Drywall repair near you

Now the part that comes before any of it, because it is the one thing on this page that can hurt somebody. Much of the GTA was built before asbestos left drywall joint compound and textured stipple ceiling finishes, so in a house or a unit from the 1970s or earlier the compound in the seams and the popcorn on the ceiling are a real possibility rather than a scare story. In Ontario, disturbing asbestos-containing material is designated-substance work under its own regulation, sorted into containment types with their own procedures, notice and clean-up - it is not a patch and it is not a sander in a spare bedroom. The order of operations is sample, lab result, then decide, and the sample is cheap next to the alternative. Paint from the same era can be lead, which is the same conversation about sanding and containment on the painting side. If your building predates 1980 and the work means opening seams or taking a texture off, say that in the post before anyone quotes.

Assuming none of that applies, the useful distinction is between a patch and a re-board, because they are priced and scheduled nothing alike. A patch cuts back to sound board and framing, sets a backing, fits a piece, tapes it and blends the compound out far enough that a light across the wall does not find the edge - and the blending is most of the skill and most of the time. A re-board takes the old material off, usually because it is wet, crumbling, cracked across too much of its area, or in the way of something else, and hangs new sheets. A patch is measured in coats and drying time; a re-board is measured in sheets and waste. Both are dusty in a way people underestimate: sanding compound produces a fine dust that travels through a home, so containment, a poly wall over the doorway, floor protection and a proper clean-down are part of the work rather than a courtesy, and in a condo they are usually part of what the corporation requires before it lets the work start.

The category holds more than repair. New board goes up in a finished basement, an addition, a garage conversion or a second suite, where the thickness and type of board across a separation is a Code matter rather than a preference. Water and fire make-good is the same trade with a different beginning - the source stopped, the cavity dried and proven dry with a meter rather than by feel, and only then closed. Skim coating resurfaces a wall that is sound but scarred, which is often the honest answer to a room that has been patched by five different people. And there are six subcategories in here that are not board at all: a built-in wardrobe, refinishing a tub in place, an awning, a balustrade, a sauna or a verandah. Two of them are structural builds that belong with a builder rather than with a taper.

A few things make an offer hold. Photograph the damage with something for scale and a second shot from far enough back to show the whole wall or ceiling. Say the age of the building. Say whether it is a house, a low-rise or a tower, because a tower adds a lift booking, working hours and a dust plan set by the corporation. Say whether the ceiling is textured. Say whether you want it left ready for paint or painted, and by whom, because that single answer changes the finish level being quoted. And allow for drying: compound goes on in coats, each one has to dry before the next, and a cold or humid GTA basement slows that down - a wall finished properly is usually a two-visit task, and anyone promising one visit on a large area is promising a finish you will see in a year.