Reinforced drywall tape: sickle and perforated paper

Drywall is often used for self-repair. It is used for cladding ceilings, the construction of arches and multi-tiered ceilings, niches and other interior elements. Obtaining a smooth and uniform surface is impossible without preliminary processing of the GKL structure, which consists in the sealing of joints and finishing putty. When strengthening joints, you can not do without a reinforcing tape for drywall. We will find out why it is needed, how to choose it and stick it correctly.

Why can not do without reinforcing tape

The fact is that drywall is subject to certain fluctuations under the influence of moisture and temperature. This will manifest itself in the weakest point of the drywall construction - at the joints of the sheets. If a special joint tape is not used during puttying, cracks will form over time. Such a product will help prevent their appearance and facilitate surface leveling.

The process of repairing GKL seams is very important: any flaws made at this stage will surely remind yourself over time and lead to substantial financial costs. Therefore, you need to treat him as carefully as possible.

The main types of tapes used for sealing joints

To strengthen the joints of sheets of drywall structures, two types of tapes are often used:

• fiberglass sickle;
• paper reinforcing tape.

In addition, when decorating drywall joints, the following types of ribbons can be used:

• Non-woven or bandage - to strengthen the corners.

• With metal stripes - for reinforcing external angles other than 90 degrees.
• A wide section of fiberglass to strengthen the junction of drywall and the wall, for example, when erecting an arched structure in the doorway. It can have a width of 10 cm or more.

Serpyanka

Serpyanka is sometimes called a construction bandage: they are really very similar. It is a thin fiberglass mesh, one of the sides of which is coated with a special adhesive. It must be stored by packing in a bag to prevent the glue from drying out.

In cheap analogues, there is no sticky layer, such a sickle is fixed with a construction stapler or directly on putty. The width of the strip is 4.5, 5 or 10 cm, the length of the roll is 20, 45, 90 or 150 m.

The material is easy to use and ideal for beginners.

Important! It is not recommended to use a sickle when reinforcing longitudinal joints or internal corners. Despite its strength, it is prone to stretching even under a layer of putty. It is highly likely that cracks will still appear on joints with increased load when using fiberglass mesh.

Paper tape

The tape for the joints of drywall is made of special strong paper having longitudinal and transverse reinforcement with fiberglass. For the convenience of processing internal corners, it has a special fold. Suitable for all types of seams, both longitudinal and transverse. Available in rolls 50, 76 or 153 m long with a standard width of 52 mm.

Note! It is more difficult for beginners to work with paper tape, if there is not enough putty, air will accumulate under it and form bubbles. To avoid this, it is better to choose a product with microperforation.

Reinforced paper tape is inferior in ease of use to a sickle, but surpasses it in a number of other parameters:

• The material has an affordable cost.
• Thanks to the minimum thickness, it is possible to use even reinforced surfaces when reinforcing.
• It goes well with putty and drywall, practically making up with them after drying. This gives the seam special strength.

Joint repair technology

Before as putty seams, they are recommended to be preliminarily prepared:

• If there were no chamfers on the drywall sheets, then you need to make them with paint knife.

• Seams must be treated with sandpaper to remove all burrs, and then thoroughly cleaned. It is recommended to blow them with a stream of air.
• Primed joints. For drywall, an acrylic based interior mortar is ideal.

In the future, the technology will differ depending on the type of reinforcing material selected.

Laying a sickle

Most often, such a tape is glued to putty, but in some cases it can also be mounted on a dry surface.

With the first option, the algorithm of actions will be as follows:

• Putty is mixed. When buying, you should choose special composition designed for the treatment of drywall joints, for example, Knauf Uniflot. You need to prepare the mixture in small portions, this will allow you to use the material before it dries and deteriorates. The consistency of the finished solution resembles thick sour cream.
• The putty is pressed into the seam with a narrow spatula. A thin layer of it should also fall on drywall on both sides of the seam at a distance slightly greater than the width of the tape.

• Serpyanka is stacked from top to bottom, slightly recessed in putty solution. If you have to fix several pieces, then their edges are overlapped. The excess is cut with scissors.
• Use a spatula to heat the tape in the solution, while smoothing it. Do not put too much pressure on the instrument: this is how you can break the sickle. Or wrinkles may form. The mesh should be completely submerged. Excess solution is removed at the same time.
• It is necessary to wait for the composition to dry. It will take 8-12 hours.
• Apply a thin finish to the mixture. Its main goal is to remove all minor flaws.
• After drying, the seam is sanded with fine sandpaper. At the next stage, the entire surface is primed and putty.

When dry-mounted, a self-adhesive serpyanka is pre-mounted on the joint, and then coated with putty solution.

Using paper tape

The mounting procedure for the perforated paper tape will be as follows:

• As with the installation of the sickle, the prepared joint is filled with putty. Then a thin layer of the mixture is applied, slightly exceeding the width of the tape. The composition should not contain even the smallest lumps: thin paper cannot hide them.

Important! Apply the solution to small areas of the joint, since the putty dries quickly.

• The tape is applied exactly in the middle of the seam and in the stretched state is slightly recessed into the putty mixture. Then it is smoothed with a spatula from the center to the edges. The pressure should be sufficient for good adhesion, but not too strong. Do not try to squeeze out the entire putty, otherwise the tape will not be supported. The optimal thickness of the mixture layer under the tape in the center is 1.5–2 mm, along the edges a little less, 0.8 mm.

It is important to avoid the formation of air bubbles under the tape. Therefore, it is more convenient to use paper reinforcing material with small holes (perforations). Through them, air will come out.

• The excess putty squeezed out from under the paper is immediately removed.
• After drying, after 12 hours, a layer of the finishing composition is applied. When it dries, the putty strip is sanded. Only after this can you begin to putty the entire surface.

A useful video will tell about an interesting device for applying putty on paper for perfect seams.

What to choose: paper or sickle?

The experience of many experts shows that paper tape provides more reliable protection against cracking at the seams than a sickle.

The conclusions are as follows:

1. For longitudinal joints only paper reinforced tape is suitable. Ideally, with perforation.
2. For transverse joints and short seams with a minimum load, you can use an easy-to-work sickle net.