Drywall problems

[barry]

There's "setting" compound, and "drying" compound, with variants. Former is dry- you mix w/water, and it reacts with water and hardens. Latter dries (& shrinks some) and hardens in the process, IF conditions are suitable for drying (temp, RH.) IME, either will stick to pretty much anything, especially exposed sheetrock gypsum layer.

Second, the paper on sheetrock provides some/most of its physical strength. And ... even if the paper is left in place, sanding it makes for fuzzy final product. DAMHIKT. Paint will seal the gypsum layer, but will take a few coats

Sure sounds like some wall sections should be stripped and redone properly. They could write off the earlier sessions as OJT. Can you find someone local who can inspect and advise?

J

[Bryan Martin]

We bought a mod home back in May from Oakwood. Nice looking house but very poor quality. Anywho.... When they placed the house together in the middle and applied the drywall the first time they did not sand it down properly which left hugh valleys and humps where they painted strait over the mud making nice shadows at night when the lights are on. They came back in a sanded it and redone it which looked much better and we were fairly satisfied with it. They came back at a later date to fix additional unresolved issues and it just so happened the supervisor came on site with them. He decided that the wall was not up to par and called back in another crew to go back to work on the same place. Anyway, to make a long story short they spend two days on a spot about 4X6 mudding and sanding complaining that the mud just isn't sticking. They finally gave up and said they would be back to finish the job sometime later. I was not in during this process but after looking at it they have actually sanded down and peeled in places the first paper looking coat off the drywall leaving the rough cement rock looking stuff exposed. I figured this is why they cant get it to stick.

Thinking more and more about this, I believe that even if they do get it someone back sanded and sticking would this not cause problems later down the road? Wouldn't the paint applied in this area have a tendency to just soak in? At this point should I just force them to hang more dry wall?

[RicodJour]

Yep. They've destroyed the integrity of the existing drywall. Have them cut back to the nearest stud and install new board.

Sanding right through the paper is the sign of a hack. You have to build up the mud and feather out the transition until the bump is not noticeable. They might have to feather it out a couple feet on either side.

You should be aware that placement of lights so that the light is shining along the wall at a low angle highlights the imperfections in the wall. Not sure if you can, or want to, move the lights, but it would help.

R

[rider89]

you should have the sheets replaced. if the paper layer is gone, the gypsum is probably what's preventing the paint from "sticking". in the future, this chalking problem could shed paint, etc especially during times of temperature and humidity changes and you'd also likely get some paint cracking in these areas. those guys were definitely not drywall tapers.

bill