Drywall Repair Kit and Method

Abstract

A drywall repair kit and method of use to repair a drywall. The kit includes a support member, which is comprised of an upper piece and a lower piece. The kit may further include a drywall patch, a plurality of fasteners, a drywall spackle, a knife, and a marker. During use of the kit to repair the drywall, the drywall patch is used to mark an outline around a hole in the drywall, and the drywall is cut along the marked line with the knife. The upper and lower pieces are secured to a rear side of the drywall with fasteners, and the drywall patch is inserted into the cutout in the drywall and secured to the support member with fasteners. The drywall spackle is then used to cover the drywall patch in preparation for sanding and painting to complete the repair.

Description

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) to U.S. Provisional Application No. 62/755,899 filed on Nov. 5, 2018. The above identified patent application is incorporated by reference herein in its entirety to provide continuity of disclosure.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a drywall repair kit for use in a method of repairing a drywall.

Drywall is a highly economical construction material and is often used around interior frames to finish wall construction in homes, office buildings, and other structures. Drywall is an effective insulator and provides a barrier between interior spaces and studs. However, through ordinary use of these interior spaces, damage to the drywall often occurs. These damages may include holes that occupy only a small percentage of a total area of the drywall sheet, and therefore replacement of the entire drywall sheet would not only be costly, but wasteful as well. Existing methods of repairing drywall often include the use of a structure, such as a mesh material, that is placed over a front side of the drywall. However, after the repair is complete, an unsightly bulge often occurs as a result. In addition, the structural integrity of the drywall is compromised by these types of repairs, and further damage to the drywall may occur.

Therefore, there is a need in the art for a drywall repair kit that restores the appearance of the drywall after being repaired, and which also improves the structural integrity of the drywall as a result. The present invention addresses this unmet need.

Devices have been disclosed in the art that relate to drywall repair. These include devices that have been patented and published in patent application publications. These devices often result in unstable bulges in the drywall after their use. In view of the devices disclosed in the art, it is submitted that there is a need in the art for an improvement to existing drywall repair devices, kits, and methods. In view of the present disclosure, it is submitted that the present invention substantially diverges in structural and functional elements from devices in the art, and substantially fulfills an unmet need in the art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In view of the disadvantages inherent in the known types of drywall repair devices, kits, and methods in the art, the present invention provides a new and improved drywall repair kit, wherein the same can be utilized for efficiently repairing a drywall after damage thereto.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a drywall repair kit for repairing a drywall, and a method of repairing the drywall using the kit.

In one aspect, the invention provides a drywall repair kit, comprising a support member, wherein the support member comprises an upper piece and a lower piece. The kit also includes a drywall patch, wherein the drywall patch is sized to eclipse a hole in a drywall. The kit may also include a plurality of fasteners configured to secure the support member to the drywall and to secure the drywall patch to the support member.

In another aspect, the invention provides a method of repairing a drywall, comprising tracing an outline around a hole in the drywall, such that a size and a shape of the outline correspond to a size and a shape of a drywall patch. After tracing, the method includes cutting the drywall along the outline to form an aperture sized to receive the drywall patch therein, securing a support member to a rear side of the drywall using a first selection of fasteners of a plurality of fasteners, inserting the drywall patch into the aperture, and securing the drywall patch to the support member using a second selection of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners.

In preferred embodiments, the method uses the kit. In various embodiments, the kit may further comprise one or more of a drywall spackle, a knife, and a marker. In various embodiments, a thickness of the drywall patch corresponds to a thickness of the drywall, so as to provide a smooth finished appearance, such that the drywall patch is flush with the drywall.

In various embodiments, a size and a shape of each of the upper piece and the lower piece of the support member are equal. In some such embodiments, the upper piece and the lower piece each includes a first portion affixed to a second portion by a bridge portion, such that a height of each of the bridge portions is less than a height of each of the first portion and the second portion. The first portions each includes a protrusion that extends therefrom. In this manner, upon an engagement between the upper piece and the lower piece, a cross-shaped aperture is formed at a central portion of the support member.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a drywall repair kit that may be readily manufactured from materials that permit relative economy and are commensurate with durability.

Other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTIONS OF THE DRAWINGS

Although the characteristic features of the invention will be particularly pointed out in the claims, the invention itself and manners in which it may be made and used may be better understood after a review of the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, wherein like numeral annotations are provided throughout.

FIG. 1 depicts a perspective view of an exemplary drywall repair kit, according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 depicts a perspective view of tracing an outline around a hole in a drywall.

FIG. 3 depicts a perspective view of cutting the drywall along the outline to form an aperture sized to receive a drywall patch therein.

FIG. 4 depicts a perspective view of inserting a lower piece of a support member into the aperture and securing the lower piece to a rear side of the drywall.

FIG. 5 depicts a perspective view of inserting an upper piece of the support member into the aperture and securing the upper piece to the rear side of the drywall.

FIG. 6 depicts a perspective view of the support member after being secured to the rear side of the drywall by a first selection of fasteners of a plurality of fasteners.

FIG. 7 depicts a perspective view of the drywall patch after being inserted into the aperture and secured thereto by a second selection of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Reference is made herein to the attached drawings. Like reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to depict like or similar elements of the invention. The figures are intended for representative purposes only and should not be considered limiting in any respect.

Referring now to FIG. 1, there is depicted a perspective view of an exemplary drywall repair kit. Generally, a drywall repair kit 1 comprises a support member 2 sized and configured to be inserted through an aperture of a drywall and secured to a rear side thereof. In the shown embodiment, the support member 2 is comprised of an upper piece 3 and a lower piece 4. In this manner, the support member 2 may be inserted into the aperture of the drywall one piece at a time. The support member 2 may be a plastic or another suitable material as needed for a particular embodiment.

In the shown embodiment, the drywall repair kit 1 also includes a drywall patch 5, which may be a piece of drywall or another suitable material, sized and configured to be inserted into the aperture of the drywall and to be secured to the support member 2. A thickness of the drywall patch 5 may suitably correspond to a thickness of the drywall so as to ensure fit. Generally, the drywall patch 5 is sized to eclipse a hole in the drywall and may be any particular size suitable for this purpose.

In various embodiments, it may be preferable that the size of the drywall patch 5 corresponds to the size of the support member 2. In this manner, after the support member 2 is secured to the rear side of the drywall and the drywall patch 5 is secured to the support member 2, the drywall patch 5 is flush or nearly flush with the edges of the aperture of the drywall. In various embodiments the drywall repair kit 1 also comprises a plurality of fasteners 6, such as appropriately sized drywall screws, configured to enable an individual to secure components of the drywall repair kit 1 together to fix the drywall. In addition, in various embodiments, the drywall repair kit 1 also includes one or more of a drywall spackle, a knife, and a marker. In such embodiments, the drywall spackle may be applied to the drywall patch 5 and the drywall after attachment so as to provide a smooth interface between the drywall patch 5 and the drywall. The marker may be used to trace an outline around a hole in the drywall, for example, using a shape of the drywall patch 5. The knife may then be used to cut the drywall along the outline to form the aperture.

In the shown embodiment, the upper piece 3 and the lower piece 4 are equal in size and shape and are effectively duplicates of a single design. The upper piece 3 and the lower piece 4 each includes a first portion 7 affixed to a second portion 8 by a bridge portion 9, such that a height of each of the bridge portions 9 is less than a height of each of the first portion 7 and the second portion 8. In addition, the first portions 7 each includes a protrusion 10 that extends therefrom. Upon an engagement between the upper piece 3 and the lower piece 4, a cross-shaped aperture 11 is formed at a central portion of the support member 2, as shown.

Referring now to FIGS. 2-7, there are depicted several perspective views of an exemplary method of repairing a drywall using the drywall repair kit. Generally, the method comprises tracing an outline 12 around a hole 13 in a drywall 19, such that a size and a shape of the outline 12 corresponds to a size and a shape of a drywall patch (FIG. 2). The method further comprises cutting the drywall 19 (FIG. 3; e.g., using a knife 15) along the outline to form an aperture 14 sized to receive the drywall patch therein.

After the aperture 14 is formed, the method includes securing a support member to a rear side of the drywall 19 using a first selection of fasteners of a plurality of fasteners (e.g., 16, 17 of FIGS. 4 and 5). In the shown embodiment, the lower piece 4 of the support member is inserted through the aperture first (FIG. 4) and secured thereto by fasteners 16, and the upper piece 3 of the support member is inserted through the aperture second (FIG. 5) and secured thereto by fasteners 17.

In the shown embodiment, one of the fasteners 16 is used to secure the support member to the drywall 19 by attachment to the protrusion of the lower piece 4 of the support member, and one of the fasteners 16 is used to secure the support member to the drywall 19 by attachment to the bridge portion 9 of the lower piece 4 of the support member. Similarly, one of the fasteners 17 is used to secure the support member to the drywall 19 by attachment to the protrusion of the upper piece 3 of the support member, and one of the fasteners 17 is used to secure the support member to the drywall 19 by attachment to the bridge portion 9 of the upper piece 3 of the support member. In this manner, the support member is effectively secured to the drywall 19 and provides a stable structure for attachment of the drywall patch.

After the support member is secured to the drywall 19, as shown in FIG. 6, securement portions of each of the upper piece 3 and the lower piece 4 extend into the aperture. The securement portions provide a backdrop against which the drywall patch will rest and be secured thereto. In the shown embodiment, the securement portions include the first and second portions of each of the upper piece 3 and the lower piece 4, and do not include the bridge portion, which is concealed behind the drywall 19. At this point, the method involves inserting the drywall patch 5 into the aperture and securing the drywall patch 5 to the securement portions of the support member (3, 4) using a second selection of fasteners 18 of the plurality of fasteners. In the shown embodiment, a total of eight (8) fasteners are used to secure the components of the kit to the drywall to fix the drywall. However, in alternate embodiments, other amounts of fasteners may be utilized as needed.

After the drywall patch 5 is secured to the support member (3, 4) (see FIG. 7), the method may further comprise applying a drywall spackle to the drywall patch 5 and the drywall 19, drying the drywall spackle, and sanding the drywall spackle. After sanding the drywall spackle, paint and/or primer may be applied to the drywall spackle as needed. It may be preferable to select a paint with a color that matches a color of the surrounding drywall. In this manner, the repaired hole may blend in with the surrounding drywall.

In various embodiments, a strength, a resilience, a durability, and/or a structural integrity of the drywall may be maintained or improved using the kit and/or method of the present invention. While ordinary drywall repairs may leave a bulging and structurally unsound portion, the present invention generally may increase the structural integrity of the drywall. As a result, the repaired drywall may be able to support substantial weight, including but not necessarily limited to a mounted picture or other item. In this manner, the present invention leaves the damaged drywall in better structural condition than ordinary drywall.

The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present invention have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present invention to the precise forms disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in view of the above teaching. The exemplary embodiment was chosen and described to best explain the principles of the present invention and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the present invention and its embodiments with modifications as suited to the use contemplated.

It is therefore submitted that the present invention has been shown and described in the most practical and exemplary embodiments. It should be recognized that departures may be made which fall within the scope of the invention. With respect to the description provided herein, it is submitted that the optimal features of the invention include variations in size, materials, shape, form, function and manner of operation, assembly, and use. All structures, functions, and relationships equivalent or essentially equivalent to those disclosed are intended to be encompassed by the present invention.

Claims

1) A drywall repair kit, comprising:

a support member, wherein the support member comprises an upper piece and a lower piece;

a drywall patch, wherein the drywall patch is sized to eclipse a hole in a drywall;

a plurality of fasteners configured to secure the support member to the drywall and to secure the drywall patch to the support member.

2) The kit of claim 1, further comprising one or more of a drywall spackle, a knife, and a marker.

3) The kit of claim 1, wherein a thickness of the drywall patch corresponds to a thickness of the drywall.

4) The kit of claim 1, wherein the upper piece and the lower piece are equal in size and shape.

5) The kit of claim 4, wherein the upper piece and the lower piece each includes a first portion affixed to a second portion by a bridge portion, wherein a height of each of the bridge portions is less than a height of each of the first portion and the second portion, wherein the first portions each includes a protrusion that extends therefrom.

6) The kit of claim 5, whereupon an engagement between the upper piece and the lower piece, a cross-shaped aperture is formed at a central portion of the support member.

7) A method of repairing a drywall, comprising:

tracing an outline around a hole in the drywall, wherein a size and a shape of the outline corresponds to a size and a shape of a drywall patch;

cutting the drywall along the outline to form an aperture sized to receive the drywall patch therein;

securing a support member to a rear side of the drywall using a first selection of fasteners of a plurality of fasteners;

inserting the drywall patch into the aperture;

securing the drywall patch to the support member using a second selection of fasteners of the plurality of fasteners.

8) The method of claim 7, further comprising applying a drywall spackle to the drywall patch and the drywall, drying the drywall spackle, and sanding the drywall spackle.

9) The method of claim 8, further comprising applying a primer to the drywall spackle.

10) The method of claim 8, further comprising applying a paint to the drywall spackle.

11) The method of claim 7, wherein the support member comprises an upper piece and a lower piece.

12) The method of claim 11, wherein securing the support member to the rear side of the drywall comprises securing a fastener to a bridge portion of the upper piece, securing a fastener to a bridge portion of the lower piece, securing a fastener to a protrusion of the upper piece, and securing a fastener to a protrusion of the lower piece.