finish drywall or greenboard
Finishing drywall is a technique used to prepare your drywall for paint or texture. It is not real difficult but does take a certain amount of skill and lots of practice.
Instructions
1. For your first coat apply a generous amount of joint compound (mud) over your drywall seam. You always want to use a little more than what you feel you should to make sure there are no air bubbles under your tape(If there are air bubbles under the tape it will not have a good bond and will pop up later). Cut your joint tape to the desired length, then apply it over the seam you just mudded. Using your 6" drywall knife start at the top and applying moderate pressure pull the knife down the tape so that you are pressing the tape tight to the wall. You may have to do this a couple of times so that your tape does not have any lumps or wrinkles in it. Let dry approximately 24 hours unless you are using plaster or a quick dry powder with your joint compound, which is a completely different procedure and takes time to learn.
2. Using the 8" drywall knife you are ready to apply your second coat. Apply your second coat the same as the first, except that you are covering the top surface of your joint tape this time. Apply a generous amount making sure that you cover the tape. Then starting at the top apply more pressure to the left or right side of the knife to pull the majority of the mud off of the drywall and then do the other side. Try not to apply to much pressure in the center as this will remove all of the mud off the tape. Allow to dry approximately 24 hours.
3. Using the 12" knife you are ready to apply the third and final coat. Your third coat is a skim coat, so you want to apply the joint compound with a thin layer. Then starting at the top wipe off all the compound you just applied, making sure you pull your edges down real tight to eliminate as much sanding as possible. Do not worry about small ridges, nicks or scratches as you can remove these when you sand. It also helps to add just a little bit of water to your joint compound on this coat to allow it to go on smoother and cover better.
4. Taping your inside corners is a little tricky. Apply your mud to both sides of your corner using your 6" knife and then cut your tape to the desired length. Fold one end of your tape. Grasping the folded end with your fingers pull the tape through your other hand folding it all the way down. Apply the tape to the corner and using your 6" knife pull the tape down tight on one side and then the other side so that you do not leave wrinkles or air bubbles. Let dry approximately 24 hours. Apply the second coat on one side of the tape at a time and let dry thoroughly. If you try to do both sides at once you will leave a groove in the corner. After you have done both sides of the tape in your corner you should be ready to sand.
5. Applying metal corner bead to your outside corners. Measure and cut your corner bead to the desired length going all the way from the floor to the ceiling. Always cut your corner bead at a 45 degree angle at the top so that the tip in the center touches the ceiling, so that you do not have an edge that is hard to cover with your mud. Put your corner bead in place, using 1 5/8" drywall screws, place a screw every few inches to hold the bead down. Be careful not to put the screws in too tight or you will bend the corner bead. Just tight enough so they can be covered with your mud. There are also corner bead crimpers that you can buy, but they are fairly expensive.
6. Using your 8" knife apply a generous amount of mud so that it is fairly level from top to bottom and then pull it down smooth. Let dry for 24 hours. Do not worry about all the cracks in the mud that you see after the first coat dries, that is caused by shrinkage and evaporation of the water. This will be covered on the next coat. Using your 12" knife you are ready for the final coat. Apply a generous coat of mud covering all the cracks, then pull it down tight removing the majority of the mud. (Always remember to pull your edges down tight to eliminate as much sanding as possible). Let dry for 24 hours.
7. Where you have 2 joints that come together in your drywall that do have the factory beveled edges you will need to apply your mud quite a bit thicker on your first coat so that when you do your final coat with your 12" knife you can bring the mud out away from the seam about 12 to 14 inches on either side thus eliminating a hump in the middle where your tape is. This is a little bit more tricky but must be done or it will show after you have painted. Let everything dry thoroughly and then you can begin sanding. Sand everything down smooth paying attention to all of your edges. You can come back with a wet rag after you have sanded to get any further imperfections. This will also eliminate drywall dust. You are now ready to apply your primer coat. Do not worry about small nicks and scratches after you prime your walls, these can be pointed up using your 6" knife.
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