window. The joint over or under a window is a butt joint, but it is much easier to finish than a regular butt joint. When you picture frame across a door, nail off around the door and then saw up the side of the door frame. Then step behind the board and score across the top of it, along the top of the door. Step back to the front of the board and pick it up as if it were hinged at the top. Score along the groove at the top and then break off the board. When you saw up the sides of the door, it’s much easier if you put pressure on the saw against the side of the door. This ensures that the saw will cut a straight line.

When you hang board across a window, you will not be able to get your hand behind the board to score along the top of the window. So you must score the board before you hang it. Measure from the ceiling to the top edge of the window. Score across the back of the board at this line. Do not score all the way across the board or it will break, but extend the score line the width of the window. After the board around the window is nailed, you can saw up the sides of it, pick it up, and break it the same way as you did the door.

HEADERS
The other way to hang a wall with an opening is to use headers. The corner of a door or window is a weak point in the structural framing. lf you hang drywall and hang only to the edge of the door or window, this joint will crack because there is movement at the weak point. However, if you hang the drywall past the edge of the door at least six to eight inches, the joint usually will not crack because the weak spot is tied in with the entire wall. You can hang farther over the door or window if you want to, but six to eight inches over is the recommended minimum. The electric router tool is helpful for the picture framing method. It allows you to cut around doors and windows with ease. The illustrations in Figures 2-13 through 2-18 show how to hang with headers.

KITCHEN WALLS
Kitchen walls that are under soffits are hung in a different manner than the other walls. Bathrooms and utility rooms often have soffits in them and are treated in the same manner. Most kitchens have a soffit running across the top of the wall for the cabinets

more electrical outlets along this wall than anywhere else in the house. These outlets are usually four feet down from the ceiling. To hang under the soffit, you will have to rip the sheet of drywall to tit. After you hang this first piece, the electrical outlets will be right in the way of the finisher when he or she is taping and floating (covering with joint compound) the joint. To aid the finisher, hang a full-width sheet first and then hang a ripped sheet under it. The illustrations in Figures 2-19 through 2-24 show how to hang a typical kitchen wall with a soffit. The edges of the soffit will be covered with corner bead, so be sure to hang the board to the edge of the frame. When you hang the soffit, use the end pieces left over from cutting the drywall. Remember to put a factory edge to a factory edge, and a butt joint to a butt joint.

Sometimes the two plumbing pipes sticking out of the wall are connected. If you cut a hole to go around both those pipes, there won’t be any drywall behind them. To avoid this problem, make a trap door in the drywall by sawing out holes for the two pipes as if they were not connected. After the holes are cut, use a keyhole saw to cut a straight line from the bottom edge of one hole over to the bottom edge of the other. Then go to the back of the board and score from the top edge of one hole to the top edge of the other. Then go to the front of the board, and pick up the drywall as if the top is hinged. You can then put the drywall in place over the pipes and let the trap door close. (Refer to Figure 2-25.)

HANGING STAIRWELLS AND CATHEDRAL WALLS
Two more types of walls require special hanging methods: the stairwell wall and the high wall in a room with a cathedral ceiling.

HANGING A STAIRWELL WALL
Most building codes require up to 3/4-inch fire-rated drywall in stairwells and under stairwells. Be sure to check building codes in your area. ln addition to this heavier drywall, there are three other problems you will encounter when you hang a stairwell wall.

First, the stairs go down the wall at an angle, so the drywall will have to be cut at an angle. Figure 2-26 shows where the upstairs wall and the downstairs wall join. No matter how good the framer is, these walls almost always sit in or out from each other.

If you hang the wall in the normal way, the second row of the drywall will be right on this joint. This is probably the hardest joint for a finisher to fix, but there is a simple way to alleviate the problem. When you cut the board for the first row, rip the board in half and hang the half-size sheet. If you do this, the second row does not go all the way down to the problem area. The third row of drywall will cover this area, and the edge of the board will be away from the problem area. When you hang the half sheet, remember to put the cut edge up next to the ceiling.
Figure 2-26 shows the half sheet and how it is hung.

The second problem is that the studs on the top wall will not usually match up to the studs on the bottom wall. You will have to put a stud in the wall so the end of the drywall can be nailed properly. (See Figures 2-27 and 2-28.) After you hang the third row of drywall, you will run into the third problem: angle cut. The illustration in Figure 2-29 shows how to use the T-square to find the first point for the angle cut. Hold the T-square against the bottom of the last upper row of hung drywall, keeping the lip tight against it. (Notice that the T-square has a lip on the top piece that keeps it from moving as you cut the board.) Move the T -square over until it stops against the stairs. Measure from the side edge of the hung board to this point. Mark a corresponding point, Point A, on the bottom of the board to be cut. Now measure from the bottom of the upper board to the point at which the stairs begin. Mark a corresponding point, Point B, on the board to be cut. Now measure from the bottom outside edge of the upper board
to the floor. Mark a corresponding point, Point C, on the board to be cut. Finally, draw a line connecting the points in order. Follow this line for the cut. (See Figures 2-29 through 2-31.)

To cut the board for the stairwell angle, use your utility knife and score along the line connecting B and C. Now you can lift the board up and cut this piece off. The board is now ready to hang.

HANGING CATHEDRAL WALLS
The angle cuts for the cathedral walls will be done with the same method, except that the T-square will be pointing up instead of down. The cathedral wall also will be hung with a board ripped in half, but you will start the board at the bottom of the wall and go up. You also will have to put a stud in this wall to match the end

FIGURE 2-32

HANGING ROUND WALLS
On the following page you will see an illustration of a typical round wall. Drywall that is 1/2 inch thick would not bend around such a wall without breaking. To hang a round wall, use two layers of drywall 1/4 inch thick. This thinner board will bend a little, but if it doesn’t bend enough, use one of the following methods to bend it more.

When a scrap piece of drywall is left leaning against a wall overnight, the piece will be bowed by the next morning. This is because of the moisture in the air. To bend the drywall, therefore, lay it across two sawhorses in the evening, and place a weight in the middle. By morning, the drywall will be bowed enough for you to hang it on the wall without breaking it (Figure 2-40).

A quicker but somewhat tricky method is to wet the board down. A problem that sometimes occurs with this method is that the paper is loosened from the inner plaster, causing blisters in the board.

A round wall is hung the same as any other wall, so there should not be any problems. When you hang the wall, make sure that the butt joints are away from the curvature of the wall for a better Ht. When a round wall is hung, the butt joints

of the first layer of drywall should not be on the same stud as the first. You will be able to nail the stud only on its edge, as it will stand at an angle to the board (Figure 2-41).

An archway or a tighter curve may need to be cut on the back at one-inch intervals as shown in Figures 2-42 through 2-44. Any metal corner bead needed for such a tight curve also can be cut at one-inch intervals on one side only, as shown in Figure 2-44.

How-To: Drywall Installation Tools and Materials

2011-01-25T11:41:00.000-08:00

INTRODUCTION T0 DRYWALL

The framework of your home has been completed, the major plumbing and electrical work is done, and it’s time to hang your walls. Or maybe you’ve decided to refurbish your house, and you want to replace those old walls. Either way, you must hang your drywall and then prepare the walls for texture, paint, or wallpaper. This post series will introduce you to the basics of hanging drywall.

WHAT IS DRYWALL?
Drywall Sheetrock, and Wallboard are all terms for the paper-wrapped gypsum board that forms the wall and ceiling surfaces of most buildings. The generic term is drywall Sheetrock and Wallboard are trade names.

Drywall is made in various lengths and thicknesses, but the board is always four feet wide. Drywall can be as thin as 1/4 inch or as thick as 3/4 inch, and it can be from eight to twenty feet long. In residential construction, though, we usually use 1/2-inch boards, four feet wide and twelve feet long.

There are three types of drywall that you will need to be familiar with as a drywall

Regular Drywall

Drywall is made out of a gypsum composition covered with a type of paper that is used to bind the mixture together and provide a smooth surface. The sides of the drywall are beveled with what are known as factory edges so that a recess is formed when two pieces of board are hung side by side. See ,the illustration in Figure 1-1. The recess is there so that the finisher easily can tape and float the area with joint compound, producing a smooth joint that will blend in with the rest of the wall. The ends of the board, known as butt joints, aren’t beveled.

This causes problems for the finisher, as we shall see later. One of the most important rules to remember in hanging drywall is that you must hang a factory edge to a factory edge and a butt joint to a butt joint.

FIGURE 1-1 Factory edges and butt joints

HANGING

Fire-rated Drywall
Gypsum does not burn, but it will crumble and fall away if its paper covering is burned. If this happens, the framework of the house will be exposed. Fire-rated drywall is fire resistant (not fireproof); therefore, it holds together longer in a fire than does regular drywall. This allows a greater chance that the fire will be discovered and extinguished before it can burn through into another area. Fire-rated drywall is used on all fire walls. A fire wall is any wall separating two units, such as the house from the garage, or one apartment from another. City fire codes vary, so you should check local building codes before you hang any drywall. Fire-rated drywall is also known as type X and has a one-hour fire rating. Water-resistant Drywall 'Water-resistant drywall is commonly used around high-moisture areas such as bathtubs and showers. Its green color distinguishes it from other kinds of drywall, which are usually off-white. Water-resistant drywall also comes with a type X core, which is fire rated.

There are numerous types of drywall, but you will use these three most often. Other types of drywall are used for exterior ceilings and sheathing for building exteriors (usually under brick or masonry). Lead-paneled drywall is used for X-ray rooms. Foil-backed drywall is used for interiors along concrete areas or high-moisture areas.

TOOLS AND ATTACHMENT METHODS

WHAT WILL YOU NEED?
To hang drywall, you need the right tools and materials. First, you must figure out how much drywall you need. Since every house is different, it’s impossible to say exactly how many sheets you will need, but this formula will give you a good estimate: Determine the number of square feet of floor space in the house. Multiply that number by 3.8, and divide that answer by 48. This will tell you how many twelve-foot-long sheets of drywall you will need for your house. (If you are using eight-foot drywall, divide by 32 instead of 48.)

There are three important forms of attachment. Usually the type of job site will determine the best method.

Nail Attachment
There are many types of nails for hanging drywall. The two main types are the annular ring nail, which perhaps holds better, and the cement coated drywall nail

FIGURE 1-2

There are two basic drywall nails: the annular ring nail and the cement coated nail. (Figure 1-2). The length of the nail you use depends on what you are hanging and how far the material is from the stud. The nail penetration into wood should be at least 7/8 inch.

If you are hanging 1/2-inch drywall over lath and plaster, make sure the nail goes through the drywall and the lath and plaster and still penetrates the stud lg inch. Nail spacing varies depending on a number of factors, including location and thickness of the drywall, stud spacing, framing material, and the use of adhesives.

Refer to Table 1-1.

Screw Attachment
If screw attachment is required, there is a variety of screws to choose from. Your choice will depend on the type of materials you are using, The screws In Figure 1-3 are used most widely. Screws should penetrate metal framing at least 3/8 inch and wood framing at least 5/8 inch. If you are in doubt about how long a screw you need, it is always better to use a longer screw than a shorter one. Remember that building codes vary, so you might wish to check locally. For screw fastener spacing, refer to Table 1-1.

Adhesives
The use of adhesives reduces the need for screw or nail fasteners. Put strips of adhesive on the studs you are about to cover with drywall. Adhesives are quite effective in high-moisture areas, especially for ceilings. When using adhesives, remember not to put it on the studs ahead of your immediate working area. When adhesives are exposed to air, they set very quickly, losing their sticking properties.

When using adhesives on ceilings, you will have to secure the perimeter of the drywall with screws or nails. You also will need one fastener in the field on each stud. Follow the same procedure when using adhesives on the walls, omitting the use of fasteners in the field. Refer to Table 1-1.

You will need to order the drywall, screws, nails, and adhesive. For corner beads, square or round, you will need a stick for each outside corner. Be sure to allow for windows and door openings. See other post for more information about the types of corner bead.

Most drywall supply stores will deliver the materials to your house. If you are not going to hang the drywall soon, it must be laid flat on the floor to distribute the weight evenly. When you start hanging, it will be a lot easier if the board is leaned up against a wall in the living room. This places the drywall in a bigger (and usually more central) work area than the other rooms.

NECESSARY TOOLS
You will need the following tools to hang drywall. See Figures 1-4 through 1-7.

Bench
The drywall bench is similar to a carpenter’s sawhorse except that the top of the bench is about six inches wide so the hanger can stand on top of it. The illustration in Figure 1-5 shows how to make a bench. Note that all of the dimensions are given, with the exception of the height. The bench should be high enough so that when you stand on it, your head will touch the ceiling joist, minus the drywall thickness. Therefore, the bench, hanger’s height, and drywall thickness equal the ceiling height.

T-Square
The T-square is used as a straightedge for cutting drywall. You can also use a T-square to ind the correct angles to cut when you hang walls in a stairwell or a cathedral-type room.

FIGURE 1-4 Tools needed for hanging drywall

Toe Jack
The ceilings in a house are usually an inch or two higher than eight feet. The first board on the wall is hung horizontally with its top edge against the ceiling. The lower board does not reach up to the bottom edge of the top board. The toe jack is placed under the edge of the lower board. When you step down on the toe jack, it will lift the lever board up tight to the top one

FIGURE 1-5

FIGURE 1-6

Hatchet
A hangers hatchet has a round head with grooves cut in it. The grooves keep - the hatchet from sliding off the nail you are nailing. The head is rounded so that when you drive a nail into the drywall, the board around the nail will be dimpled. The dimple is later filled with Joint compound to cover the nail.

Knife
For cutting drywall, you will need a carpet or utility knife with a replaceable blade.

Circle Cutter
The circle cutter resembles a drafting compass, but, instead of using a pencil, the circle cutter uses a small round cutting wheel. The circle cutter is used to score around the area to be cut before you knock it out.

Saws
There are two types of saws to use when hanging drywall: a drywall handsaw and a drywall keyhole saw.

Tape Measure
Use a tape measure at least sixteen feet long and 3/4 inch wide. You will be hanging drywall that is twelve feet long, but if you buy a tape that is only twelve feet long, it will eventually break on you. The reason for this is that pulling the tape all the way out to the end weakens the tape. Shop around and buy one that’s tough.

Pouches
To hang drywall you will need two pouches: one to hold your hand tools and one to hold your nails. If you are right handed, the nail pouch should be on your left side and the tool pouch on the right.

Rasps
This is one of the small hand-held types that has a replaceable blade. The rasp is used to smooth the edge of the drywall after it has been cut.

Pencils
The best pencil to use is a number 2 pencil, the kind commonly used in schools.

TOOLS TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVITY AND UTILIZE UNTRAINED HELP

Clincher
The clincher is not allowed in all states, so check your building code. This easy-to-use tool helps put on a corner bead (90 degree). Hitting the top with a mallet forces the two metal teeth to crimp into the edge of the metal. When used correctly, the clincher is quite fast and effective.

Drywall Ripper
It is extremely time consuming to make strips of drywall to wrap around windows and doorways. The ripper is a convenient tool that saves time.

Router, Ream Machine, Drywall Cutout
This handy tool has made it possible for a hanger to learn the trade in half the time. Receptacle boxes have always been difficult to cut out accurately. The router simplifies this task. You place an X in the area of the receptacle box or switch box cutout. After the board is in place, use the router to enter the drill bit into the area with the X. Proceed in one direction until you hit the side of the receptacle box. Place the bit to the outside of the receptacle and let the bit follow around the outside of the receptacle. The bit won’t cut into the plastic, metal, or wood. It cuts only the drywall. Round recess lights are difficult to cut correctly. The router tool is a time saver and money-maker. You can get information about this tool by calling 1-901-665-8600 or check with your local drywall suppliers.

Drywall Lift
Also called dead man lift or drywall jack, the drywall lift is just what the name implies. This lift makes it possible for one person to hang drywall. It saves not only the pocketbook because you won’t have to pay for extra help, but it also saves the back. The drywall lift jacks up the drywall and holds it against the ceiling.

Screw Gun Attachment Called the Rocker
The screw gun is something you need if you are going to use screws. This gun has been around for a long time; however, a new attachment has come out that

makes the screw gun easy to use. The screw gun alone takes skill to work the screws
in your hand so they are in place one after another. Also, it’s hard to make the screws go in straight. The rocker does all this for you. You can find out more about this new tool by calling 1-800-477-TURN or FAX 510-687-6261. Or write THE ROCKER, 205 Mason Circle, Concord, CA 94520.

Obviously, there are countless materials and tools. I mention only the few that are necessary for a beginner. Visit your local drywall supply store. You will find many interesting tools, but most people end up using only a few with which they are comfortable.

The hanging techniques described in this book are for use without electric tools. You need to know how to cut and hang drywall without depending on electricity. When you know how to hang without electric tools, then adding these tools can only make your job easier. If you are working a job site without electricity (which happens frequently), you can still go on working.

How-To: Building Rustic Twig (willow or cedar) Chair

2008-06-27T08:20:00.000-07:00

GATHERING

Many people worry that cutting down the small trees will kill them and reduce their numbers. In fact, the types of trees required to build furniture have huge root systems that replace the cut trees faster than you would imagine. Small trees that grow in wet areas reach a relatively small maximum size before they die and return to the earth. It is their job to live, die, and decompose into the earth so more highly evolved trees and grow in their place.

Enjoy pruning the trees and treating the places that you use for gathering as gardens. Clear away the decomposing materials and make little pathways. Spending time pruning will put you in a proper frame of mind to see what you like and find what you need. Try to leave enough time to be able to see the beautiful and unusual treasures that are waiting there. A silent prayer of thanks to the trees may further a good feeling for you in the bush.

To construct that fan-back chair, you will need both framing materials and whips (which are for the seat, arms and back arch of the chair.) Build the chair with fresh, green wood. This means that in the summer you cannot gather more than two or three days before using the materials. In the winter and fall, of course, the cold damp conditions will keep your wood in good shape for a much longer time.

What Trees Should You Use?

For framing, you may choose to use willow, alder, birch, poplar, or cedar. If you have a profusion of some other trees growing locally, try them to see what happens and how long lasting the product will be.

Willow

Willow grows in swampy places edged by cattails. You may also see willow growing along roadsides. It often has a smooth gray bark with little diamond shaped points.

There are many types of willow. Often when it is about 7 or 8 years old the bark becomes rough. Willow leaves are elongated and flash silver in the breeze. Willow grows in clumps. These clumps may contain 50 or 60 shoots if they are well established. Sometimes these clumps cover many acres of wetland. Cast your eyes to the tallest willows and there you will find framing materials because the tall trees are also the thick trees.

You will be looking for trees that are 2 1/2 to 3 1/2 inches at the trunk and you will prefer tall trees with few branches.

Alder

Alder will often grow in the same locations as willow. Sometimes they grow side by side with one predominant. Alder grows in the same sort of place as willow. Wet.

These clumps can grow to great heights of about 10 to 25 feet. The bark is dark brown with white horizontal markings. It resembles cherry, but is not so luminous. Alder leaves are very green and pear-shaped with a serrated edge. There are different types of alder with many local names. You can use any of the types.

Birch

There are two main kinds of birch. Yellow birch has bark that looks like mica. It is iridescent and beautiful. And white birch, also called silver birch or paper birch. These trees grow in many different areas -- wet, dry, on the edge of willows, in the midst of poplars. When they are still quite young -- 3 or 4 years -- their bark is brown with markings similar to alder. The difference between young birch and older alder is that birch grows alone as one tree, not in a family unit, unless one has been cut. In this case many will spring up around the cut one. You will eventually be able to distinguish them from one another.

Poplar

In some areas this tree or its relative is called "Balm of Gilead", or simply "Balma". It usually grows in places that once had willow and alder, and are now drier. Poplar grows to prepare an area for more sophisticated, well loved trees. I The wood is hard. The bark is smooth and soft enough to nail but dries very hard.

Cedar

Cedar has been commonly used for rustic building. It has great endurance to weather. It can be left outside; over the years, the bark will strip off, but it is very tough. It is also sticky to work with. The bark is very rough and in the early summer, it wants to peel off like crazy. Working with cedar has its difficulties, but the results can be great. If cedar grows in your location, get to know it. You don't need to rasp the ends of cedar.

WHIPS & TOOLS

A whip is a young tree that has sprung from the root or base of an older tree. It is virtually branchless and is very flexible.

Whips can be gathered all year round. In the winter, spring and fall the weather is not too hot, the bugs are not bad and the absence of leaves makes it easier to see the shape of the branches. The wood is appropriate to use and to cut all year round.

Trees that produce good whips are willow, alder, birch, dogwood, buckthorn, cedar or hazel. Definitely not poplar: It breaks.

You can find great whips along the roadside or beside train tracks because big bushes are often cut down for visibility. Of course new growth occurs and the more they are cut, the better the whips. For your chair, whips about 3 or 4 years old are usually best. From about 1/2" in diameter to 1 1/2 inches is useful. The back, arms and seat require different length and dimensions but if you gather 35 whips of the above dimensions, you will probably find you have what you need.

TOOLS and Other Gear

For gathering materials in swampy areas you definitely need a pair of rubber boots, big enough for felt insoles. Wear good wool socks, tight enough not to slide down your foot and you will be comfortable and safe even on quite snowy days. Of course, at any time of the year, dress for the weather. Always have your arms and legs covered to prevent scratches, bites and sunburn.

Tools

Pruning Shears - With the recent popular interest in gaardening comes the availabilty of wonderful pruning tools. You can purchase nice little folding saws with very sharp blades to cut green wood. Some have replaceable blades; some do not. One advantage of these small sharp saws is that the little blades can fit into some very tight spaces.

Saws - On the other hand, there are bow saws with replaceable blades available for low prices, also designed to cut green woods. The advantage of this saw is its long blade. Fewer passes of the saw make the cut.

Long Handled Pruning Shears - For gathering whips, long handled pruning shears are good. There are many variations. Some have telescopic handles which are good because the longer handles give more leverage and make cutting easier, but you must keep them dry and well oiled or they will get stuck either in the long or short position or one in each.

Anvil Cutters and Side Cutters - The anvil cutter is designed to cut at right angles to the branch. Other uses will put this cutting tool askew. Its drawback is that after a few sharpenings, the blade will no longer meet the cutting bed, although some anvil pruners have adjustable cutting beds that may be raised. Some anvil pruners have ratchet action. No matter the quality or the price you pay, this is a disposable tool. It cannot be sharpened often and will need to be replaced.

Curved Side Cutter (or bypass pruner) can be sharpened more often. There is a huge variety in the quality and price to choose from. These pruners allow more accurate cuts. Both anvil and side cutters are availabe for hand use also.

Rasps - Quality is very important in rasps. Make sure the blade has bite. Blades on rasps can be replaced when they become dull.

A Sharp Knife is sometimes handy.

Hammers - There are many hammers in the world. Get one that feels comfortable in your hand and has a nice flat hitting end, not one that is rounded.

Nail Pull - You'll need a tool to remove misplacedd nailed.

Always wear safety glasses.

Nailpush - It is a magnetic sleeve that can push a nail into a tight spot. The nail punch sets nails into the wood and when the wood dries and shrinks the head of the nail won't emerge above the surface.

Work Table - Make sure you have a sturdy worktable that is well supported. If your table bounces up and down when you hammer, it can absorb the impact from your hammer and cost you time and energy.

Screws and Nails - There are many types of fasteners.&nbssp; Some people choose to use screws. If you use screws, you should first drill the hole and it should be somewhat longer than necessary because, when the chair dries and the wood shrinks, the screws will have to be tightened down. If there is no pre-drilled hole to tighten into, the wood will split.

Nails - are a very fast method. If you hit the nails on the pointed end before using them they become blunt. When a blunted nail is hammered in, it breaks the fibers on the way through the wood. This considerably reduces the possibility of splitting. Spiral nails hold better than smooth nails.A famous rustic builder in the U.S. uses copper nails with big heads. The big copper heads create a surface decoration on the furniture. Galvanized nails are treated in a way that prevents rusting. Rust is bad because it makes the nail increase in size which enlarges the nail hole. When the rust powders off, the nail is weak, the hole is too big, the joint is loose and the chair wobbles and breaks. Buy galvanized spiral nails in the following sizes: 3 1/2", 2 1/2", 1 1/2", 1 1/4". Also buy small finishing nails of 1", and 1/2" or less. It is hard to find all these sizes in any one store. Try to buy in bulk for convenience and economy.

Wire - good to hold small, skinny branches together where no nail is small enough. any wire joint is temporary until the wood shrinks. When the wood dries, it should them be rewrapped with wire, bark, rawhide or ribbon.

ASSEMBLING

You will need approximately six small trees. This number will depend upon the type and height and degree of straightness of trees that you decide to use.

Description of Frame Pieces

You will need 12 pieces that are 25 inches long of various dimensions and shapes, including pieces with forks that are no wider than six inches. These will be labeled from A to L. They will be called stretches.

You Will Need:

2 Back Legs (labeled W1 and W2): these will be 32" long, 2-3" in diameter
2 Front Legs (labeled X1 and X2): depending on the knee height of the person, these will be 15 to 17 inches long and 2-3 inches in diameter.
S = a piece for the fan to rest on (approximately 35 inches long): it should be straight and approximately 1 1/2 to 2 inches in diameter.
Z = a piece to support the small of the back (approximately 20 inches long): it is straight and 1 1/2 inches in diameter.

When you make chairs in the future, use these measurements to determine ones that will be ideal for you. Ask yourself questions:

Will you use cushions?
Is the chair the right height, depth, and width?
What adjustments would you like?

Cutting the Pieces

Cut the back legs and front legs from the root end of the tree because it is the thickest. Your job will be easier with very straight pieces Once you have cut both the front and the back legs (2 of each) find piece X. Because it is long and straight you should choose it before cutting the other pieces. At the other extreme, piece Z usually shows up during the cutting of all the other pieces. Cut everything else 25 inches.

Rasping and Clipping

After the pieces have been cut, you may want to rasp the edges. The exposed wood at the ends of each piece dry faster than the protected wood inside the bark. This tends to cause the bark to split. Rasping helps to prevent splitting.

The rasp is a tool that works like a cheese grater. The many little blades shave the edges from the cut sticks. Grasp the end that is a bump in the palm of your hand. Support the stick and remove the bark and a little of the wood to give the end a gently rounded shape.

Use the bypass clippers to remove little branches that are in the way. If the cut is not clean, you may rasp it too, or you might want to use the sharp knife to clean away any mark that is already starting to peel.

Organizing the Sticks

Organize the 25 sticks. Putting actual letters on each stick with masking tape could save you time and confusion for your first chair.

Choose:

From all the 25" pieces, the 3 straightest and most similar in size (about 2" in diameter) to be the seat and front knee bar. The thickets is A, then B, and the thinnest C.

The next 2 straightest for the top of each side D and E.

The two most similarly forked or wavy sticks for the bottom rung of each side F and G.

One stick with or without a fork. It must be able to lie flat. This is is for the lower rung and the front H. The fork must not be wide than 6 inches.

Two sticks will be the back rungs. The top one, I, should be moderately straight and the lower one J, doesn't really matter.

Last the two thinnest sticks, K and L are diagonal braces.

Hammering

This frame will be fastened together using hammer and nails. Hammering looks easy when done by an experienced person. In fact, it is a learned skill that does need practice and experience.

Finding the Flat Side of the Stick

Begin by laying the stick on a flat surface. You will notice that each stick generally has a flat plane. Even though a stick may look like a corkscrew, on one side it may still have a flat side.

The Frame

Place one back leg W1 and one front leg X1 on the table with their thickest diameter (usually the end nearest the root)flush with the tables edge. Place D horizontally across the two legs about 1 1/2 inches down from the top of the front leg with piece D overhanging the front leg X1 about 1 1/2 inches.

Use a nail that is not so long as to go through the two pieces and out the other side, but that is long enough to firmly join the two pieces together at their thickest points.

Remember: To avoid splitting, bang the nails on their points with the hammer to make them dull. One bang will do.

You may want to use a nail punch to set each nail as you put it in. Or you may want to wait and set them all when you are double nailing. (Double nailing is explained later.)

Remember that the edge of the table represents the floor and that the bottom of each leg must be flush with the table edge in order to ensure a chair with legs that all touch the floor.

With piece D overhanging back leg W1 by about 1 1/2 inches, make sure that X remains perpendicular to the table. Use the nail that joins X to D at the front leg as a hinge. Tilt stick D so that it touches back leg W1 about 2 inches lower than it is attached to front leg X1. Nail it together.

Find one lower side bar E which may be straight or forked and place it across the front and back leg about 3 inches from the floor or table edge. E should extend about 1 1/2 inches in front of the front leg; nail it in place. Then using the nail that joins to top bar D to the back leg W1 as a hinge, tilt the back leg about 2 inches. Nail it. If this is a forked stick, nail only one part of the stick.

We're starting to build now. Follow along and do each step one at a time.

Follow these directions for the other side of the chair, making certain to reverse the placement of the back and front legs, making sure that each side is more or less a mirror image of the other.

When you pick the chair up, the two sides should move as though hinged. This is as it should be. They should not fall apart when picked up. If they do, remove the small nails and start over with larger nails.

Lay the two sides on the backs of the floor with the back of the chair under the worktable and the pieces (D and E) and (F and G) on the outside.

Hang the two sides with the nailed-on pieces facing out from the front legs X1 and X2 from the table's edge.

You should be able to support this structure with your hips, but if you can't, ask for help.

Lay stick A across the two front legs above the protrusions of the top side stretches, F and D. The top of A should be flush with the sides of the sticks F and D. Nail stick A to stick X1 and then to stick X2.

You may remove the table from hanging on the table's edge and stand it on its four legs on the table. It will be very wobbly. It has no braces and only 10 nails. Hopefully, it will be able to stand up by itself. If, not you may need help again.

Ensure that the front legs are perpendicular to the table and parallel to each other.

Place stick G on top of the protrusions of G and E. Its ends should be flush with the sides of G and E. Nail one side to X1 and, making sure that the space surrounding F, G, D, and E is a rectangle, nail F to X2.

From now on, always work with the chair standing on its four legs. This will ensure that all legs will touch the ground. There are a few exceptions to this rule which will be discussed later.

Once you have accomplished this task, turn the chair so that the back is facing you or go to the other side of the table. Add stick H to back leg W1 and W2 above the back protrusions of D and E in the same way that you did at the front. You may pull the back legs together at this point. Extend the stick edge a finger width beyond the the side bars before nailing.

Place stick I on the top of the protrusions of G and E. Its ends should be flush with the sides of G and E. Nail one side to W1 and making sure that the space surrounded by F, G, D and E is a rectangle nail G to W2. The addition of stick I will greatly enhance the stability of the chair.

The chair now has four legs and all of the stretchers. It needs bracing with the diagonal brace pieces. Before you do this, the chair needs to be the correct shape. Look at the chair from all sides. Ask yourself the following questions:

Does it have right angles?
Does it look comfortable?
Is the line between the back legs parallel to the front knee bar?
Is the back tilted back comfortably?

Manipulate the chair quite firmly until the answer to all the above questions is yes. This is called "racking the chair" and is similar to a chiropractic treatment.

Add the diagonal braces. This will set the shape of your chair. Do not double nail.

These braces go on the inside of the legs on either side of the frame. Use only one nail (as long as possible) at each end.

Double Nailing

Place the chair back on the table. You are about to double nail each of the nails on the four sides of the chair. The addition of these nails will considerably strengthen the structure.

In order to avoid cracks, make sure not to nail on the same grain line as the previous nail. This is the time to set your nails with a nail punch.

Adding the Mystery Pieces

Put the chair on the floor. Piece S goes across the tops of the back legs. You will have to stand behind the chair, looking down at the shape of the back. Imagine yourself sitting in the chair. Slowly turn piece S until where you back will be is either flat or concave. It should definitely not be bumpy.

The back legs should make sharp contact with horizontal piece S. Fasten it to the top of the legs with quite a long nail going straight down through the piece S into the center of the top of the leg.

Piece Z fits in between the two back legs in a position approximately at the small of the back about 2/3 of the way below the fan support S.

Follow the same procedure as with the fan support to determine comfort and you will have to cut the ends; rasp them and fit them in between the two legs; nail through the sides of the legs into the middle of the back support bar, Z. It gives stability to the chair. You can nudge it into place with a hammer.

Congratulations!

Your chair frame is finished! You should have two pieces left over. They are for the seat and won't be nailed on until the arms and back are in place. At this point though, you can put them across the side stretchers and try your chair for the first time. If you notice any serious comfort problems at this point, you can still make adjustments. To tilt the back more, you can undo the diagonal braces at one end, make your adjustments and re-nail.

The Arms

To finish the chair you will need to have about 35 good whips with most of their branches removed.

After they are trimmed lay the whips on the ground side by side about six inches of space between them so that you can see what you have to work with. Choose the six longest and straightest whips (about 7 feet long) for the arch at the back. You'll need five but the sixth is just in case one breaks or ends up not being good enough. Set these aside and don't use them for anything but the back. Then choose the ten sticks that you will use for the arms. These sticks will be very straight for about four feet and of equal (more or less) thickness.

Arrange these ten sticks on the floor in two groups of 5. Then re-arrange these sticks to be in the same order that they will be on your chair. The thickest straightest stick will be first and then thinner and thinner because you should never try to attach a thick stick to a thin one. The thin stick cannot support the strength of the thicker one.

Bend each stick gently before applying to the chair.

Place the largest arm whip behind the lower front bar and in front of the knee bar. Using a small spiral finishing nail, attach the whip to the knee bar in front of the front leg, leaving enough room for four more whips beside it.

Attach the whip to the side of the back leg about three inches above the side stretcher. Use the seat stick as a measuring tool. The arms should be about 23 or 25 inches from the ground.

Until the first arms are nailed to the inside of the lower foot bar they can move, thus changing their position and symmetry. Once the two first arms match, lift the chair onto a table and lay it on its front.

Nail the two arm pieces to the bottom front bar. This is to prevent them and the next eight pieces from popping out.

The challenge is to make the other side match. Use your eyes. When both sides look pretty much the same, you are ready to try whip number two. Work from alternating sides so that you always have an equal number of sticks on each side. These bent sticks exert a great deal of force on the frame of the chair and if the pressure is not kept equal the chair frame could be forced apart.

Applying whips upon bent whips is a trick! The second stick follows the path of the first. Do not nail the second stick to the inside of the lower front bar. It won't move because its neighbor is secure. Nail it to the knee bar as tightly beside the first whip as it will fit.

The arms are shaped like the wings of a butterfly. They slope upwards. Using 1 inch nails (mostly), nail the second stick to the first stick at intervals of about 2 - 4 inches but only where the sticks touch one another. Sometimes there might be a space of about 4 or 5 inches between the nails because of a curve in the stick. Never let go of a stick that you are placing as you nail because it won't be secure until it is attached to the back leg with a small spiral nail.

Continue to add arm whips until there are five on each arm. It becomes easier with each stick. Don't give up!

Tip the chair forward onto its arms, stand behind it and nail the ends of the arm whips to the lower front bar. Arrange them attractively to fill the space.

Clip the ends about 1 1/2 inches from the nail position.

The Back and Seat

The Back

Arrange the long pieces for the back arch in the same order that you arrange the arms, the thickest and the straightest first, down to the thinnest. Beginning with the thickest, fasten it to the inside of the side bar. It will wrap around the outside of the arms. Hopefully this back whip will also support the arms.

Nail it to the long arch support bar about 2 or 3 inches from the back leg. Making a nice curve, nail it in the same position on the other side of the other back leg. Continue down, outside the arms to the inside of the side bar. Nail.

Repeat this process four more times, nailing only to the frame at the side bar and arch support bar. However, on the arch the whips will be attached to each other as they were on the arms. This time there will be no angle as the whips are piled straight up.

At this point you can saw off the extra length at either end of the arch support bar. Rasp. Remember where you put the last nails on the arch support bar -- you don't want to nail through them.

The Seat

You have two 25 inch pieces left over from the frame of the chair. These are the supports for your seat.

Attach the largest right behind the front legs making sure that it it is flat. Attach the second seat bar about 6 inches behind it. It should support the weight of your body.

Cut a piece of whip a little thicker than the seat sticks, 25 inches long and place it on top of the knee bar. Nail every 4 or 5 inches. It should be flexible enough to be molded to the knee bar.

Cut four more whips 25 inches long and place them one on each side of the seat outside of the front leg butting up against the knee bar addition and curving inside of the back leg. Nail in place.

Using 10 to 15 straight, flexible whips, you will make both the seat and the back.

Insert the stick through the back of the arch and bend it across the seat supports butting up tight against the knee bar addition. Nail it first to the seat support that is closest to the front, then put the second nail in the front knee bar. Be sure to dull this nail.

Hold this piece tightly in place and press the whip flat to make it touch the second seat bar. If it pops up, try again. Sometimes it helps to trim the crooked end that is causing the problem.

Continue until the seat is filled in.

Sitting behind the chair you will be able to see clearly the curve of the whips. Pull the curve back and then nail the whip to the back support. It's handy to have two people for this job, but it is still possible with only one.

Continue to do this until all the seat whips are attached. Make sure that each curve is the same. This is essential for comfort.

Lean the chair forward so that the top of the arch rests on a table surface. Now is the time to decide on any design you'd like the back whips to have. Using the appropriate nails, attach the whips to the back of the arch where they touch. Trip the whips diagonally.

Don't forget to set the nails on the seat and the back, the last air of arm pieces, the top arch piece and the frame.

Congratulations!
You're Chair is Done!

Now that the chair is finished, there are a number of suitable oils that maybe used to improve the appearance of the chair, keep it clean and prevent splitting: Tung Oil, Danish Oil, and Min Wax Oil Stain (which is available in natural or several different stains). There is also a product called Wood End Dressing. All these products may be applied directly to the chair with a brush. Pay particular attention to the exposed cut ends which require several soakings.

How-To: Building Prefect Bluestone Patio

2008-05-08T13:09:00.000-07:00

Patio Layout

Random-sized rectangles of softly hued bluestone cover about two thirds of the backyard, leaving enough space for gardens along the perimeter. There are also islands of soil within the patio that serve as planting beds, which prevent the large, stone-paved area from seeming overly stark. A smaller stone patio lies at one side of the house, along with a sizable wooden deck. The other narrow side yard holds a small storage shed. Even the front yard is grass free; it features a network of stone walkways set off by abundant shrubs, trees, and perennials.

Local winters are long, and Bob and his family spend much of the summer traveling, so Rick Lamb's garden plan emphasizes shrubs and trees with winter texture and color. On the east side of the patio, for example, he planted two small Japanese maples. Their iridescent, salmon-colored bark and knotted branches make them look like pieces of sculpture in the winter, while the saw-toothed leaves make them a hazy green in summer.

Viburnum, which forms a 3- to 4-foot hedge, is also used extensively. It has bright red leaves in the fall and scarlet berries that attract birds in the winter. Tucked beneath the trees and hedges are heath, a summer bloomer, and heather, which blooms in winter.

Lamb also kept the existing hemlock, dogwood, and cypress trees, trimming and shaping the branches, and eliminating "nuisance" trees around them.

When the evenings are warm, Bob and his family can sit on a patio that's as comfortable as an outdoor room. Electric lines, run beneath the patio during construction, power low-voltage accent lights and stereo speakers. There are telephone jacks, electrical outlets, and a gas line for the grill and, to ensure the survival of the plantings, water lines were laid for an automatic sprinkler system.

Setting a patio in stone

Before starting work on the patio, Bob met with landscape architect Rick Lamb to determine its shape and size. Too much stone and the yard would look like a parking lot. Too little would mean filling the yard with plants. At 18 x 54 feet, the patio is large. Lamb used islands of greenery to break the space into intimate seating areas. There's also a balance between sun and shade.

Bob was concerned that water would collect on the patio, undermining its foundation. The solution was to gently angle the patio at a ratio of roughly 1/4 inch of slope per foot of run. Small drains in the center also conduct water away.

The patio is dry-laid, which means there's no concrete to hold the stones in place. The result is more natural looking, and also easier to build.

Establishing a level, firm foundation was the first step. Bob called in Boston-based Schumacher Landscaping to do the construction work. They cleared away bushes, trees, rocks, and yard debris. Entire root structures were removed to prevent them from rotting and leaving voids that could pose structural problems.

Bob called the local utilities and asked them to come and spray-paint the locations of gas, electric, phone, and water lines buried underground. This service is free and saves you from severing lines and disrupting services. Once the site was cleared, the corners and key points were marked with stakes and mason's line. Then it was time for the digging to begin.

Gravel Preparation

1. A bed made up of successive layers of gravel and crushed stone is established to provide drainage beneath the patio. On Bob's project, the area was dug out to a depth of 18 inches, and a mini-front-end loader was used to spread the first 6-inch layer of coarse gravel.

A 6-inch layer of finer gravel was added on top of the first, then 3 inches of crushed stone was placed over it. Each layer of material was spread with a steel rake, graded to a slope of 1/4 inch per foot, then tamped with a vibrating plate compactor.

2. Electric-service lines were run in plastic conduit in trenches dug in the drainage bed. Water-supply pipes for the sprinkler system were installed at the same time. Gravel was dug out of the bed to establish planting areas, and the holes were backfilled with topsoil enriched with organic material.

Paver preparations

3. Hoisting pavers is heavy work; if you plan on setting the patio stone yourself, be prepared and take precautions against back injuries. Get a helper to help lift the heaviest stones, which can weigh up to 200 pounds. Keep your back straight as you pick up the pavers, and try to let your legs do the lifting. Pros carry pavers on their shoulders to reduce back strain.

4. The pavers were trial-fitted on top of the crushed stone in a staggered-joint pattern. After a stone is set in place, it's checked for evenness with surrounding stones and for consistency of the 1/4-inch slope. A steel crowbar and wooden levers can be used to adjust the position.

5. It may take several tries to perfect the fit of a paving stone. In conjunction with makeshift levers, a steel trowel can be used to add or remove crushed stone beneath the paver to achieve the desired grade. The joint spacing should be uniform in width — in the case of Bob's patio, 1/2 inch. Once you're satisfied with the position of a stone, pound the surface with a rubber mallet to snug it in place, then check it again with a level.

Cutting & Saving Pavers

6. Where the pavers need to be cut, a gasoline-powered cutoff saw fitted with a Carborundum blade can be used to slice through stone. An ordinary portable electric circular saw can also be fitted with a stone-cutting blade, which is used to score the surface about 1/8 inch deep. Then the surface is tapped with a mallet to break the stone along the scored mark.

7. Where more complex shapes must be cut, such as on this stone trimmed to fit around a planting bed, two intersecting cuts are made. The waste stone is broken off, then the corner is chipped cleanly with the tapered end of a bricklayer's hammer.

8. Once all the stones have been set, crushed stone is spread on the patio surface and swept into the joints with a broom. Then the patio is sprayed with water, which helps the filler to settle into the joints. After allowing the surface to dry, the process is repeated until all of the joints are firm and level.

About Bluestone

Bluestone is an exceptionally hard type of sandstone quarried in New York, Pennsylvania, and Vermont. It's available throughout the country if you're willing to pay for shipping, which adds about 25 percent to the average price of $2.50 per square foot. Installed costs, in this case, ran about $11 per square foot.

The cost, color, sizes, and patterns of paving stones vary from one quarry to another. Bluestone, which earns its name from its gray-blue hue, comes in a range of shades from brown to purple; Bob's patio is made of lilac bluestone — it has a soft lavender tinge to it that coordinates with the plum color of the house's exterior.

Surface texture also varies. Top-of-the-line pavers are absolutely smooth. But the slight waviness that comes with a lesser quality gives a patio character and makes it less slippery.

Anaglypta and Lincrusta Wallcoverings: Application Techniques

2008-04-05T12:38:00.000-07:00

THEY CAME FROM NINETEENTH-CENTURY ENGLAND. In creating Anaglypta and Lincrusta wallcoverings, Victorian inventors made it possible for people of relatively modest means to achieve some of the decorating splendor that, until then, had been the exclusive privilege of the super-rich. What the firm created was an affordable product that could be installed easily and made to resemble costly materials with ornate finishes.

Lincrusta was introduced in 1877. Although fashioned with the idea of bringing elegance to the English masses, it also caught on quickly in America because of its appeal to such giants of industry as the Rockefellers and Carnegies.

Ten years later, Anaglypta was developed. It proved an even more versatile wallcovering: Made from wood pulp and cotton, it was lighter in weight, easier to handle, and less deeply embossed, making it much less demanding to apply and finish.
Left: A frieze that appears to be made of plaster is actually a deeply embossed Lincrusta pattern. Center and right: A kitchen ceiling and a plain wall are given depth and color by the addition of painted, low-relief vinyls.

Although many of the original production rollers used to emboss the materials are still used today, late 20th-century technology has made possible the fabrication of a far wider range of styles and sizes of Anaglypta wallcoverings. There are pelmets and dadoes, friezes and borders. Some are made from the traditional cotton-wood pulp amalgam, others from various thicknesses of vinyl.

IF YOU'RE CONSIDERING applying one of these embossed wallcoverings, be sure to practice with a small piece first to get the hang of it. Or try easier pieces such as borders or dadoes. For large surfaces, it's better to hire a professional. Although the installation process is only a little more complex than putting up standard wallcoverings, the key to success is preparing the surface properly. Make sure any loose paint, old wallpaper, or textured finish has been removed, and take care that all cracks are filled with caulk or spackle. Rough surfaces should be scraped or sanded.

Once smoothed, the areas you plan to cover should be washed with a solution of 2 cups household bleach mixed with a gallon of water. When dry, the surfaces should be primed with a coat of water-based acrylic paint or a shellac-based primer formulated for use under wallcoverings. Before hanging the wallcovering, apply a wallpaper adhesive designed for heavyweight papers and let it soak into the back of the product for at least 15 minutes. Use a soft wallpaper brush instead of a roller to smooth Anaglypta on the wall; you don't want to crush the relief pattern.

TIP: At corners, allow the wallcovering to overlap at least 2 inches, using the blade of a putty knife to push the product into the corners as tightly as possible. Use a utility knife to cut through both layers of wallcovering and remove the overlapping strips; smooth both sides of the corner with a seam roller to achieve a perfect butt joint.

After hanging Anaglypta or Lincrusta, leave it alone for at least two days until all the moisture in the adhesive has dried. Brush on a coat of primer – experts recommend latex for Anaglypta and an oil-based primer for Lincrusta. Then apply a base coat in the color of your choice and, if a special effect is your objective, follow up with a tinted glaze. Let it dry for 24 hours, then apply an oil- or solvent-based varnish. One coat is normally sufficient, but two or three coats add protection in high-traffic areas.

Painting Anaglypta and Lincrusta further enhances their pattern and texture. Faux finishes can also be applied to create a variety of illusions...

THE THICKNESS OF THE PAINT and the type of brush you use depends on the look you want to achieve. When creating a background, you'll want the paint to be watery so it flows into recesses and covers every area. The paint can be thicker when you're creating highlights or accenting details.

Use a bristle brush, sponge brush, or roller on the background, but when highlighting try a tempera or watercolor brush that's small but holds a lot of paint. You can also take the dry-brush approach when coloring high relief: After dipping the brush into paint, wipe it nearly dry on a scrap of newspaper. Then when the paint goes on, you'll get a light, diaphanous coating.

1 — Using a pattern from the standard Anaglypta Original collection, we show two entirely different decorating effects.

2 — Lincrusta's Adelphi frieze involves classical motifs that can be dealt with in an entirely contemporary way using artist's brushes in various sizes and hefts – heavier for thick areas, lighter where the pattern is fine.

TIP: When painting a whole room, first do two opposite walls and let them dry a day; then do the other walls, so you won't have to worry about overlapping paint in the corners.

3 — Here, the same Lincrusta pattern used in Treatment 2 is finished to simulate wood grain.

A more emphatic wood-grain effect can be created by whisking a stiff brush made of natural bristles over the surface. For an even deeper, richer appearance once the stain dries, repeat this process with another stain color. To simulate the look of wood paneling, rub away some of the color. With this pattern, the sponge brush is useful in pulling pools of stain out of the grooves along the side columns and the lower edges. But whether you use a sponge brush or a bristle brush, a light touch across the face of the pattern will create the textured look you want.

Tips For Spring Painting

2008-03-05T08:56:00.000-08:00

Spring is often a time when we take a walk around the outside of our homes and realize it's time to do some painting. Although exterior painting is a job that most do-it-yourselfers can handle, a few tips from the painting pros can help make the job easier and last longer. With proper preparation and application, most of today's house paints will last 10 years or longer.

Purchase Brand Name Paint from A Quality Paint Supplier.

Don't skimp on the quality of the paint! Bargain paints may not be such a good bargain if you have to repaint more often. Painting is very labor intensive. It takes a great deal of time and effort to do the job right so you want a paint that will perform well for years. Purchase a well known brand and purchase it from a supplier who is knowledgeable about paint. Discuss your project with a sales consultant and ask for their recommendations. A well trained professional sales person should be able to tell you which paint will perform best for your particular application and may be able to give you some time-saving tips to make your job go smoother.

Should You Use Oil Base or Latex Paint?

If you have latex paint on you house, then you will need to use latex paint. Oil paints need to penetrate deep into the wood in order to have good holding power. Latex paints form a strong surface film that blocks out oil pants. Most homeowners prefer to use latex paint because of ease of application and easy soap and water clean up. Some painters prefer oil paint because of its penetrating qualities. However, new additives and formulations in latex paints have improved durability and reduced fading.

Can I Stain Instead of Paint My House?

If your are painting new wood or wood that has previously been stained, then you can use one of the new stains. Stains will not peel or blister. However, they tend to fade faster than paint. Most people use stains when they want to highlight the grain in the wood. Stains also offer more earth tone colors and are a little softer in look. Stains are available in oil and latex.

Read and Follow the Manufacturer's Directions.

Following the directions assures not only a quality job but is also required for the warranty to be upheld. The truth is, high quality paints seldom fail. Failure is usually a result of failing to clean and prepare the surfaces properly before painting.

When to Paint.

Temperature is an important factor when painting. Too hot or too cold and the paint will not dry and cure properly. Generally speaking, the temperature should be above 50F. The surface must also be dry so wait until all dew is off. Avoid painting in the bright sun. Direct sun causes too rapid drying resulting in poor leveling and lap marks.

Mixing Your Paint.

When you purchase your paint, the store will shake or mix the paint to the color your want. If you purchase several gallons, it is a good idea to "box" or mix your paints together at home before you start painting. Pour all of the paint into a 5-gallon bucket and stir it together. Paint may vary slightly from lot to lot so this will prevent any subtle color changes as you paint. Before you pour the paint back into the individual cans, punch several holes in the rim. This will allow access paint from your brush to drain back into the can when you paint and help keep the lid from sticking when you close the can.

Where Should You Start Painting?

It's a good idea to test paint a hidden area of your house and allow the paint to dry to be sure you are happy with the color. All wood species do not take paint the same and the condition of the wood will also affect the final color and look of the paint. Be sure to let the paint dry before you make your go ahead decision.

When you start to paint, begin at the top, paint all the way across the house and then work down. This will prevent drips and splatters from ruining previously painted areas.

Surface Preparation.

The number one reason for paint failure is surface preparation and it's also the most difficult and time-consuming part of the job. Paint won't stick on loose or dirty surfaces. Start your paint job by thoroughly washing all surfaces. Use a commercial cleaner and scrub off all dirt and grime. It's probably worth renting a power washer for big jobs. Allow the surface to dry before painting.

Mildew.

Unless you completely remove mildew from the surface before you paint, the mildew will return. Most paints have mildew inhibitors to help prevent re-occurrence but they won't have any chance unless existing mildew is removed. Purchase a good quality commercial surface cleaner specifically designed for mildew removal. Scrub the entire surface vigorously and then rinse with clean water.

Be sure to look for the cause of the mildew as well. Mildew is the result of high humidity and high temperature. Check for leaking gutters or other sources of water. If the area is near the kitchen or a bathroom that is unvented, it's a sign you need to install an exhaust fan. Trim shrubs and bushes away from the house that could trap moisture and heat. Mildew under eaves is a sign of inadequate attic ventilation that should be corrected.

Blistering.

Moisture that is trapped in wood will move to the surface when the sun is beating down. The moisture fights to get out until it finally breaks the paint film. To fix this problem, first eliminate the cause of the moisture (see "Mildew" above) and then scrape and/or sand the blistered paint down to the bare wood. Prime the exposed wood and when dry finish with two coats of paint.

Chalking and Flaking Masonry Surfaces.

This problems is usually the result of poor preparation of the surface prior to painting. First remove the chalking or flaking with a wire brush or by sand blasting if you have a large area. Seal any cracks with concrete patch or concrete caulk. Seal the entire area with masonry conditioner being careful to follow the manufacturer's instructions. Repaint with two coats of latex house paint or masonry paint.

How-to: Building a Deck

2008-03-05T08:24:00.000-08:00

Locating and preparing the ledger board poket

Unless you are building a free standing deck, locating and installing the ledger board on the house is the first step in deck construction. The ledger board anchors the deck to the house and determines the level of the deck floor. It is best to anchor the ledger board directly to an existing rim joist in the house framing. The rim joist is found on the outside edges of the home's floor framing. If the deck is located along a section of poured concrete or concrete block, you will need to drill into the concrete or block and anchor it with masonry anchors.

To determine where the ledger board should go, first mark on the siding where you want the top of the deck to end up on the wall. This is typically 2" to 4" below the inside floor line. Next, mark the bottom horizontal line by measuring down from the top line. This distance is the thickness of your decking boards plus the height of your ledger board. Using a circular saw with the blade set at a depth that won't cut into the sheathing, cut away the siding leaving a pocket for the ledger board.

Making the ledger board

The first step in making the ledger board is to cut it to the proper length. If your plan calls for a skirtboard to cover the rim joists you will need to cut your ledger board 1 1/2" shorter to allow the skirtboard to fit right up to the sheathing on the house. After you have cut the board, hold it up to the house to be sure that the size is correct.

It's easier to layout the joist locations and attach the joist hangers by placing the ledger board on a set of saw horses rather than fastening it to the house first. Start by marking off a pair of joists for the rim joists at one end. These are two joists that are side by side that strengthen the edge of the deck. The remainder of the joists are then laid out 16" on center (or whatever spacing your plan requires). At the end you will again layout two more rim joists.

Next, transfer the layout from the ledger board to the header joist which will be opposite the ledger board. Simply line up the edge of the header joist with the ledger and transfer the marks using a framing square. This is much easier and more exact than trying to re-measure everything when is comes time to install the header joist.

Finally, nail the joist hangers onto the ledger. Be sure to insert a piece of scrap 2x6 material into the hanger to make sure that the hanger is open to the right width. If you don't do this, you will find that the hanger could be too tight or too loose for a good fit.

Installing the ledger board

Before installing the ledger board on the house, cover the exposed sheathing with felt paper to create a moisture barrier. Next, fit the ledger board in place remembering to allow equal space on both ends for the skirtboard. Tack the board into place. Use lag bolts to secure the ledger to the house. Typically two lags are driven in between each pair of joists. Pre-drill holes and squeeze enough silicone caulk into the hole to create a moisture seal.

You'll also want to keep moisture from seeping down behind the ledger board. Seal any gaps with silicone caulk. A galvanized metal z-flashing should then be slipped behind the siding and over the top edge of the ledger board.

Laying out deck area

The remaining layout is projected from the ledger board. This assures that the deck will be plumb and square to the house. You will use batterboards and mason's strings to mark off the deck area and locate the footings for posts. This is commonly referred to as the 3-4-5 layout method.

Batterboards should be assembled just outside of the perimeter corners of the deck as shown in the illustration below. These boards are used to hold and adjust strings to define the deck area and height.

(1) Attach the string to the outside edge of each end of the ledger board and stretch it out and tie it to the batterboard. Be sure that it is level.

(2) Use a felt tip marker to mark the string 3' from the corner in one direction and 4' in the other direction.

(3) Adjust the string attached to the batterboard until the diagonal connecting these two points is 5'. This will result in a 90 degree angle.

Preparing the site

Decks usually shade the soil sufficiently to prevent the growth of most weeds. However, getting grass and weeds out of the way first makes construction easier.

Remove the sod from the staked area. Cover the area with poly film. You'll have to cut away the poly to set the posts, but after the posts are set, cover the sheet with gravel or bark chips. (Some codes may require gravel.)

Next measure and mark the length of the deck on each string. Stretch a string across and tie the ends to the batterboards. Using your plan, measure and mark the locations of the footings on the strings. (If you require footings at additional intervals, attach a string to the ledger board and stretch across the end line. Use the 3-4-5 method to make sure all the strings are straight. You will also need to erect additional batterboards to tie off the strings.)

At the location of each footing, use your plumb bob to transfer the mark from the string to the ground. Mark the ground with a strip of cloth and nail.

Deck posts need to be set below the frost line to prevent heaving. This means digging holes that are below the frost line. Most municipalities have set requirements for footer depths and require an inspection after the holes are dug and before any concrete is poured or posts set. Check with your local building inspector for requirements.

There are several methods of setting posts. Your deck design and local codes will probably determine if you need to use concrete footings or whether you can simply set the posts in ground. For the in ground applications, posts must be pressure treated for ground contact. Fill the bottom of the hole with gravel and place a treated wood block on the gravel. Set the posts in the holes, check for level and brace securely. Fill the hole with concrete or alternating layers of gravel and earth. Let posts set in concrete overnight.

If you need concrete footings, the easy way to construct these is to insert a heavy form tube into the hole and fill the tube with concrete.

Before cutting posts, check your plan to see if any posts are to extend above the surface of the deck to support railings, benches or other features. Posts that are to be trimmed can be marked by setting a 2x4 in the joist hanger on the ledger board and allowing it to extend out to the post. Loosely clamp the 2x4 to the post and level by tapping it into position. The bottom of the 2x4 will be the cut line for the top of the post.

Double post and beam construction is most often recommended for beams. Beams are attached to posts using carriage bolts. Pre-drill holes and tighten securely with a socket wrench. Be sure to use galvanized bolts. Washers should be used under bolt heads and nuts to prevent pulling the head or nuts into the wood. If your plan specs single solid beams, you will require special ready-made connectors and additional instructions.

Post bracing

Perimeter posts over 5' high from ground to deck level require bracing. "X" bracing with 2x4s or 2x6s running diagonally from just below the beams on one post to approximately one foot above ground level on the neighboring post creates a strong brace.

Joists are attached to the ledger board by setting them in the joist hangers and nailing. They are also attached to the header joist with joist hangers. As you will recall, the header joist was laid out to match the ledger board. Attach the joist hangers to the header joist, and then attach to the joists with nails. The joists also need to be attached to the beams. Special galvanized metal clips make this easy.

Joists should also be "blocked" to prevent buckling or twisting. Blocking is placed between the joists and nailed into place through the joists. Snap a chalk line across the joists where the blocking will go and stagger the pieces left and right of the line.

Laying the decking boards

Decking will be your deck's most visible feature. It is important that the decking boards are laid straight and in line with proper spacing. If your deck boards are wet, which is typical of southern pine boards, you can butt the deck boards up against each other, they will shrink and leave a space for rain water to drain off. If your wood is dry, which is typical of cedar or redwood, use a 10 penny nail as a spacer.

Decking should be attached with 2 1/2" galvanized screws. Two screws should be used in every board and every board should be screwed into every joist. Pilot holes should be drilled near the ends of boards to prevent splitting.

For a really clean deck surface without any screw heads showing, you might consider using special fasteners that allow you to fasten boards from below or on the edges. The extra work will give you a better appearance.

If you install decking using a straight planking design, you can trim your deck after nailing to assure a straight line. Start laying your deck boards next to the house. The first two boards will have to be cut to length to allow for clearance for your circular saw. Remember, we allowed for an overhang of 1 1/2". Just cut the decking boards to fit nicely into the ledger board pocket.

After that you can let the ends "run wild". As you lay your deck boards, measure the distance to the header joist. If you discover your spacing is off, adjust between the next few boards. At the end you may have to rip the last deck board or use a wider board to fill the space. After all the boards are in place, snap a chalk line even with the first two boards and trim with a circular saw.

Railings

The safety and beauty of your deck are enhanced by its railings. They can be plain or elaborate, offering as much opportunity for individual taste as a fence. However, remember to check your local building codes for size requirements before you build your railings.

Support for the railings can come from the continuation of deck posts that extend up through the deck floor or railing post that are bolted to the outside joists. Posts must be fastened to rim joists with at least two 3/8"x5" carriage bolts.

Once the railing posts are cut to their proper height, you can install the other railing components. You may want to visit us to see what type of pre-cut deck railing components are available. Turned spindles, lattice, square spindles, and molded handrails are a few of the choices available to make building your railing a simple task.

Protecting the appearcance of your deck

No wood is so naturally resistant as to be maintenance-free. Protective finishes are needed to avoid water and sunlight damage. In the past it was once thought that new decks should be allowed to weather or "season" for several months before applying any type of finish. New research shows that letting new wood go unprotected for even a few weeks after installation can cause surface damage.

New decks should be protected from the elements as soon as possible with repellent finishes or preservatives that are specifically designed for new wood. If the wood is wet, it should be allowed to dry before finishing. The best way to test the wood for dryness is to sprinkle a little water on the surface. If the wood becomes darker, it is because it is dry enough to absorb the water and is ready to be treated. Their are several options for treatment in a range of prices that our deck specialist would be happy to review with you.

The Sociable Kitchen: Design elements target functions beyond cooking.

2008-03-03T09:42:00.000-08:00

Few give it much thought, but rooms come and go, expand and shrink, their uses change according to fashion as well as to cope with our changing lifestyles. Parlors are a thing of the past, formal dining rooms too. Open plan, once a fresh novel idea, wavers and flickers toward extinction. All leave their mark.

Currently, the kitchen is king. The living room is shrinking (metaphorically), the media room lights up few pixels, the mud room creates an imagined sense of cleanliness and order. But the kitchen is on the rampage. Almost all the downstairs uses of the house now are expected to be accommodated at least partially in the kitchen: entertaining, eating, cooking, a desk with space for a computer and telephone, a television, a relaxing space including a sofa, a children's play area with some toy storage and access or connection to the yard.

Why is there this enthusiasm to raise the profile of the kitchen when, according to recent surveys, Americans now buy prepared food in ever-increasing quantities? Surely the kitchen should be on the decline.

The chief reason is our fundamental need for a hearth, an emotional and spiritual center of the home. We are returning to an ancient archetype last in fashion in medieval times, which can be summarized as 'life in one room.' It is convenient and sociable and with the time-crunch factor caused by both partners working, we want to be together when we are home.

Kitchen designer used soft geometry, varying counter heights, new appliances and a central island to create a sociable "living" kitchen for day-to-day use and special entertaining.

Cooking is only part of the role of the kitchen nowadays. The more pre-prepared food is brought in the more we need to cling to the role of the kitchen as a cooking space. It is a compensation for the real thing. The trend toward ever more sophisticated appliances, particularly professional-style ranges, confirms this.

Men, too, are getting in on the act. "Hobby cooking" now is a major activity and source of relaxation. And why not -- it's fun and helpful and as good an introduction to the kitchen and cooking as you can get. It has given rise to the inclusion of double work stations and higher quality appliances.

A recent survey indicates that while the size of the kitchen is increasing, the cooking area itself is not. The extra space is for sociable uses so the pressure on the cooking zone remains as tight as ever and ergonomics -- the planning for efficiency and ease of use -- remains more important than ever. Ergonomics is based on the science of measurement of the human body so a new ingredient entering is good kitchen design for which professionals are needed.

Raised height dishwashers, correct height countertops and convenient positioning of the main kitchen activities are all important. One of the links between ergonomics and the new social role of the kitchen is the central island cook top. It shortens walking distances and focuses you into the center of the room. Why face a wall when you can be chatting or looking at the view? Another requirement is ultra-quiet dishwashers and refrigerators. Who wants to entertain, watch television or listen to music in a machine shop?

A comfortable kitchen can make a real difference in the quality of life and in the way a house is lived in and enjoyed. Kitchens have moved on in our aspirations. Our job as architects, designers and kitchen makers is to help adapt our ill-shaped houses to accommodate these new perceptions and turn them into reality.

Ten Tips
Following are 10 suggestions for turning kitchens into living rooms:

Used as a central living space, the kitchen should be designed for functional as well as social purposes. Design an island counter and position cooking tasks sociably toward the center of the room.
To give a kitchen a fresh new look without completely remodeling it, replace appliances and countertops, add decorative tiles and alter the lighting.
Think of the kitchen as a living room and make space for favorite collections or pieces of furniture. A sofa or wooden hutch can add to the personal style of any kitchen.
Make the kitchen inviting for everyone in the household. Accommodate children, for instance, with varying counter heights or a separate activity area with a chalkboard.
Make sure kitchen appliances fit cooking and design needs.
Use soft geometry and create a kitchen space which goes far beyond the traditional "boxes on the wall" cabinet concept.
Today's sociable kitchen should be a rich visual experience and a pleasure to use. Consider materials such as granite, stainless steel and dark woods as accent materials to provide contrast.
Go beyond the single triangle concept -- create two or three triangles. Develop separate work areas including duplicate appliances like ranges, dishwasher and microwaves to increase traffic flow and make food preparation and clean-up quick and easy.
Assure the overall comfort of the kitchen by installing the quietest materials and appliances.
Last but not least, create a kitchen that is functional for the jobs at hand, comfortable enough to live in, and personal enough to entertain in and enjoy.

REDEFINING THE KITCHEN'S PURPOSE
A key finding of the recent Jenn-Air Homelife Trends Survey indicates that the larger the kitchen, the more important it is to the total functioning of the home.

Of the 750 survey respondents nationwide, nearly half (45 percent) indicated their kitchens are routinely used as multi-purpose rooms for cooking, entertaining and relaxing, outpacing "cooking and eating only" (33 percent) and "cooking only" (22 percent). The proportion rises considerably (58 percent) among those with self-described large kitchens. Additionally, among those with self-described large kitchens, the kitchen now leads the living room as the room where important household activities take place:

The kitchen is the room in which conversations with family and friends most frequently take place (41 percent).
The kitchen is the room in which people are most likely to gather (42 percent).
The kitchen (31 percent) now rivals the living room (29 percent) as the room in which the most time is spent.

They are more likely to be entertaining more (35 percent) than are families with smaller kitchens (23 percent).

Even when combined with the responses of those with less kitchen space, the kitchen competes with the living room as the room in which family conversations take place (37 percent living room, 32 percent kitchen). The kitchen of the '90s has become the center of quality family interaction.

Painting a Room with a Roller

2008-02-27T08:52:00.000-08:00

Painting a room can make a room look completely different. A lighter shade can make the room look bigger and brighter. Darker shades can make the room look more sedate and formal. Using a different color on the trim can also spruce up a room.

While we can not help you with the color you want to use, we can give you some pointers about what kind of paint to use. For "normal" rooms, I prefer a flat latex paint. If applied with a roller, it will help hide any flaws in the wall. You can use oil if you like but it smells more and dries slowly. For high-traffic areas and kitchens, I prefer a "satin" or "semi-gloss" paint as they seem to endure scrubbing and cleaning better. Bathrooms are their own special case and require "bathroom" paint. Bathrooms are not extensively covered in this project. Primers are very helpful, to learn about them, click here for a short discussion on primers. Trim is normally painted with a semi-gloss or gloss paint.

This Project article covers painting an interior room with a roller. The picture at right shows you the order in which to paint the room.

Level of Difficulty: 1 out of 5
Time Required: 4 hours

Tools:

Paint brush
Roller and tray
Drop cloth
Step ladder
Respirator

Materials:

Paint
Masking tape

Prepare to Paint

The first step is to prepare the surface for painting. If you are painting the entire room, paint the ceiling first. The methods used on the walls are the same as the ceiling.

Remove any loose paint and debris from the wall. If the area that you are painting is a kitchen or bathroom it is an excellent idea to clean the wall with a mild solution in order to remove any grease and/or soap that might be present. If you are painting over gloss or semi-gloss paint, it is a good idea to scuff sand the surface. Using a 120 grit piece of sandpaper, lightly sand the surface. Not so much that you sand into the paint but enough to roughen the surface. You have to give the new paint the best possible surface to adhere to. A good primer will help.

When the wall is clean and any debris cleaned up, put down a drop-cloth to catch any paint splatters. If you are really good with a trim brush you might skip masking the trim off but, for the rest of us, it is best to mask off any areas that you do not want to get paint on. These might include moldings around doors, windows or baseboards. Use masking tape, it is available at the paint store and it does not stick so tightly as to pull wallpaper or painting from surfaces. I find the blue 3M tape works best. It does not "shred" like the traditional yellow masking tape and comes up easier.

Safety Note:

Before opening any paint, it is appropriate to talk a bit about safety. You should wear eye-protection when painting and provide adequate ventilation. Paint contains solvents that are harmful to humans. Check the container for specific warnings. Make sure that you open some windows and use a fan to provide adequate ventilation. If this is insufficient, use a respirator, increase ventilation or leave the area.

Before You Begin Painting

Before we get paint all over, you need to plan how you are going to paint. If you are painting the entire room, do the ceiling first. If the area is large then you will have to paint in phases. Try not to let the paint between sections dry before continuing. The first step is to "cut-in" the wall areas around trim and outlets. The second step is to roll paint onto the wall and the third is to cleanup.

"Cutting-In"

When cutting-in, make sure you do not get so far along that you will not be able to roll over the cut-in areas before they dry. Rolling over the brush marks will help hide them.

I like to use a 3" 'Sash Brush' with a combination bristle for this job. They have an angled end that allows the painting of difficult areas. The combination bristle provides good results with different types of paint. If you are not using masking tape you may have to sneak up on the line between the trim and wall. After you have cut-in, smooth the paint by holding the brush perpendicular to the surface and going over the area to smooth it out. There are also pads that have small wheels that keep the pad away from the molding.

Roll the Surface

The roller cover that you use depends on the wall surface. A lower nap cover is suitable for smooth walls. I prefer the covers with the plastic inserts as they can be washed and reused. Take out the paint tray and pour enough paint into the deep end to fill it about half way. Use the sash brush to clean the groove in the top of the bucket.

Roll the roller down the pan and about halfway into the paint. Pull it back and work it up and down the pan to spread the paint over the entire roller cover.

Start near an area that you already have cut-in. Holding the roller up to the wall, roll a 2' "V" onto the wall. Then work the paint out into a smooth coat. Make sure that you roll over any areas that you cut-in. Get as close as you can to the molding in order to hide the brush strokes to the extent possible. While painting, you will likely leave "lines" on the wall. These lines are areas where the paint is thicker. You need to go over these lines in order to evenly distribute the paint. Go over the line in the same direction. If this does not get rid of the line then roll over it perpendicular to the line (see picture).

Clean Up

I generally use a newspaper to remove the roller cover and then throw it away. You can clean these or put them in a sealed plastic bag if you want to re-use it. If you are using latex paint, everything will clean up with water. If you used oil, you need to use thinner or mineral spirits, but with roller this is not very cost effective.

Hanging Drywall: Taping Drywall Joints

2008-02-26T11:20:00.000-08:00

The joint between two pieces of drywall is key to a new installation. Practice is the key. If you can, you might want to experiment on two pieces before you take on a real wall. As with other drywall procedures, multiple thin coats are the key. This process can be used on factory (beveled) edges or butt joints. Some professionals like to bevel butt joints with a razor (utility) knife. It is up to you.

Items needed:

Drywall
Joint Compound (mud)
Tape knife
Drywall Joint Tape
Sand paper
Ladder (if required)

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Drywall compound is sometimes referred to as "mud"
Do not let mud freeze
Clean all tools immediately after use

Level of difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 4 hour

Steps

Step 1: Apply tape

Start by securing the drywall in place. If you are repairing a hole, see the drywall repair how-to. If you have had some sort of damage to the joint, see the how-to on repairing joints.

Step 2: Drywall tape

If using self-adhesive tape, take the backing off and apply the tape over the joint. When using regular tape, put down a thin bed of mud.

Step 3: Applying self-adhesive tape

Start applying self-adhesive tape in corner or at edge.

Step 4: Tape on joint

Press the tape down firmly on both surfaces.

Step 5: Applying mud

Using a 6" tape knife, force the tape into the mud.

Step 6: Spread mud

Using your knife, work the tape from the middle out. Make sure that you keep your knife clean by scraping it on the pan

Step 7: Cover tape with thin coat

The next step (while the compound is still wet) for either method is to put a thin coat of mud over top of the tape. Use just enough mud to cover the tape, the tape should be visible through the mud. Let the mud dry overnight.

Step 8: More coats, sanding between each

After the joint compound has dried, sand any irregularities from the joint. Make sure that you do not sand into the paper.

Step 9: Smooth the final coat

Re-coat the joint with compound. Use a 8" or bigger knife. The goal is to "feather" the joint out so that it is not noticeable. You might have to re-coat a few times. It is important not to get the middle of the joint too high or it will show up after the wall has been painted.

Hanging Drywall: Taping an Inside Corner

2008-02-26T11:11:00.001-08:00

The joint between two pieces of drywall is key to a new installation. Practice is the key. If you can, you might want to experiment on two pieces before you take on a real wall. Taping an inside corner is a normal part of installing drywall. As with other drywall procedures, multiple thin coats are the key. One note, drywall compound is sometimes referred to as "mud."

Items needed:

Joint Compound
6" tape knife
Drywall Tape
Sandpaper (150 grit is a good choice)

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Keep coats very thin
Check evenness placing flashlight in corner

Level of difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 2 hour

Steps

Step 1: Cover corner with compound

Using a 6" tape knife, plop compound on either side of the joint. Put enough on to cover the area. Use your knife to spread out the compound. This will form the bed that you will lay the tape into.

Step 2: Spread compound

Tear off an appropriate length of tape and fold the entire length in half. Push the tape into the corner. Insert your tape knife into the fold and push the tape firmly into the corner. Spread out the tape and use your tape knife to work the tape smooth. Work the tape on both sides from top to bottom so that you get most of the mud out from behind the tape. The tape should be wrinkle-free.

Step 3: Apply second coat

If you have a corner trowel, use your 6" knife to apply another coat over the tape. Use the corner trowel to smooth the tape in the corner and remove excess compound. If you do not have a corner trowel, work one side at a time.

Step 4: Third coat

After the compound has dried, sand out any imperfections (do not sand into the tape) in the compound. Apply one more layer of mud to the corner. Use a thin layer and make sure that you clean up any marks in the compound. Let dry and finish sand.

Hanging Drywall

2008-02-26T11:00:00.000-08:00

If you are replacing old drywall or have new construction, it's time to hang the drywall. You should have completed all the electrical and plumbing work. Don't forget to run any telephone and now is a great time to run extra CAT 5 cable for a computer network.

Before you button up the wall, make sure that have had your work inspected.

If you are going to hang drywall on the ceiling, do that first. Usually you use 1/2" drywall for walls although you could use thicker if you like. Again, it is a good idea to check local building codes. You will also need some fasteners. I recommend 1 - 1/4" drywall screws. They will not "pop" on you later. You will also need a screw gun or other electric drill/screwdriver. If you use nails, make sure that you get drywall nails. They have "rings" on the nail and big heads so that they hold better. You will also need joint compound (mud) and tape. Use the solid paper tape, it generally provides better results. Also, pick-up outside corner trim pieces as this will last much longer than just compound.

Level of Difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 8 hours

Tools:

Utility knife
Hammer
Screw gun
Tape measure
Chalk line
Framing square
Hole saw or RotoZip

Materials:

Drywall
Drywall compound and tape
Drywall screws

Hang the Drywall

Drywall is best hung from the top down. Normal framing is slightly longer than 8' so you want the gap to be at the bottom. It is best to have a helper for this job, drywall is heavy and awkward and trying to screw or nail a sheet up by yourself is all but impossible. There is a device called a "sheet lifter" that can help but another human is generally cheaper. Another tip is to mark the drywall every 16" before you lift it into place so that it is easier to find the studs when hanging the drywall. If you need help cutting drywall, check out the How-To.

Top Course

Lift the drywall into place. Check either end to make sure that the drywall is in the middle of a stud on either end (an inside corner should be pushed all the way into the corner). Start driving screws or nails. You should use a nail or screw every 6"-7". Make sure that the screw/nail head ends up just below the surface of the drywall. Check your local codes for the distance they require. Butt the next piece into place and screw/nail it into place. Complete the entire course on the wall.

Bottom Course

Position the sheet of drywall so that it butts tight against the top course. Screw or nail it into place. If there are any electrical boxes or other obstructions, make sure that you cut them out before affixing the drywall. Use either a hole saw or a utility knife to cut them.

Taping the Joints

Taping drywall joints is covered in several how-to's:

Taping inside corners.
Taping mid-wall, straight joints.

The main thing to remember is to avoid humps in the wall where the joints are.

Framing a Partition Wall

2008-02-26T09:26:00.000-08:00

Many times when finishing a basement or changing the layout of your home you will need to add a wall. Adding a wall is an easy task for the do-it-yourselfer to accomplish. The key to wall building is to make sure that your walls are square and plumb. Out of square or out of plumb walls cause problems with trim, door and window installation.

The other tricky part of wall building is framing the corners. Depending on whether you are framing an inside, outside, T or L corner dictates how you frame the corner. The concern here is providing a nailing surface in each corner for hanging drywall. If the corner is not framed correctly you will have nothing to nail the drywall to.

This project covers framing an interior, non-load bearing partition wall (it does not support the roof) with no windows or doors. Make sure that your work is inspected before drywalling. Note that we have installed this wall in an area that has no drywall to help you visualize what is necessary.

Level of Difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 3 hours

Tools:

Hammer
Tape measure
Chalk line
T-square
Power saw
Pencil

Materials:

Wooden studs
Common nails 16d
Cement nails or concrete fasteners

Cutting the Pieces

The first thing to do is to position the the bottom (sole) plate. Place the sole plate on the floor where you want the wall to be and then cut it to length. If you are using a circular saw, make sure that you use a square to extend your mark across the board so that you cut straight. Cut the top plate to the same length. Measure from a wall across the room to both ends of the sole plate to make sure that the new wall is parallel to the existing wall. Mark the position of the plate on the floor. Mark both sides (it is easier to make a mark on both sides at either end and snap a chalk line). Do not nail the sole plate in place yet.

The second thing to do is to position the top plate. Using the measurement you made on the floor, measure from the opposite wall and mark the location of the top stud. It is easiest to mark both ends and snap a line in between with a chalk line. Measure over 2 1/2 inches and snap another line, this is the outline of the top plate.

Now we have to figure out how to attach the new wall to the existing framing. The first thing to examine is the ceiling. Find out where the joists are by drilling holes through the area that you previously marked on the ceiling (this way the new plate will cover the damage). There are three possible scenarios:

(good) The new wall is parallel to the ceiling joists and is also located directly underneath a joist. This will allow you to nail directly to the joist.
(good) The wall is perpendicular to the ceiling joists. The top plate can be fixed to the joists by nailing the plate to the joists where they intersect.
(pain in the neck) The wall is parallel to the joists, but is not underneath one. The new wall should be fixed to something solid. This scenario requires that you either relocate the wall or install blocking between the joists so that you have something to nail to. If you have access to the area above and the wall can not be relocated, here is how to install blocking. Measure the distance between the joists, cut 2x4's to fit and nail them into place, flush with the bottom of the joists. Use 16d nails for this. You should put a block every 16"-24". Use a regular interval to make your life easy.

Prepare for Wall Erection

There are two methods to installing a partition wall. The first is to construct the wall and erect the units as one. The second is to install the wall in place one piece at a time.

The first method works well on new construction and it helps to have some experienced helpers. You must be accurate in your measurements to make this happen.

Start by laying out the header and sill plates, marking for studs every 16" on center. Cut the studs to length measuring the floor to joist opening and adding 1/8" to 1/4". This will ensure a tight fit, but be careful not to wedge and raise the floor above.

The studs are nailed using 2-16d common nails. The ends may need king and skimmer stud. The king studs extends from floor to ceiling and will be 3" longer than the skimmer and other studs.

With the studs assembled, check the wall for square by measuring diagonally. Use your sledge hammer to "persuade" the wall into square. With some helpers, raise the wall in place and nail it securely. (Skip ahead for sill fastening.)

Installing Wall in Place

Before you nail up the plates, mark the locations for the studs. Studs are normally placed 16", on center, apart. Either make the mark on the edge of the plates at 16" or make you marks on the top of the studs 15 3/4" apart (mark in front of where the stud goes).

After you have determined how to affix the top plate, go ahead and nail it into place. Use 16d nails. Place at least one nail every couple of feet. Tack the sole plate in place by not completely driving a nail near each end of the plate.

Measure from the bottom of the top plate to the top of the sole plate. Add 3/16" to this measurement. This is how long the studs need to be. Cut one stud to length and put it in place. You will likely have to put the stud in diagonally and tap it into place. Using a level, check to make sure the wall is plumb. If not, loosen the sole plate and tap it into place. Make sure you make identical adjustments to the entire sole plate. Check your measurement to the facing wall. Once the wall is plumb, go ahead and toe-nail the stud top and bottom. You toe-nail by holding the nail (16d nails for this) at a 45 degree angle about 2 inches up the board and nailing down through the stud into the plate. Alternatively, you can use a nailing plate with smaller nails (picture down below) Cut the other studs to the same dimension and toe-nail them into place every 16", on center.

Toe Nail the Stud

The studs are toe nailed into the sill plate using four 8 or 10d nails. Larger nails will tend to split the stud. Use your foot or a temporary nail to hold the stud in place while toe nailing. The temporary nail is driven into the sill about 3/4" on the opposite side of the stud at a 80 degree angle to the floor. The toe nail should be driven in at about 60 degrees from the floor

Fastening the Sill Plate

With the wall in place, the sill plate needs to be secured to the concrete. There are several options here. The simplest is cement nails. Simply pound these in, but be sure to keep your safety glasses on. For a stronger grip, you can use special concrete screws. These require a pilot hole in the concrete and a shaft hole drilled in the sill. If bolts were embedded into the concrete when poured, these are the strongest and allow a large washer and must to be through bolted. For fast installation, power guns are used to fire an explosive and drive a stud nail into the concrete.

Don't forget about inspections. Be sure to have all rough carpentry inspected before you start hanging drywall!

Installing a Lilly Pond

2008-02-26T08:42:00.001-08:00

Lilly ponds are very popular. They are a nice place to sit and reflect, especially if there is a water fall or raceway. Nothing helps one settle down and think like a gentle waterfall. You can already hear the gurgle of the water.

Now for a harsh bit of reality: installing a Lilly Pond is a lot of work. Make sure you have plenty of help lined up to excavate your dream pond or you will get lots of what my Dad called "character building" exercise.

When planning your lilly pond make sure you set aside about $250 to get things rolling. Expensive fish aren't necessary immediately but the liner and pump are. It's a good idea to put the plants in about a week before you put any fish into the pond.

Level of Difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 16 hours

Tools:

Shovel
Rake
Utility knife or scissors
Line level or level and board
Garden hose

Materials:

Pond liner
Pond pump and hose
Cap stone and rocks
Pond plants and fish
Filter (bucket and 1/2" PVC pipe)
Old carpet or liner

Layout and Preparations

The first thing to do is to layout your pond.� Take into account the available space and how much you want to spend on a liner.� Bigger liners are more expensive and bigger ponds require more labor to excavate.� Another consideration can be the surrounding terrain; if you are going to install a filter, it is sometimes best to place it on the high side of the pond.

The easiest way to layout the pond is to take a garden hose and outline the shape of the pond that you want. The more popular shapes resemble kidney beans or rectangles. Some things to consider when laying out how your pond will look:

In most areas of the country it is a good idea to make part of your pond at least 2' deep.� This helps to moderate the water temperature.
It is a good idea to put a 6" deep shelf around the outside of the pond in order to help conceal the liner.
Try to pick a spot in your yard that is relatively level.
A multi-tiered design: these are especially good as different plants sometimes need to be submerged at different levels.
A sloping floor is also good. Many ponds have most of the pond at 2' deep but part of it might step up to 18" or so.

Start by putting the point of the shovel just inside the hose and push the shovel in. Move the shovel over a bit and keep going until you work your way around the entire perimeter of the pool. From there, start digging from the middle out or the edge in. An ax or mattock will come in handy to chop out the roots that you will inevitably encounter.

In our experience, it takes about 8-10 hours to dig a 5x10 pond, 2 feet deep. It will take less time if you have help or particularly agreeable soil.

Fine Tune the Excavation

When you think you are done, tamp down the soil in the bottom of the pond and any tiers that you may have excavated. Next, put a board across the hole and measure down to the bottom to make sure that the bottom is relatively uniform.

The next step is to position a 2x4 (on edge) across the hole and place a level on it. Check in all directions to make sure that the perimeter of the hole is level. If the pond isn't level, use some of the dirt that you excavated earlier. It is important that the rim of the pond be level or the water will fill the pond unevenly.

When the rim of the pond is level and the bottom is flat, it is time to check the sides and bottom of the pond for roots that are sticking out and small rocks. Remember, roots *grow* so if you see any good-sized roots protruding, cut them back.

Next you have to install a pad for the liner. There are commercial pads available (some liners even have one attached) but if you don't want to spring for it, we've had good results with carpet. Some manufacturers recommend sand but it is difficult to get sand to stick to the walls of the pond. Newspaper or thinner cloth may be used but a low-nap indoor/outdoor carpet is what we use. Line the bottom and sides of the hole with the carpet. After you line the sides and bottom, make sure that you clean up any debris that has fallen from the sides of the pond.

Install the Liner

Once you have the hole properly excavated, layout the pond liner. For this step, it is necessary to have someone help you get the liner into the hole without knocking all of the carpet from the walls of the pond.

Position one person at each end of the liner, lift it up and place it in the hole. Take off your shoes and get down into the hole. Flatten out the liner as much as possible and carefully fold it so that it goes around the corners of the pond smoothly. Alternatively, you can simply plop the liner into the hole, start filling it and wait for the water to flatten the liner. We prefer to smooth the liner by hand. This normally makes it easier to conceal the liner later.

Regardless of the method that you use, once the liner is in the hole, fill the pond up about 1/4 of the way. Carefully inspect the bottom of the pond for bumps. If you see any, lift the liner (keeping the water on the inside) and remove the debris. After everything on the bottom looks good, continue filling the pond and, from time to time, pull up on the edges of the liner to make sure that it settles into the corners. As the water fills the pond, it will force the liner against the walls of the pond, continue to monitor the liner for bumps that show up and remove the offending object.

After the pond is filled with water, it is a good idea to go ahead and get into the water (it's cold!) and smooth the liner out.

After the liner is squared away, treat the water to remove the chlorine. There are several commercial products available for this and they normally have instructions with them. Let the water sit overnight.

Landscape and Finish Off

Once you have the pond filled with water and the liner is settled, you need to trim the liner. Fold the liner over the lip of the pond and, using a pair of scissors, trim around the edge of the pond. You should leave some extra material around the edge, do not trim it too close.

Now it's time to landscape. Regardless of whether you have a multi-tiered pond, stone is a favorite material for landscaping the pond and hiding the liner. Start laying the stone around the perimeter. If you are laying the stone on the liner at any point, use flat rocks and avoid placing sharp points against the liner.� Pile the rocks over the liner and make a short wall around the pond.

It is a good idea to at this point to put pond plants into the pond and let them stabilize. Wait about 5 days to put fish into the pond.

Pump and Filter

Pumps are an easy subject: you need one to help circulate the water. The best advice is to get a pump that is capable of "turning the water over" once an hour. If your pond is 300 or so gallons, buy a 300 gallon per hour pump. Approximate pond sizes are always on the pump box. Pumps are usually used to pump the water through a waterfall, fountain, filter or some combination. The waterfall or fountain is key as it injects more oxygen into the pond.

Filters are a bit more involved. You can buy a sealed biological filter from the store for about $150 or you can build one for about $20. It's easy. You will need some 1/2" PVC piping, the necessary solvents to weld it, some hose clamps, silicone sealant, lava rocks, garden hose and a tub of some sort. I used a rubbermaid tub but I've also used large plastic pots (terracotta lookalikes) to do the job. The pot or tub can be installed on top of the ground and concealed or you can dig a hole and put it in the ground (but slightly above the level of the pond). If you put the tub above ground, you can build a waterfall but you will have to mound dirt around it to help conceal it. After you are finished, make sure you plant grass to hold the dirt in place. If you dig a hole for it, you can simply have the water run back into the pond. Decide which you are going to do now and place the tub.

Finish Filter and Enjoy!

Next, cut a notch in the container and using some dirt, build a ramp from the pond to the lip of the container. Next, using silicone sealant, attach a leftover piece of pond liner to the lip of the container. Let the pond liner run down the ramp and overhang the edge of the pond. Let the silicone cure.

Next, build a "filter element" as pictured in the top right. The shape doesn't matter, you can build a horseshoe or square shape. It just has to fit inside of the bottom of the tub. Leave the tube sticking above the top level of the tub so you can hook the hose up to it. Next, get some lava rocks like you use in gas grill, wash them thoroughly and fill the container at least half full with them. Hook the pump up to the filter element and turn it on and check for leaks. Using small rocks, conceal the pond liner.

Now, you might experience an algae bloom in a couple of days, get a pond test kit and make sure the ph, nitrates, nitrites and other parameters are right. Most likely the algae will go away. As a last resort, you might use an algacide but this also attacks lillies and other pond plants.

Feed your lillies and plants and in no time you'll have a most enjoyable place.

Installing Floor Tile

2008-02-26T07:29:00.000-08:00

Installing floor tile is a project that any dedicated do-it-yourselfer can accomplish. Tile stands up to a lot of abuse as well as the cleaning necessary for kitchens, bathrooms and entry halls.

The only downside is that things that fall on floor tiles usually break. This project describes how to install glazed, ceramic floor tiles. More porous tiles like terra cotta may require additional steps.

To start with, you have to make a few design decisions:

The first one is to select the tile that appeals to you. This is the part of the project that I can't help you with. If you are as bad as I am at choosing colors it is a good idea to seek help. One note: places like Home Depot normally have fairly plain tile. If you want something unique, you will likely have to go to a tile store.

The second decision is the color of the grout. The coloring of the grout should complement the tile color. If possible, go with a darker grout as stains are less likely to show.

The third design decision is the orientation of the tile. Tile may be put down in any orientation but the most common are parallel to the wall or at a 45 degree angle to the wall. Note that angled designs are harder to layout.

The fourth design decision is the space that you will allow between the tile. Spacers are available from 1/16" to 1/4". Look at other floors to help determine what you like.? The width of the grout line will determine whether you need sanded or non-sanded grout. Non-sanded grout should only be used when the grout will fill a gap 3/16" or smaller. Sanded grout may also be used on 3/16" grout lines but nothing smaller.

Level of Difficulty: 3 out of 5
Time Required: 8 hours

Tools:

Rubber float
Utility knife
Sponge
Sponge float
Notched trowel
Screw driver
Chalkline
Tape measure
Tile cutter

Materials:

Floor tile
Grout
Galnevized screws
Backerboard
Thinset or mastic
Self-leveling compound

Adhesive Choices

There are generally two types of adhesives used for setting tile: mastic and thinset.

Mastic

Mastic is basically glue for tiles. The knock against mastic is that it is not tough enough for floors. Mastic is not recommended for floors by most professionals. Mastic cannot be used to set tiles on concrete or in wet areas. It also cannot be used for floor tiles larger than six inches. However, mastic is easier to use and has a longer working time than thinset. If you choose mastic, make sure that you get the type recommended for floors.

Thinset

Thinset is basically a modified cement and is the preferred adhesive for floor tiles. Thinset adheres better and can carry more weight than mastic. Thinset should have a latex additive which helps it resist cracking and adhere better. Thinset is available with with the latex additive already mixed in or without. If you get it without, you should purchase liquid latex to add to the mix. Follow the directions for mixing.

Preparing the Surface

Preparation is critical. If you don't take your time during this phase you will be retiling sooner than you want. In general, it is best to remove whatever floor is currently in place and start with the sub-floor. The surface should be smooth, clean and level. If there are holes or depressions in the subfloor they should be filled using a self-leveling compound. For the most common floors, the following is recommended:

Ceramic Tile:

It is possible to tile over existing tile but not recommended. One problem is the difference in height between the new floor and adjoining rooms. If you decide to tile over existing tiles, sand the existing tiles with a coarse-grit sandpaper to increase adhesion between the adhesive and the new tiles.

Wood:
If you are tiling over a plank or strip floor, simply install cement backerboard over the floor.

Vinyl or Linoleum:
It is acceptable to tile over these surfaces. Simply install cement backerboard over the existing floor. If you elect to remove the flooring, make sure that it does not contain asbestos. If you are unsure, call your local health department for instructions. If the mastic will not come up with a scraper you might try a heat gun to soften it. Just make sure that you have adequate ventilation as the mastic may contain some nasty chemicals.

Concrete:

Make sure that the floor is fully cured and level. If the floor is not level you may have to use some self-leveling filler.

Final Clean-up

After the surface preparation is finalized, clean the floor with a damp sponge. Make sure that you have plenty of clean water and rinse the sponge often. This will help improve adhesion.

Installing the Base

The base is the substrate that the tile will be mounted on. It must be solid and stable. Cement backerboard is considered the best choice but plywood is sometimes used instead. Cement board has a cement core with fiberglass mesh on either side. If you use plywood, use plywood that is made for sub-floors. It is 3/4" thick and has a tongue and groove edge milled on it. Both are installed in essentially the same way.

Plan your installation so that the joints between the cement backerboard (or plywood) do not line up with the joints in the subfloor and so that the joints in the backer board (plywood or cement) are staggered. It is generally a good idea to cut your backerboard ahead of time and then dry fit the cut sections to make sure that the pieces fit and your joints are staggered. If you do not know how to cut backerboard, click here.

Prepare your adhesive, if you are using thinset, mix it up according to the directions. Construction adhesive requires no preparation. If you are using thinset, use a trowel or the smooth edge of the notched trowel, to spread your adhesive on the subfloor. Apply enough adhesive to secure one section of backerboard at a time. After a sufficient amount of adhesive is on the floor, use the notched edge of the trowel to "raise" or "comb" the adhesive into smooth rows.

If you are using construction adhesive, lay out a decent bead around the perimeter and across the middle. Check the tube for working times, it may cure faster than other adhesives.

Only lay down one sheet at a time, don't try cover the whole floor at once. After you have the sheet down, screw it down using cement board screws (drywall screws work for plywood). You should use one screw every 8 or so inches. If you are using cement backerboard, stay at least an inch away from the edge or it may crumble.

If you are using cement backerboard, you must also tape the joints using a mesh tape and thinset.

Tile Layout

Orientation

Another task you must accomplish is to determine the layout of your tile. The goal of tile layout is twofold: identify problem areas and ensure that the tiles you must cut land on the edges. Common problems are rooms that are out of square and walls that are not straight. The most common layout tool is the 3-4-5 triangle.

The 3-4-5 shuffle

There are many ways to layout a floor. Rooms with many obstructions may require more sophisticated methods than described here. Professionals use a "floating" 3-4-5 triangle marked on the floor to adjust their layouts. Fortunately, an easier way exists that provides excellent results. Here's how:

Using a measuring tape, mark the midpoint of two opposite walls. Use a chalk line to snap a line between the two marks you just made.
Measure the line you just snapped to find and mark the midpoint of the line.
Using a carpenter's square, mark a perpendicular line from the midpoint of the original line. Extend it as far as possible in both directions and use a chalk line to snap a line along it.
What you have now is the middle of any room that has any kind of normal layout.
Use these lines to dry-fit your tiles (both directions) in place. Your goal is to balance the cuts that you will have to make along opposite walls. Based on what you find, you may have to adjust your layout line a few inches to balance the tiles along the walls.

Laying the Tile

Start in a corner or other convenient place. Remember to work towards a door so you can get out of the room! The best way to do this is to lay the tiles along the lines you laid out before. Using a trowel or the smooth side of the notched trowel, begin spreading your adhesive. Lay out a bed about 1/8" thick over one of the squares that you laid out before. After you have a sufficient amount of adhesive on the floor, use the notched side of the trowel to "comb" the adhesive into even rows. Hold the trowel at a 50-70 degree angle when doing this.

Place your first tile on the floor right along the layout line that you snapped earlier. If you begin right along the wall, remember to leave a 1/4" gap between the tile and the wall. Place the tile on the adhesive and then give it a slight twist to one side and then back again. (It isn't a bad idea to pull up a tile every now and again to check that your method is working well.) Next place a spacer on every corner that will adjoin another tile. Put another tile down and push it tight against the spacers. Repeat the process with more spacers and tile until you complete the square.

After you have completed an area, take a beater block (usually a piece of 2x4) and lightly tap on it with a rubber mallet to level the tiles. This will also ensure that the tiles are firmly bedded in the adhesive.

After the tile sets up a bit, about 30 minutes, you should pull the spacers out from between the tile. There is a special tool to do this but a small screwdriver and needle-nose pliers will also work.

Let the adhesive dry completely (check the adhesive instructions for drying times) before you walk on the tile.

Grouting the Tile

After the tile adhesive has had time to dry (usually overnight but check the package) it is time to grout the tile. There are two types of grout: sanded and unsanded. Sanded grout is used for joints 1/8" and wider. Most floors have joints that are at least 1/8" but if your joints are narrower, use unsanded grout.

Grout is also available pre-mixed or dry. Bulk grout is usually dry. The dry mix is easy to blend, just follow the instructions. The consistency should be between soupy and thick. It shouldn't run, nor should it be so thick that you can't force it into the joints (gaps).

After the grout is ready to go, take your foam rubber float or other appropriate implement and scoop some grout out. Place the grout on the floor and ,holding the rubber float at a 45 degree angle to the work piece, run the float parallel to the joints in the tile. Round up the excess grout and run the float over the surface several times in order to fill in the joints. When the joints are full, run the float over the surface at a 45 degree angle to the joints in order to level the joints and remove excess grout This may require several passes.

Cleaning Excess Grout

Cleaning the excess grout is normally a three-step process. Allow the tile to set up for 15-20 minutes, or until firm, in the joints. Using a damp sponge wipe any excess grout from the face of the tiles. If you didn't get the grout in the joints right, this is the time you should do it. Just make sure you wring as much water as possible from the the sponge. Rinse out the sponge or rag often enough to keep it clean.

Allow the grout to dry another 45 minutes or until a haze forms on the tiles. Use a rag (or the sponge) to clean the surface of the tiles again. Be careful not to rub the grout from the joints. If it seems like you just can't get the tile clean then let it dry a bit more.

After several hours you should use a clean towel to polish the tiles.

Curing and Sealing the Grout

For the next three days, before using a grout sealer, lightly mist the grout. On the fourth day, use a grout sealer to ensure a good solid installation. These sealers will keep the grout sealed from stains and water.

Painting Kitchen Cabinets

2008-02-25T13:56:00.000-08:00

This is one of the most requested articles that we've seen lately. We do not know why it has become popular lately but, nevertheless, here it is.

Let us start with a quick reality-check: Painting kitchen cabinets, especially those with very glossy finishes, does not produce a finish that is as durable as painting plain wood. The finish is fairly tough but will not resist forks, pans and other abuse often seen in kitchens. I let the paint dry for 6 hours and attempted to scratch it. I had to push my fingernail pretty hard (it hurt) against the finish to scratch it, but scratch it did. However, after 6 days, I could barely make a dent in it. If you are going to do this, try it in an inconspicuous place first.

If your cabinets have a high-gloss finish, you might have to use a deglosser in addition to the steps illustrated here. Parks makes one. You might also consider other alternatives.

Tools:

Quality paint brush
Screw driver

Materials:

Quality paint
Deglosser
Sand paper (320-400 grit)
Steel wool (fine and extra fine)
Paint thinner or mineral spirits
TSP or cleaner

Level of Difficulty: 1 out of 5
Time Required: 4 hours

Clean Up

The first thing to do is to remove all of the hardware. Take off the hinges and handles. After you take off the handles, examine the area around where the hinge was. This will give you a good idea what you are up against. If there is a good-sized ring of crud around it, you are going to need plenty of elbow grease.

Now you have to clean all of that crud up and remove any wax on the surface. We have found that TSP cleaner or mineral spirits give good results. If you use mineral spirits, do so with plenty of ventilation.

If using mineral spirits, dip the steel wool in the mineral spirits, wring it out slightly and then being scrubbing. Make sure that you scrub all areas. You need to remove the wax along with the dirt. If there is wax left on the surface, the primer and paint will not hold well to that area. Make sure that you clean the areas of the cabinet that you are going to paint as well. When done, wipe down the wood with a rag and set it aside to dry.

If you use TSP, employ a good scrub brush and plenty of elbow grease to get rid of the gunk.

Next, lightly sand all of the surfaces to be painted with 320-400 grit sandpaper. You do not need to sand down to bare wood. This will etch scratches into the finish and give the paint and primer something to hold onto. If the sandpaper starts to get loaded with gunk, you did not clean the cabinets completely. Using a rag, wipe down the doors and face frame to remove all dust.

Prime and Paint

Now you have to prime the surface. Use a good quality primer for this that is compatible with the top-coat you are going to use. Kilz and Zinnser are two manufactures that have web sites. Using a good quality trim or sash brush, apply the primer. Apply a good, smooth coat, being careful not to glop it on. Any lumps will show through the final coat(s). Following the label directions, let the primer dry completely. If there are uneven spots, it might be a good idea to lightly sand after it dries with a 400 grit paper.

After the primer has completely dried, apply the topcoat. We highly recommend a quality paint, it will help your finish last longer. In our photographs, we used a semi-gloss latex paint as it cleans easier. We also recommend that you scuff-sand before the second coat.

Floor Refinishing: Sanding Plank Floors

2008-02-25T13:38:00.000-08:00

From time to time, wooden plank floors need to be refinished. Normal wear and tear, to say nothing of dogs and children, can make a floor's finish look dull. This project is easy enough to complete as long as you can handle the sander. They are very heavy pieces of machinery - the platform sander weighs about 125 pounds!

The most important aspect of this project is the technique used when sanding the floor. If you aren't careful while sanding, you can seriously damage the floor. You have to keep the sander moving at an even speed with constant attention to what is happening.

This first step is to asses your floors and determine how much sanding is necessary. There are two levels of floor refinishing: The first is where the finish is damaged but the wood beneath is in good condition. The second is where the finish and the wood are damaged. The objective for both is the same: removing the damaged material while preserving as much of the wood flooring as possible. Floors can only be sanded but so many times before they have to be replaced.

Tools:

Power sander
Edge sander
Paint brush
Vacuum cleaner
Tack rags

Materials:

Wood stain
Wood finish
Sanding disk and pads

Level of Difficulty: 3 out of 5
Time Required: 16 hours

Preparation for the Job

The first thing to do is to remove all furniture from the area you are sanding. Do not try to sand around furniture, it will only cause problems.

The second thing to do is to seal off the area. Sanding invariably produces lots of dust and it will travel to other rooms if allowed. If there are doors to adjoining rooms, close and tape around them. If there are openings with no doors, seal them up with plastic or a drop cloth. If there are registers for air conditioning/heating, remove them and tape over the duct. Next use masking tape to protect baseboards from the edges of the sander.

Inspect the floors for exposed nail heads and other debris. If there are exposed nail heads, you will need to use a nail set to drive them below the surface of the floor. Clean any other debris from the floor as well.

Sanders and Sandpaper

There are two types of sanders that are commonly used. The first type is the drum sander. The second is the pad, orbital or platform sander. Both kinds have their pros and cons.

Drum sanders are big, capable machines that are commonly used by professionals. They must be used with care as they cut fast and you can seriously damage the floor if you don't use a steady, careful motion. If there is significant damage to the wood, this sander will allow you to quickly remove it. If you are simply trying to take up the finish, read on.

Pad (platform) sanders are normally rented at home improvement stores. They are generally more forgiving than the drum sanders as they do not cut as fast as the drum sanders. They also normally employ an orbital motion that makes them easier to use as they seem to "float" a bit. These are recommended for Do-It-Yourselfers. If you are just trying to remove the finish from a floor, the pad sander is a great choice.

Just as there is more than one type of sander, there is also more than one type of sandpaper.� There is sandpaper that looks like regular sandpaper and there is the sanding screen.

Normal sandpaper can be used for projects all the way from finish removal to defect removal. They are available in many grits and can do it all.

Sanding screens are commonly used when removing the finish on the floor. They are also used on the final sanding pass when you are trying to take out damage to the floor boards.

Sanding the Floor

After you have selected the sander that you want to use, it is time to put on the sandpaper and get to work.� Always keep in mind that the objective is to remove as little wood as possible to get the job done.

Picking the Sandpaper

In general, you are going to start with a coarse-grit sandpaper and work your way up to a finer-grit sandpaper for the final sanding. A good rule of thumb is to start with as fine a paper as will get the job done. An easy way to determine the right grit is to test a small, inconspicuous patch with a fine or medium grit paper. Generally 60 or 80. If the paper is taking up the appropriate amount of material, keep using it. If that particular grit isn't cutting enough or if the paper becomes clogged then you should move down a grade. When moving between grits, it is a VERY good idea to vacuum the floor.

Sanding the floor with a DRUM sander

When sanding with a drum sander, only sand to within 4-6 inches of the wall. Start in the middle of the room and sand one half at a time (see diagram). On most drum sanders there is a lever that lowers the drum onto the surface to be sanded.� While slowly moving the sander forward, gently lower the drum against the floor.� Keep the sander moving forward, sanding WITH the grain. As you approach the end of the floor, work the lever to lift the drum from the floor. Pull the sander back to the center of the floor and position the sander so that the second pass will overlap the second pass by a couple of inches. Continue to make passes until you finish up one half and then move to the other half.

Sanding the floor with a PLATFORM sander

The method for sanding the floor with a platform (pad) sander is the same as the drum sander. The platform sander tends to "float" over the surface but continue to push the sander along with the grain of the wood.� A platform sander will also allow you to get closer to the edges.

Sanding the Edges

You can sand the edges with an edging sander or a small random orbital sander.� An edging sander will likely be faster.� Make sure that you sand down to the same level that the big sander left.

Finishing the Floor

There are many different finishes available for the floor. They include, but are not limited to, shellac, varnish, wax, oil and polyurethane. For this article we will be sticking with polyurethane. It is easy to apply and produces consistent results.

Water or Oil?

There is a fair amount of debate about what kind of polyurethane to use: water- or oil-based. Most of it boils down to personal preference and ease-of-use. The water-based variety smells less and dries faster. Some people don't like the "cold" appearance of water-based polyurethane but this can be fixed by tinting the polyurethane (some of it comes pre-tinted). The oil-based polyurethane looks "warmer" out of the can but smells more due to the solvents in the base. If you are uncomfortable making a snap decision, purchase a little can of each and apply it to a scrap. Regardless of the type you pick, make sure that you work with adequate ventilation. Now is also the time to pick the gloss of the final finish. Most people choose satin or semi-gloss.

Staining and Sealing the Floor

If you want to stain the floor, now is the time to do it. Make sure that you use a stain that is compatible with the finish you are using. Some water-based finishes have difficulty adhering to oil-based stains (the reverse is also true). A lot of people like to use a natural colored stain. Whether or not you stain the floor, it needs to be sealed. You seal the floor by "cutting" the finish you are using and applying it to the floor. If you are using water-based poly, cut it with water. If you are using oil-based, cut it with a solvent. In either case, check the instructions for the type and amount of solvent to use. Apply the cut finish to the floor with a brush or painter's pad and allow it to dry. If you are using water-based poly, you need to lightly buff the floor with an abrasive pad (or lightly sand the floor with a fine sand paper) to smooth the raised wood grain and remove imperfections. If you are using oil-based polyurethane, then use fine steel wool to remove the imperfections (DO NOT use steel wool with water-based poly, the particles left behind may rust). After the imperfections have been removed, vacuum the floor and wipe it down with a tack rag.

The next step is to apply at least two more coats of polyurethane to the floor. Make sure you buff the floor with an abrasive pad (water-based) or steel wool (oil-based) between coats to remove the small dust bumps that appear. Be careful how much you buff the final coat as more buffing reduces surface gloss. If you want less gloss, buff more.

Wall Mounted Sink Installation

2008-02-25T13:22:00.000-08:00

If your sink looks like the one in the picture, you need a new one. There are literally dozens of different types of sinks available and you should carefully pick the one that suits you. You can spend a little bit or a small fortune. You can also spend as much on the faucet as you do on the sink itself. Before you buy a new wall sink consider other types of sinks including one with a cabinet below it for additional storage.

If you stick with a wall sink, also consider what sort of tail piece, water connectors and trap to use. You can use the standard plastic pieces but a chrome hookup is more attractive. The installation pictured in this article uses a mix of plastic and chromed hardware and, while not the most attractive, is just as functional. Plastic is also easier to customize for your installation.

Tools:

Large pliers
Plumbers wrench
Screw driver Materials:
Wall sink
Plumbers putty
Teflon tape

Level of Difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 2 hours

Remove Existing Fixture

The first thing to do is to turn off the water to the sink. Make sure that you turn off both the hot and cold water. Before you remove the water supply lines it is a good idea to put a pan underneath the water outlets. Take a pair of pliers or an adjustable wrench and remove the water supply lines from the valves at the wall.

The next step is to remove the existing trap. Use an adjustable wrench or pliers to loosen and remove the nut from the trap. If the nut is very tight, you should use a pipe wrench. If you are planning to reuse the nut, you might want to put a rag around it before putting a wrench on it.

Lift it off!

After all of the pipes are disconnected, check underneath the sides of the sink for screws. Don't remove the screws from the wall bracket yet! The screws on the sides help to stabilize the sink and are generally on the sides.

When you have removed the screws (if there are any), lift the sink straight up and away from the wall.

The Wall Bracket

The wall bracket is the piece of metal that supports the weight of the sink. You might be able to use the bracket that is already there but if it is an old one, like the picture, the new sink may not fit on it. If you have to remove the old one, take note when you remove the screws as at least one of them should have been screwed into a stud or reinforced section of the wall. You might want to reuse that hole if the sink will hang at about the same height when using that hole. If not, you'll have to install the new bracket a bit lower or higher than the old one. Do not go too far above or below that height as you may not hit the reinforced section of the wall. You also have to maintain the horizontal alignment as the drain pipe has to line up with the pipe opening in the wall.

If you have to install a new bracket, you should put the middle screw in part way and hang the sink on the new bracket. Use a brace underneath the sink to help you hold it. Level the sink and mark the wall where you need to drive screws. Pull the sink from the wall and secure the bracket to the wall. There are usually a couple more screws that you have to install after hanging the sink. Look on the sides for the holes. Use a pencil and mark the wall for the holes. If these screws do not hit a stud it is normally not a problem. Since these screws only stabilize the sink you can usually use a drywall anchor for these holes. Set the drywall anchors, if necessary but don't mount the sink on the wall yet.

One note: A tiled wall is the most difficult scenario for installing a new bracket. If you have to install the bracket at a different height, you will have to drill through the tiles. There is a special bit to drill through tiles and it comes in two flavors: one looks a bit like a spade bit and the other is difficult to describe, but here is what they look like. The second flavor is also referred to as a masonry bit. When drilling through the tiles, don't force the drill bit. If you do, the tile might crack. Just keep pressure on the drill and let the bit do the work.

Don't mount the sink on the wall yet!!!

Install the Hardware

Before you hang the sink on the wall, it is best to install the faucet on the sink.� Check the faucet installation instructions for directions on how to do this.� The faucet usually has a gasket that is mounted in between the faucet and the sink.� If it doesn't you may have to use some plumbers putty.� Faucets are normally held in place by large plastic nuts.� Don't install the tail piece (drain pipe) yet.

Hanging the Sink

Hang the sink on the wall and secure the extra screws to the wall.� Check the sink for stability.� It shouldn't wobble.� Now install the tailpiece (drain pipe) and the flange (the part you see from the top) into the sink.� Again, check the instructions as it may have gaskets included or you may have to use plumber's putty.� Either way, install the necessary sealant and tighten up the nut on the bottom of the tail piece.

Make the Connections

The next step is to hook up the trap and the water connections.� Plastic pipes are the� easiest to install as you can easily cut them to length.� There are prefabricated hoses for hooking up the water and these require no pipe dope as they already have gaskets.

The next thing to do is to caulk around the top of the sink.� Use an appropriate color (or clear) for this.� If you need help figuring out caulk, click here.

Installing Recessed Lighting

2008-02-25T12:27:00.000-08:00

If it is time to get rid of the 1960's era light fixture, consider recessed lighting. Recessed lights add an elegant touch to any room and are easy to install. There are many different kinds, some that use small flood bulbs and others that use low-voltage halogen bulbs. A trip to a lighting store is in order for the best selection. In addition, recessed lights focus the light in a smaller area so you may need more lights than were originally present. Make sure your electrical circuit is sized to handle the load! In addition, recessed lighting is best installed in areas where you have access (attic or other) to the area above. Also, please note that insulation should not be place on top of the fixture unless it is rated for such. Check the package or consult with the salesperson at the store.

Items needed:

Recessed lights
Electrical connectors & tape
Drywall "hole" saw
Marking pencil or pen
Stud finder (optional)

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Ensure you electrical circuit is sized to handle new lights
Turn OFF power before making connections
Locate holes between rafters/beams

Level of difficulty 3 out of 5
Time Required: 1 hour

Steps

Step 1: Trace around pattern

Decide where you want to locate your lights. Some thought should be given to how many are needed and where to put them. An even distribution is best but may not fit your needs. A pattern is normally included with the lights, place it on the ceiling and trace around it. Take care to ensure that you are between the beams or rafters.

Step 2: Cut hole

Holding the drywall hole saw, push the saw up into the drywall. Cut around the outline. Make sure the saw is perpendicular to the ceiling as you cut. It will likely be necessary to adjust the hole somewhat when the fixture is pushed into the hole.

Step 3: Make electrical connections

Make the electrical connections. This activity varies from fixture to fixture but generally the wires providing current from the house need to be attached to the fixtures. If you need to expand the wiring to accommodate the new fixtures, make sure all modifications are performed by a qualified individual.

Step 4: Insert fixture

Slide the light up into the hole (some lights have a "remodeling frame" that must first go up). Adjust the hole if necessary. Take care that the hole does not become too large. The fixture should sit flush against the ceiling.

Step 5: Secure fixture

Secure the fixture in place. Some models use a number of small clips, others use a clamp that rotates downwards. Either way, ensure that the fixture is secure.

Step 6: Attach trim

Secure the trim ring and baffle or reflector (if used) to the fixture. Almost all of the models use a small spring clip that slides into a slot in the fixture to secure the trim ring. Needle-nose pliers are the easiest way to secure this clip.

Changing Lighting Fixtures

2008-02-25T12:11:00.000-08:00

Changing style or room use sometimes dictates changing light fixtures. This article will show you how to do it. It is very easy but you must remember to shut off the electricity.

Items needed:

Screwdriver
Electrical tape (optional)
Pliers (depends)
Circuit tester

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Turn off electricity
Use caution on ladder Level of difficulty

Time Required: 1 hour

Steps

Step 1: Shade is removed

Remove the shade from the light. These are usually made from glass or plastic. Remove the light bulbs. Examine the base of the fixture to determine how the fixture is held in place. The first method employs two screws that screw into the junction box.

Step 2: Unscrew nut on threaded rod

The second method uses a threaded rod that screws into a strap that is held onto the box by screws. The rod will normally have a nut on it that holds the fixture. Remove the hardware that holds the fixture and ease it down.

Step 3: Unscrew wire nuts

Remove (and save) the wire nuts that connect the wires from the fixture to the wires from the box. Avoid touching the wires while removing the nuts.

Step 4: Wire tester

Using a circuit tester, test the wires to make sure that they are not live. If they are, go find the right breaker to shut off the power. Take the wires from the light loose.

Step 5: Tighten with wire nut

If your new fixture uses a strap to hold it in place, now is the time to put it up. Using the wire nuts, connect the wires from the new fixture to the wires from the box. Make sure that you connect the bare ground wire as well. Put the wire nuts back on. Make SURE that when you put the wire nuts back on they cover all of the exposed wire. If the do not, take the nut back off and trim the exposed wire.

Step 6: Push wire through fixture

Push the wires back up into the box and hang the fixture. If the fixture uses the two screws, attach the two screws first and push the fixture up so that the screws go through the insulation.

Step 7: Tighten the hanging screws

Then insert heads through the large end of the slots. Twist it slightly to hang it. If necessary, tighten the screws.

Step 8: Tighten nut using pliers

If your fixture uses a threaded rod, slide the fixture up and use the included nut(s) to mount the fixture.

Step 9: Do not exceed wattage

Install the light bulbs. Make sure that you use the correct bulbs. Check the package or the base of the fixture. Flip the switch to make sure the light works. Affix the shade. If you are using the threaded rod, you may need adjustment the rod to make the shade hangs in the right place.

Installing a Remodeling Box

2008-02-25T11:51:00.000-08:00

From time to time you will have to install a junction box or hang a light where there is no stud available. Fortunately, there is a solution. The "remodel", "plaster" or "drywall" box. This box requires no stud to install. If you are hanging a light from one of these, make sure it isn't a 50 pound chandelier! In addition, make sure that you check local codes for requirements.

Items needed:

Remodel box
Screwdriver
Wire
Keyhole saw or reciprocating saw

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Be careful if using a ladder.
Be careful that the wires you are working with are not live!

Level of difficulty: 3 out of 5
Time Required: 1 hour

Steps

Step 1: Mark around box

Locate the where you want the box to be. Put the box up to the ceiling (or wall) and mark around it. Using either a keyhole saw or a reciprocating saw, cut the hole to the necessary size. Make sure that the hole is the right size by pushing the box into it. Adjust as required.

Step 2: Cut out hole

Fish the cable to the hole where you want the box to be. If you need help running cable, see our branch circuit project. Push the bottom of the tabs on the back of the box downward, into the box. These tabs prevent the wire from pulling out of the box. Route the wire(s) (still in the sheathing) through the hole(s).

Step 3: Push the box in

Push the box through the hole until the flange on the bottom is flush with the surface. Tighten the screws until the tabs on the screws pull against the drywall or plaster (you can't see them, you'll have to do it by feel). Don't over tighten them.

Step 4: Tighten box

Install switch or make your junction as you would with any other box.

Fixing Drywall Dings

2008-02-25T11:22:00.000-08:00

Kids beating up your walls? Dings in drywall are one of the more common problems homeowners have to repair. They are easy to fix as long as the damage is cosmetic only. One note, at the hardware store, you don't need a 5 gallon bucket of the joint compound. They sell small tubs of the stuff. They sometimes call it spackling or patching compound.

Items needed:

Tub of Joint Compound
4" (approx.) tape knife
150 grit sand paper
Razor Knife

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Two coats for deep gouges
Cover crayon with Kilz

Level of difficulty: 1 out of 5
Time Required: 1 hour

Steps

Step 1: Remove loose flakes

The first thing to do is to remove all flakes and other loose material. If the paper is damaged, cut it away with a knife so you do not peel a whole bunch of it off. .

Step 2: Spread compound

Using a small putty knife (4" or so) spread the joint compound evenly over the damage. Do not leave extra (like in the picture), you will only have to sand it away later.

Step 3: Go both directions

Spread the joint compound from two different directions, first horizontally, then vertically. This will ensure that you completely fill the void.

Step 4: Sand compound smooth

Wait until the joint compound dries thoroughly and then sand it. If there is still a depression, you may need a second coat of compound. At this point, you can spot prime the area or just paint over it if the repair is fairly small.

Repairing Cracks in Plaster

2008-02-25T11:12:00.000-08:00

Cracks in plaster walls are fairly common and are normally caused by wall movement. If the crack is abnormally wide or deep, you may have a larger problem than a simple crack. This how-to covers how-to fix a shallow crack with real plaster. Drywall compound may be substituted but shouldn't be used to repair historic plaster.

Items needed:

Plaster of paris (compound)
Mesh repair tape
6" tape knife
Bucket to mix plaster

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Wear safety glasses
Follow safety warnings on package.
Work quickly if using plaster

Level of difficulty: 3 out of 5
Time Required: 2 hours

Steps

Step 1: Cut out damaged plaster

Cut the edges of the crack back to the extent of the damage. If you are not using mesh fabric to help the repair, , under cut the edges of the crack to give the plaster something to hold onto.

Step 2: Apply mesh

Apply the mesh (if you are using it) over the crack. Mesh is especially helpful on cracks that keep coming back. The mesh should overlap the edges of the crack by at least an inch. If you are not using mesh, dampen the area to be repaired.

Step 3: Apply compound/plaster

If you are using plaster, mix it up now. Follow the directions on the container. It is normally 1 part cold water to 2 parts plaster. Work quickly as plaster starts to harden rapidly.

Step 4: Finished repair

Using a 6" (or so) tape knife, spread the plaster into and onto the mesh (if you are using it). Work the plaster down so it just covers the mesh fabric. Let it dry overnight, sand it to remove all ridges and apply one more coat. Feather the edges into the existing wall to conceal the repair.

Replacing a Torn Shingle

2008-02-25T10:34:00.000-08:00

Unless you have installed some high quality shingles, you may find that the wind will blow and possibly tear off the edge shingles. This is often caused by the shingles not properly sealing. If you live in an area that regularly experiences high winds, you might want to try architectural shingles which can handle winds up to 110 MPH

Items needed:
Roof cement
Utility knife
Roofing nails
Hammer

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Be careful when working on the roof. Use safety equipment when necessary.

Level of difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 1 hour

Steps

Step 1: Assess damage

The first step is to assess the damage to the shingle. You should do this in warm weather to avoid shingle breakage.

Step 2: Remove damaged shingle

You will need to remove the broken section by pulling the nail. Lift the intact tabs, being careful not to damage any intact shingles. If you have serious problems and need to be aggressive, there are special tools to remove the entire roof section.

Step 3: Nail shingle down

With the old shingle fragments removed, measure for a the replacement shingle. You can cut the shingle to size by scoring it with a utility knife. Using a roofing nail, fix the shingles by nailing above the tab cut (typically there are 3 nails per full shingle). The nail should be covered when you lay the flap down again. Avoid nailing within 2" of the edge of the shingle.

Step 4: Spread sealant around

You will need to seal both on top and below of the replacement shingle. I suggest using a caulking gun and tube of roof cement. Be sure to cover the entire area which will be covered by the tab.

Step 5: Check for loose shingles

Before you leave, check for other loose shingles by lifting the edges and see if the self-sealing contact is not bonded.

Step 6: Apply sealer under edge

If need be, simply apply a liberal amount of roof compound about 1" from the edge of the tab. One area that is often overlooked is the bottom-most row. Be sure to adhere the shingles to the metal roof guard

Resetting the Hinge on Sticky Door

2008-02-25T10:14:00.000-08:00

After a few years your wooden doors may bind and rub against the jamb. Rather than plane the door, consider resetting the hinge. With just a chisel, you can deepen the mortise and realign your door quickly. This technique is both faster and easier than removing the door, planning one edge, refinishing and re-hanging.

Items needed:
Screw driver
Hammer
Chisel

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Remove only one hinge at a time

Steps

Step 1: Door runs against the jamb along top edge

Check to see where the door binds. Typically this is along the top edge. Close the door most of the way and examine the light. There should be at least 1/16" clearance along all edges. The door pictured rubs against the jamb along the top two feet. The door appears to have sagged over time.

Step 2: Check for sufficient gap on hinge side of door

Check along the hinge side of the door to be sure that there is sufficient gap to allow recessing the hinge deeper in the mortise. See if there is a wider gap at the top then at the base.

Step 3: The gap is over one eighth of an inch

Measure the existing gap. The one-eighth of an inch gap will allow the hinge to be recessed another 1/16" deeper.

Step 4: Loosen screws on jamb

Loosen screws on the top hinge from the jamb only.

Step 5: Deepen the mortise with a chisel

Score around the edge of the mortise with a knife . Chisel back 1/16" and reset the hinge.

Tile a Picture Window Sill

2008-02-25T09:56:00.000-08:00

Small two-inch tile turned out to be the perfect finish for our window sill. The window has a nine-inch space almost ten-feet long. The project is a viewing area of an indoor horse arena. We choose a small tile in order to enhance the colored grout line. While the brass railing helps prevent viewers from resting their dirty riding boots on the window sill, we wanted an easy to clean and durable surface.

We selected an near white tile with dark green grout. The light-colored tile accents the pine paneling and matched the painted white window trim. The dark green grout matches the wrought iron furniture.

Tools:

Sponge float
Notched trowel
Sponge
Tile cutter
Tile snipper
Bucket
Work gloves

Materials:

Ceramic tile
Grout
Mastic adhesive
Grout sealer

Level of Difficulty 2 out of 5
Time Required: 4 hours

Preparation

The window still is two layers of 3/4" plywood with no measurable deflection. Normally cement backer board would be used, but the window will not be walked on. The wood surface should be clean and free of surface imperfections. Use a hand scraper or planner to ensure that the mastic will adhere to the clean surface.

Layout

With the surface scraped, vacuum the area and start the layout. First check the area to ensure that the sill is a uniform width. Next, run a string line to see how straight the sill is. It is best to identify any imperfections before trimming the tile. There is probably no need for a chalk line for this particular project.

We purchased tiles in one foot square lots with caulk tabs separating each tile. Depending on your experience level, you may wish to trim off the last row of tiles and cut these tiles separately. We choose to trim off the last row as there are several more cut outs required for the center window columns.

Cut the tile

The best way to cut tile is with a cutter. This unit (often can be rented where you purchase the tile) is used to score and break the tile in a straight line.

To fill pieces near the window column use a tile snip or Rotozip.

For a small project like this, it is best to cut and trim each tile to fit. Be sure to leave a grout gap of about 1/8" around the edges. Now carefully, remove all the tiles from the sill and set them aside.

Spread the adhesive

The adhesive, known as mastic, goes onto the window sill with the notched trowel. We used a small "V-notch" for the small 2" tiles. When applying the adhesive, use the flat edge to apply a layer of adhesive first. Next, hold the trowel at a 45 degree angle to the wall and "comb" the mastic out. With less than 10 square feet, one can probably cover the entire surface in one pass.

Placing the Tile

Start at the edge and work your way down the sill. When pushing the tile against the adhesive, use a slight twisting motion in order to set the tile firmly in the adhesive. If you are using spacers, now is the time to set the spacers on the outside edge of the tile in order to work on the next row of tiles.

After all of the tiles have been placed and the adhesive has setup a bit, clean the adhesive from between the tiles and from their faces. A toothpick is a great tool for this. Allow the adhesive to setup overnight before grouting the tile

Grouting the Tile

After the tile adhesive has had time to dry (usually overnight), it is time to grout the tile. Grout is also available pre-mixed or dry. For the dark green grout, we purchased dry mix. It is easy to blend, just follow the instructions. It should be fairly thick, but not so thick that you can't force it into the joints (gaps).

After the grout is ready to go, take your foam rubber float or other appropriate implement and scoop some grout out. Place the grout on the wall and holding the rubber float at a 45 degree angle to the work piece run the float parallel to the joints in the tile. Round up the excess grout and run the float over the surface several times in order to fill in the joints. When the gaps are full, run the float over the surface at a 45 degree angle to the joints. Run the float over the surface several times until most of the grout is either in the joints or on the trowel.

Cleaning Excess Grout

Allow the tile to set up for 15-30 minutes, or until firm, in the joints. Using a damp sponge or cloth wipe any excess from the face of the tiles. Rinse out the sponge or rag often enough to keep it clean.

Allow the grout to dry another 45 minutes or until a haze forms on the tiles and use the sponge to polish the surface of the tiles. Be careful not to rub the grout from the joints. If it seems like you just can't get the tile clean then let it dry a bit more. After several hours you should use a clean towel to polish the tiles.

Curing the Grout

For the next three days, before using a grout sealer, lightly mist the grout. On the fourth day, use a grout sealer to ensure a good solid installation. These sealers will keep the grout sealed from stains and water.

Pouring a Concrete Pad

2008-02-25T09:44:00.000-08:00

Whether providing a solid foundation on which to put your stairs or keeping your feet out of the mud in front of a door, a concrete pad is an easy (if labor-intensive) project. Working with concrete can be a physically demanding task as the bags are heavy and once water is added it gets worse. Fortunately, it doesn't normally require many bags to pour a small concrete pad. Make sure you read the directions on the concrete. Portland cement can burn your skin and is hazardous to breathe. Take appropriate safety precautions. One other thing: if the slab you are working on is longer than about 4 feet you will need expansion joints to prevent the slab from breaking up.

Items needed:

Concrete
Shovel
1x4 lumber
Saw
Stakes
Nails
Wheelbarrow
Hoe
Trowel

Safety Suggestions and Tips
Concrete normally contains Portland Cement which can burn your skin and is hazardous to breath. Please follow all safety precautions when mixing and handling concrete.

Level of difficulty: 2 out of 5
Time Required: 2 hours

Steps

Step 1: Locate pad

The first step when pouring a pad is to locate where it has to be and how big it needs to be. In this case, we are pouring a pad for the stairs to rest on. The pad itself will be at ground level so it does not have to be big enough to act as a first step.

Step 2: Excavate if necessary

When pouring a simple pad, it is acceptable to pour the concrete directly onto the soil but we chose to dig down a bit in order to make the pad a bit thicker. This will help keep it in place and also resist cracking. In any event, the slab should be at least 4 inches thick.

Step 3: Form

Once the dimensions of the pad are known and any excavation performed, it is time to build a form for the concrete. For most small pads, 1x4 boards are sufficient to support the concrete. Thicker/wider pads may require 2x4's for additional support. Build the frame with nails appropriate for the job. If the form is to be rectangular, ensure it is square and true.

Step 4: Stake

Once the form is built, it needs to be secured to the ground so that it does not move when the concrete is poured. "Surveyor" stakes are available at most home-improvement stores or you can easily cut your own. Drive one stake at each corner but do not secure it to the form yet.

Step 5: Check for level

At this point, the form needs to be leveled up and attached to the stakes. The easy way to do this is to secure the high side to the stakes and then raise the low side to level the form. Fill around the outside of the form if gaps occur with dirt. Ensure that the stakes are lower than the top of the form.

Step 6: Re-bar

Another consideration is reinforcing the concrete. Since these pads aren't very thick and are above the frost line, they will be subjected to a fair amount of stress. This can cause the slab to crack. In order to prevent this, put wire mesh or reinforcing rods into the slab. Wire mesh is probably better for this application as it is less difficult to manipulate than reinforcing rod. In either event, you need to ensure that the rods or mesh "float" in the middle of the pad and do not sink to the bottom. Small plastic "risers" are available for this (We used re-bar in picture as wire mesh wouldn't show up).

Step 7: Screed

Follow the instructions on the package to mix the concrete. Pour it into the form until it reaches the top. Use a "screed" (usually a board) to level the top of the pad. If a smooth finish is desired, the level surface may be "worked" with a trowel to bring the "cream" to the top. If not, wait a bit and brush the surface with a broom for a rougher finish. Cure the concrete according to the manufacturers instructions - usually by covering with plastic for 7 days.