Before we moved into our house, somebody ripped out all the wiring — I guess for the copper. Whoever did it punched access holes in the drywall above each outlet box. Rather than going to the expense of installing new drywall throughout the house, I used insect screen and three layers of spackling compound to repair the holes.
As shown in the drawing, I first cut through the outer layer of paper and excavated a square or rectangular hole (depending on the shape of the damaged area) about in. deep. Then I stapled a piece of insect screen to the drywall and covered the screen with a layer of spackle. I feathered the edges of the next two layers of spackle to blend into the field. The screen keeps the spackle from shrinking as it dries.
Timothy Carlson, Centerville, MA
