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Bad Drywall Job – Guides to Signs and Fixes

Drywall is a very useful solution to create very good and aesthetic interior walls. And there are lots of people giving drywall installation services. If you are not taking any advice from anybody, it can be very hard to select the best drywall applier. If you need to take a service, it will be better to know the bad drywall job that is done in your house. And also, if you have these signs, we will give the different solutions for these bad drywall jobs that you can fix yourself. 

What are the Drywall Finish Levels? 

First of all, you need to know the general finish levels of the drywall applications that you need to get for different interior areas. So will assess if there is a bad drywall job for different interior areas. 

  • Level 1: This is the lowest finish that the drywall job can take. This finish is generally applied to the places where hidden from the view. For example, the places attics and above ceilings. In general tool marks and seams are allowed in this job. So, you do not need to expect a very good finish in these places. 
  • Level 2: This is another level where some of the mistakes are allowed. This application is generally applicable to garages, warehouses, or basements. And the final appearance is not important. The fasteners and the seams are generally covered with a thin layer of plaster. 
  • Level 3: This is the middle range of finish that is used for interior applications where heavy wallpapers or heavy paintings will be used. The joints must be smooth and the fasteners must be compounded with the plaster application. In general drywall, appliers apply the required amount of drywall primers. 
  • Level 4: If you will apply a light wallpaper or thin layer of paper on the drywall application, this is the required level standard for the drywall job. The seams and the fastener markings must be fully covered with drywall compıunds. The wall must be free from tool marks. And also the operator must use tapes to obtain the best angles. 
  • Level 5: If the wall will require gloss or semi-gloss paint, you need a very good amount of finish for the wall application. And if the light will severe, probably minimal mistakes will be visible. Because of this, Level 5 workmanship is the best and highest level of drywall job. After the application of Level 4, you need to apply a skim coat to obtain the required amount of finish. Also, it is very important to know that the sections must be properly sanded. 

And you know what you need to expect from a drywall job that is made in your home. 

Signs of Bad Drywall Job 

Rough surface on drywall.
Rough surface on drywall. Image source: diy.stackexhange.com.

And you can start to assess the general signs of a bad drywall job applied in different areas. If you know these signs, you can warn the operator that applies for the drywall job about the work. 

  • Visible joints: In drywall applications, we apply different drywall panels to each other. And some sections appear as joints. So, if these joints are visible after the full drywall application, it is a big sign that you had a bad drywall job. 
  • Visible nail and screw holes: Also in the drywall applications, we are using nails and screws to apply the drywall panels to the walls. And after this application, we use drywall compoıunds to hide these applications. So if these fasteners and screws are visible, this means that you had a bad drywall job. It is a very big indication. 
  • Corners: The situation o the corners is a very big example of good workmanship. And the corners must be straight and even. There are no unevenness and gaps allowed in the drywall job. If there is unevenness at the corners, this means that you had a bad drywall job. 
  • Rough surface: As you can easily guess that we do not allow the rough surface in interior drywall applications. Rough surfaces are generally made by the expert with the drywall compound. Sanding is the most common application and if you do not apply the sanding properly, your drywall will not be good. 
  • Cracks: Also if cracks take place after the drywall job, you need to know that it is not a good application. The cracks generally take place at the sharp edges of the application. And the other reason for the cracks is the temperature changes. The material selection plays an important role to prevent teh crack formation. 
  • Crooked panels: Crooked panels generally take place because of unskillful application. Because the placement and the application of the screws need a level of skill in general. Also, crooked walls are the main reason for the bad and crooked application. And a skillful expert must be able to apply the panels correctly to the walls without any problem. 
  • Sagging ceilings: Most of the people that made a drywall job have this problem. Sagging ceilings can be a problematic issue if the higher thicknesses f of drywall applications are not selected. And also if the distance between the beams of the ceiling is very high, this can be another reason that you have a sagging ceiling problem. 
  • Mess after work: Also it is another important thing that shows the high-quality drywall job. The drywall job creates lots of dust and mess. And the expert must clean the environment to prevent this mess harm other objects. For example, the dust from the drywall job can harm the door locks and hinges. If the operator left the environment messy you can be sure that you had a bad drywall job.
  • Moisture: Moisture is not a direct indicator of a bad drywall job. Because the drywall material is not a good material to deal with moisture. Moisture means there is contact with teh drywall system with the water. And you need to find the source o the moisture to deal with this problem. Also, teh expert must select a proper material if the moisture is a permanent problem.  

How to Deal with Bad Drywall Job? 

Sagging ceiling problem in bad drywall job.
Sagging ceiling problem. Image source: Finehomebuilding.com.

It is very important to know the level of drywall job that is applied to a specific place. And you need to know the general expectations. If you think that you had a bad drywall job, you need to call the person that made the job and tell them about your problem. 

If you can not take a response from teh applicant, you can send bad feedback on social media and the website that the person selling this service. 

And if you need to solve that problem on your own, we will try to help you here. 

Fix for Rough Surface 

We recommend you do not fix this problem with only painting. Because if the roughness is very high, you will have a very bad painting. First of all, you can start sanding the rough surfaces of the drywall job. And also you can apply a drywall compound for openness. After the application leaves it is dry. And apply the sanding. 

If you find the level of roughness after your job, you can easily apply the paint. 

Fixing the Visible Seams in Bad Drywall Job

Visible seams on a ad drywall job. Image source:

Also, visible seams in your drywall job are very annoying. How an expert can do this low-quality job? Anyway, let’s dive into the solution. 

  • At the joint, probably there is a tape and compound application. You need to remove this application with a drywall knife. You need to be sure that you got rid of all the old tape and mud. 
  • By using a proper sander, sand this area thoroughly to apply the new tape and mud. Sanding application will leave dust on teh surface. You need to clean this dust to apply the drywall in a good way. 
  • And you need to apply one coat of primer. Check the instructions for use of the primer that you are using and apply it according to it. And let it dry. 
  • After drying, apply the drywall compound on teh drywall seam gently. Be sure that the surface is smooth enough to apply the drywall tape on it. 
  • Apply the tape after it dries and apply the second layer of drywall compound. If you use a wide drywall knife, it will help to make it much flatter and without roughness. Let it dry. 
  • After it dries, apply the sand on the seam. And apply teh third layer of drywall compound. 
  • When the third layer dries, apply the sand and be sure that you obtained the required amount of seam job. 
  • Lastly, apply the primer and let it dry. After it dried, you can apply the paint. 

Fixing the Visible Screws and Fasteners 

Screw application on a drywall job.
Screw application on a drywall job. Image source: homeserve.com.

If there are visible screws and fasteners, you can solve it. You just need to use a hammer to apply the nail too much deeper with tapping. And if there is a screw application, you can screw it to the deeper. 

After that, you can apply teh drywall mud to fill the spaces. And let it dry. After it dries apply sandpaper to these sections. And apply primer and let t dry. After it dries apply teh paint. 

Preventing the Drywall Cracks

Also, drywall cracks are a very important problem if you are thinking about the interior aesthetics of your home. And the main cause of the cracks on the drywall is teh temperature changes and the pointed edges. 

To prevent it, you need to scrape away the cracked section with a drywall knife. Clean the surface and apply drywall tape on the section that cracks. And you need to select a proper drywall compound that is durable to the temperature changes. Apply it according to teh steps that we explained above. And then apply teh paint to it. You will probably not have the same problem again. 

Bad Corners in Bad Drywall Job

Bad corners on a bad drywall job. Image source: diychatroom.com.

Fixing the bad corner applications requires very expert attention and experience on these applications. It will be better to call another drywall expert who can deal with this problem thoroughly. 

Fix for Crooked Panels and Sagging Ceilings

Like the bad corners, the solution of teh crooked panels requires an experience with these applications. Probably you do not have any experience with that and call an expert for it. Because applying new panels to the crooked wall requires a good handicraft. And they probably use special solutions to solve this problem. 

Also sagging ceiling problems may take place because of the bad selection of thickness. You need to apply a thicker panel on the ceiling to prevent the saggings. 

Fix for Mess After Work in Bad Drywall Job

If the environment is messy after the drywall work that they apply, it is very important to clean the dust and the garbage. Because there are lots of messy products in teh drywall applications and you need to be sure that the environment is clean. To do it, you can use brushes and cleaners to apply the cleaning on the surfaces and walls. 

Fixing the Moisture Problem 

Moisture problem on a drywall.
Moisture problem on a drywall. Image source: houzz.com.

First of all, you need to define the source of the moisture problem in your home. You can call a plumber to diagnose the moisture problem on your walls. After solving the real source of the moisture, you can remove the drywall application and install the new one. 

Also, if moisture is a permanent problem as we stated above, it will be much better to select a proper wall material to prevent moisture affect the walls. 

Conclusion on Bad Drywall Work 

So, we tried to give all the necessary information about the indications of the bad drywall work. And also we give the possible solutions to prevent bad drywall work. 

And if you know the general levels of the surface finish in the drywall work applications, it will be very easy for you to decide the level of the handicraft that you need. 

Finally, if you have additional comments and questions about this topic, please leave them below. 

Uğur Uygun

Hello everyone, I am Uğur. I am a mechanical engineer who has experience in different R&D departments of HVAC companies. With my best friend, I decided to build this website to share out knowledge and experience. And also, I am interested in automotive. So, I am writing about automotive and automotive-related articles here. Sharing my knowledge and experiences on these topics is a very big pleasure for me. I am willing to answer all of the questions people have about these topics.

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