Drywall Tape Repair

I don’t know when the offense occurred, but our staircase ceiling had a separation from the drywall tape to the drywall.

It hit at such a hard-to-reach location. The staircase is so tall. It’s the only reason I haven’t painted the staircase wall. I can’t reach that high and putting a ladder on the landing would be dangerous.

This was a project I attempted right after my dad’s death. I so badly wanted to ask him for a solution. After the first failed attempt, I look up and asked Dad to give me some guidance. Allow me to think creatively and use my resources.

Attempt #1: The first attempt, I taped my trowel to my paint pole and put drywall plaster on it. It was such a hard angle and the plaster was not closing the gap. Fail #1

Attempt #2: The next attempt involved the ladder. I made Mr. JCrew get up there. We attempted to use the plaster again since we could get a better angle, but the plaster was not holding the gap shut. We needed to close the gap first. We used super glue to put the tape back up. The super glue was not holding and we ran out of glue. Mr. JCrew was tired, so we stopped trying and took a break.

Attempt #3: We bought more super glue and added painters tape to our resources. After we glued the tape, we used the painters tape to hold it in place while it dried.

Mr. JCrew's Handi-work

We let it sit like that for a week. Each time I wanted to get back up there to take the tape down, Mr. JCrew wasn’t available. There was no way I was getting on that ladder without support. I always had a plan while Mr. JCrew was on the ladder, that if he fell, I’d push him towards the door on the second floor. It would be less of a fall.

While I had the week to think, I came up with an alternative solution. I would get back on the ladder one last time and use a piece of painters tape to gently ease the seam into the ceiling.

I could then use my long painter’s pole to paint the tape to match the ceiling and all would be fixed.

I could use a roller and not have to secure a paint brush on the end, but I’ve dealt with corners with a roller, and it’s not easy. I thought I could handle the corner easier with a brush.

And it was a good solution. I have no idea why the tape decided to separate from the ceiling, but it was a problem that needed to be fixed. I was so close to calling a professional, but you know me… I like to do it myself if I can. 

Problem solved! It was a risky project and I am so glad it is done.