How to Drywall Corners: a Complete Guide
Lots of people, whether professionals or do-it-yourselfers, love drywall because not only does it offer a great final product, it’s low cost and relatively simple to work with. Still, don’t confuse “simple” with “easy.” After all, they’re drywall pros for a reason: it takes practice and a sure hand to get the best results. Without a doubt, the toughest aspect of drywall work to get perfect is finishing – and that goes double for corners, since you have to seamlessly blend not only multiple sheets of drywall, but multiple surfaces together. It can be tricky at first but it’s the key to beautiful results. In this guide, we’ll take a look at everything you need to know to get great results on both inside and outside corners.
Planning and Practice
Like any DIY project or construction job, planning is key. Make sure you’ve got all the tools and materials you need before you start – there’s nothing more frustrating than getting part of the way through the job and then finding you don’t have enough supplies or that you’re missing an important tool. Consider preparing materials in advance as well – for instance, you can cut tape to length before you start, saving you crucial seconds while the mud is drying. The other fundamental component of any finishing job is practice. You probably won’t nail it the very first time you try, so before you tackle difficult finishing tasks like inside corners, you should practice mudding and taping somewhere easier – like a standard tapered joint – before moving on. Even better is to practice somewhere that the results won’t be easily visible, such as inside a closet or utility room. This will ensure that the joints that count, like high-visibility joints and corners in heavily trafficked rooms, will look their best.
How to Drywall Outside Corners?
While finishing corners of any type is trickier than doing flat joints, outside corners are the easier of the two types, thanks to corner bead. If you’re not familiar with it, corner beads are pre-finished corners in either metal or vinyl that can be applied to the outside corner to finish it almost instantly. Some companies even make decorative beads that can be used to create molding, rounded corners, and other effects in an instant while simultaneously taking the hassle out of finishing. Let’s take a look at how to do it: