A saucepan lid makes a good container for joint compound, since the lid's knob letsyou hold the "bowl" easily during application. (When you've finished, make sure you rinse out the lid before any residue hardens.) Other easy to hold containers are a bathroom plunger or half of a hollow rubber ball. To prevent a toggle bolt from slipping into a wall cavity before a hang-up is in place, insert a washer under the bolt's head. (The hole needed for the bolt is normally larger than the bolt's head). To hold a heavy bolt in a masonry wall, taper a dowel and drive it into a small hole. Then drive the bolt into the dowel.
If a screw hole in the wall has worn-down grooves, stuff the hole with a cotton ball soaked in white glue, and let it dry for 24 hours. You'll then be able to insert a screw securely using a screw driver.
To patch a small hole in drywall you can use a tin can lid covered by a plaster patch. Thread a wire in and back out through two holes in the can lid, and then slide the lid behind the wall through horizontal slits cut out from each side of the hole. Pull the lid flat on the inside, and hold it in place while you apply plaster.
A beer can opener makes a good tool for cutting loose plaster out of a wall before patching a large crack. Use the pointed end of the opener to undercut and widen the opening. It will be easier to fill a large hole in the wall if you first jam a piece of wallboard into the hole, and then mar the wallboard's surface so it's rough. The spackle will adhere tightly to the wallboard piece and won't sink in and require further applications. It's best to fill wide cracks in plaster from the inside out, pressing fresh plaster in with a putty knife or a trowel.
Adding a tablespoon of white vinegar to the water when mixing patching plaster will keep the compound from drying too quickly, allowing you more time to work. You'll be able to remove a damaged ceramic tile easily if you first drill a hole through its center and score an "X" across it with a glass cutter. Then chisel out the pieces. To fit a ceramic tile around the stem of a shower pipe, cut the tile in half and then cut semicircles out of each half with tile nippers. When replacing an individual ceramic wall tile, it helps to tape it securely to surrounding tiles until its mastic dries.
If a screw hole in the wall has worn-down grooves, stuff the hole with a cotton ball soaked in white glue, and let it dry for 24 hours. You'll then be able to insert a screw securely using a screw driver.
To patch a small hole in drywall you can use a tin can lid covered by a plaster patch. Thread a wire in and back out through two holes in the can lid, and then slide the lid behind the wall through horizontal slits cut out from each side of the hole. Pull the lid flat on the inside, and hold it in place while you apply plaster.
Adding a tablespoon of white vinegar to the water when mixing patching plaster will keep the compound from drying too quickly, allowing you more time to work. You'll be able to remove a damaged ceramic tile easily if you first drill a hole through its center and score an "X" across it with a glass cutter. Then chisel out the pieces. To fit a ceramic tile around the stem of a shower pipe, cut the tile in half and then cut semicircles out of each half with tile nippers. When replacing an individual ceramic wall tile, it helps to tape it securely to surrounding tiles until its mastic dries.
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