How to Finish Drywall For Beginners | Nestrs

This video about finishing drywall is sponsored by Lowes Home Improvement.

Hanging drywall is one thing but finishing is another! Don't fret, Nick has over 18 years of experience and shows you how to finish drywall without any fancy tools. Everything used here can be picked up at your local Lowes.

There are 4 steps to finishing drywall: taping, second coat, skimming, and sanding!

Mixing Mud and Taping- :43 to 8:05

Second Coat- 8:06 to 13:03

Skim Coat- 13:04 to 15:08

Sanding- 15:09 to the end!

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Here are the tools we used for finishing the drywall:

After watching this video do you feel less intimidated to tackle your own drywall finishing projects?

[shaneacevedo]

So many haters just want people to think that drywall finish is some impossible thing to justify their career. Maybe someone learning from a YouTube video won’t get it right on the first try but stop hating on someone offering advice to those who choose to undertake their own project. It’s not rocket science folks, just takes practice after you get instructions on what to do. Take chances and save some money…Good video.

[kerbyjohnson]

It is surprisingly incredibly difficult to find a full video on drywall from step 1 - step 3+. So many of them just cover one step and as a beginner, I had NO clue what sequence of steps I should be doing. Thank you so much for making this video, breaking it all down, and giving the FULL spectrum of what the steps are. Seriously, I searched the internets for weeks to find this and I couldn't be more thankful!!

[dohlemacher]

Who's giving these types of videos a thumbs down? He's essentially giving/telling us many years of experience at no cost to us.

[meaghanfranzenburg]

As a single mom going through her first time home buying experience with no help and no one to be able to help me fix things once I find my home…Your videos has helped me so much.!!! Thank you so much!!!

[gotribe]

Step 1: Watch this video and get confident.
Step 2: Realize this guy is way better at drywall then you will ever be.
Step3: Sand for days.

[victorhernandez]

I’ve worked on drywall since I was 10 and now I’m 21. I have watched so many videos on how to drywall just to make see if people do it differently, but I notice that you guys are honestly the only ones who do it correctly.

[vrrusa]

You guys are great! Couple things... Need to tell beginning drywallers about "hot" mud. The "do it fast" temptation is huge for new mudders. I use small batches (just a pan full, no more) of 45 or 120 for my 1st coat on spaces, joints & screws. It gives me enough time to work but dries fast enough that I can apply the second coat the same day.

Things to remember with hot mud: SMALL Batches & never mix the crusties back into good mud. I keep a 2nd pan (I like plastic - easier to clean) to put scrapings into. Clean EVERYTHING really well before you make a new batch or it gets hard and you will NEVER get it off. 45 stays workable for about 30 min & 120 for about 90. Set a timer! It is harder than regular mud so it fills in spaces better but it is harder to sand too. If you practice before you actually do a wall, you can get the hang of it quickly & see how fast it set up. It will take you longer than you think it will if you are new to it. FOLLOW THE DIRECTIONS on the bag or avoid all of this & use the premixed stuff y'all are using.

I hate sanding so I am super careful when mudding and take longer than most people do to avoid that.

The other things I do are:
(1) Run the corner of the knife on concrete real quick (sidewalk, garage floor, etc.. - it will leave a mark on the concrete so be discrete) ; just enough to get rid of the point, but not create a burr. It is a personal preference but it makes corners a breeze.

(2) Before I mud, I grab a phillips screwdriver & I run my knife over EVERY screw head. I listen for a "ting" sound from high screws. I can easily tighten them as final prep before I start mudding. Trying to do it while mudding slows me down & is super messy, but it NEEDS to be done. You can't leave high screw heads. They will always show, will tear your sand "paper" & the wall will look like crap.
(3) Wash your stuff quickly & DRY it quickly. EVERYTHING rusts & it rusts fast! Rust not only ruins your equipment, but it leave discolored streaks in any mudding you try to do later (i.e., the second & skim coats...).
(4) I set up a work light at a right angle to the wall while I am mudding & sanding so I get shadows from ridges, etc...

(5) DO NOT clean your stuff in the kitchen or bathroom sink... Mud, especially hot mud, will ruin your plumbing. First, scrape excess mud into a garbage bag & toss it out. Then scrub everything with a green scrubbie pad & dry it well with paper towels. Make sure you get EVERYTHING off if you are using hot mud or it can cause the next batch to harden too fast & you get lumps. Wash tools somewhere where drywall mud haze won't matter. There will be haze.


Final words of warning - Drywall dust & the edges of drywall will RUIN your floors! It is super gritty & will scratch everything. So DO NOT track it everywhere while you are working. Put an old rug at doorways to wipe your feet on. Close room doors so the dust doesn't float all over the rest of the house. It is very hard to get off of stuff. It is also awful for your lungs & eyes masks & glasses are a must. The shop vac is your friend.

[lestershaw]

Should give us an idea on how much soap to use also how much water to add to the compound. Otherwise not to bad.

[joshberkley]

by far the best drywall instructional video iv seen so far

[rachael]

I’m planning on adding drywall to my den, this is gonna be my second diy project im doing in my house. I’m 17, have no idea how to do this, but your videos are very informative! Most videos on here use language and vocabulary I don’t understand, but you really word this so anybody can understand. It’s less intimidating and makes me feel a lot more confident in doing this. Thank you!

[EddyJames]

That's a really great job of explaining things. I have seen many guys just roll along and criticize even though they didnt explain it. This was well done. Great that you offer this to people. You and your wife are very easy to watch and follow. Some people seem almost like they dont want people to know the work well, almost like they are trying to remain the knowledgeable one...which is such a character flaw... thanks for telling it properly, and clearly. This was the best Ive seen so far, and I mean from sooo many videos. Well done you two, for real.

[wallygoots]

This is really helpful and detailed. It is nice to see the process broken down into steps and why.

[ncruncher]

Great video!! Thorough and simple enough for a beginner to follow along. Thanks for sharing!!

[fishingismetal]

I usually hate tutorial videos but this one was good and helpful.

[sherryh]

Thanks! I’m getting divorced and my husband left the whole sunroom with barely one coat of mud. This was a great help. I wouldn’t even try this if I didn’t have this demonstration and list!

[joenwc]

Over the years I have done many projects that ended with drywall, I have gotten better (a little) I have never sought instruction but I saw your video and wow did this old dog learn some new tricks! Thanks so much for posting, you kept it pretty simple and didn't bog the viewer down with info overload, just what a beginner needs to get started!

[garywaskow]

Best, clearest most useful instrunction on drywall work I've ever seen. Thank you

[Sonny]

This is the most organized diy video with all the basic instructions in one. Thank you.

[cwhitmore]

Thanks for producing this video. I just finished replacing the faux paneling/sheetrock in a corner of my garage after watching your video (several times.) This was my first try and drywall finishing. Thank again 😄

[erictowery]

Thank you for this video. It has really saved me a lot of time and sanding. I'm 44 and starting my own business which means building some additional rooms in a store front. Again thank you.