I have a house I'm preparing to sell which has some minor termite damage. House has been treated & bug free for a decade or more, but several areas have odd drywall damage wherein the termites actually ate the paper off the drywall & from underneath the paint. Damnedest thing you ever saw. My inclination to save time/effort is simply to remove all the loose bits & mud the whole surface level (we're talking about an area about the size of one
4x8 sheet). I know the consensus on this is probably going to be "replace the effected sheetrock", but failing that what might be some other options be? If I go with a re-mud, should I just use regular joint compound, or might something else be better?
Concealing a termite infestation would be less than nice, if there is a chance it is active. Leave the drywall alone, have a termite inspection and spend the money to at least treat any that are found. Likely that the blistered drywall is around door or window, and termites are in structural wood. They don't come to the surface, as they don't like daylight. They do the same thing with wood - eat to within the thickness of paper from the outside of the wood, the point at which appearance of the wood can change but they haven't come through to the surface. How long since your last termite inspection? What kind were they?
We have old damage in our condo - inside and out. Drywood termites x2 before we lived here. Found subterranean termites in exterior wood partition that wasn't in contact with other wood structure - one section of a 1x12, about a foot long, had nothing left of it but the paint. Termites don't eat through paint, which is a good hint about prevention.
As I clearly said, the house is free of termites. I'm not talking about "concealing" anything. Termites are endemic to this area and the holes drilled in the basement floor & walls, garage slab etc for treatment are plainly visible. My question concerns the best manner for repairing the drywall damage.
It wasn't clear to me :o) Free, as in professional inspection with no bugs found? Good! How large an area, by the way? Probably should remove the paint (all that is left) over the damaged area, spackle, prime, paint.
The house is inspected annually by Orkin & I pay them ~$200/year for continued insurance, which is transferable. The total area damaged is probably 18 inches square, in 5-6 locations inside an area about 4x8 feet. Spackle/prime/paint was what I had in mind, I was just wondering if joint compound was the best for this or if I should use something like one of the "plastic-DAP" type products. Basically were talking about a depth equivalent of the thickness of the paint & drywall paper coating.
gee how about the wooden structure behind the sheetrock??? was that also replaced???? with their insurance policy... dont let them just spray for the bugs if you got a policy with them......
If the sheetrock is gone, so is the wood framing behind it. Your exterminater/insurer did not look because he did not want to fix the framing his contract is supposed to cover. Rip off some of the sheetrock and check for framing damage. And besides, shouldn't the contract cover the repair anyway??
Sorry if I seem like I'm being a pisher here, but really ... c'mon -- how much is does a single sheet of new drywall cost? Four bucks? Jeez. Besides, it'll probably take far less time to replace the sheet than to mud and sand everything even.
I don't know if you're a pisher or not, but like everyone else who's replied, you're assuming you know the full details of the situation when you do not, instead of just responding to my question. Perhaps I have reasons know only to me (like, I dunno, a BAD BACK or other health concerns) for not putting up a new sheet of drywall which, while maybe only costing $4, is HEAVY. PLUS I got no way to get the goddam thing HOME, so I'd have to PAY at least $25-$40 for the delivery of that ONE $4 sheet. Not to mention it's UNNECESSARY considering the degree of damage.
And to the other individuals who think they can divine the condition of
2x4's via email, (Jim & Art) you happen to be WRONG. There AREN'T any structural problems associated with this damage, JUST the DRYWALL. Have another beer guys & go watch a NASCAR race or something.
Thanks for nothing gentlemen. I guess this is the kind of advice you get from people who have nothing better to do than 2nd guess strangers all night long on the internet, instead of simply assuming the IP might actually have a better 1st hand grasp of the nature & extent of the situation (being as he IS the only one actually THERE and all) and just responding constructively to his inquiry. Don't happen to know if mud is better than DAP is better than Compound X in this situation? Here's an idea, DON'T SAY ANYTHING.
Now you guys can go back and forth about this for the next couple days amongst yourselves, I'm deleting the NG from my list.
Given your attitude, it's not surprising that you apparently have no friends with an actual van, SUV, or car with some roof-lash bungee cord to cart your ass down to Home Depot and help you drag a $4 sheet of rock up or down a flight of your stairs. OK, 2 sheets -- you'll just have an extra one on hand for more termites or mice or whatever occasional vermin-related problem may riase its ugly head in the future. Maybe if you sprung a few extra bucks for a six pack and a 6-incher from Subway, you wouldn't have these transportation/materials handling difficulties.
And BTW, sorry for my initial insensitivity toward your other "health concerns," which appears to be an apparent allergic reation to such simple functions as handling drywall screws and an electric drill with the attachment bit that makes those nifty dimples into the rock.
Yeah sure. Termites that eat gypsum board paper but leave the supporting wood untouched. I suggest you contact National Geographic, the Orkin Insitute, and the folks at the Nobel Institute immediately. I sense some major grant money in your future.
BTW, we watch WWF wrestling around here. NASCAR is for those of us who graduated college and vo-tech. Get it right, willya?
Well, duh -- what the f*ck do you expect for free?
But there almost certainly are guys around here who know whether "mud is better than DAP is better than Compound X," but they're surely not likely to tell you now, what with NASCAR season and everything. However, chances are they'd tell you to just replace the damn sheet of rock and be done with it to begin with.
Bon voyage. Let us know whether that raft made of bamboo shoots and coconut shells got you off the island, too.
maybe you can just cut out the damaged portion and replace it? that way you don't need to bring home the whole sheet, you can cut the sheet in half and that will fit in the car
Bill wrote: > I don't know if you're a pisher or not, but like everyone else who's > replied, you're assuming you know the full details of the situation when you > do not, instead of just responding to my question. Perhaps I have reasons > know only to me (like, I dunno, a BAD BACK or other health concerns) for not > putting up a new sheet of drywall which, while maybe only costing $4, is > HEAVY. PLUS I got no way to get the goddam thing HOME, so I'd have to PAY > at least $25-$40 for the delivery of that ONE $4 sheet. Not to mention it's > UNNECESSARY considering the degree of damage. >
Didja take down the drywall, inspect the studs, and put it back up? It would be exceedingly strange for the drywall paper to be damaged and have no other damage. Your amazement at the nature of the damage suggests you don't know much about termites. Having ten year old damage, and seeking repair advice prior to selling suggests you are inclined to conceal. Forgive us for not "divining" your true motives.
Not much guessing entailed - seems obvious.
Here's an idea - leave the drywall as is and let the buyer know what they are getting. I sold a house, in need of a roof and a paint job. A little dingy inside, but well cared for. The house sold quickly and the price was good. The buyer knew exactly what they were getting, down to the moldy spot on the bathroom ceiling (caused by a new leak in roof, which was repaired) and the hairline crack in the dining room wall.
All things considered, including your bad back, it's easiest to put on a new sheet of sheetrock. Split it down the middle before bringing it home, then mud the extra seam. It *is* easier than making a large messed-up patch look good.
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