Fix the leak first, then call us
This matters more than anything else on this page: the plumbing has to be fixed and dry before any drywall work starts. Hanging new board over a leak that is still dripping is just expensive wallpaper — the new drywall will stain, soften, and grow mold within weeks. If your plumber is not done yet, finish that first. We will wait.
What wet drywall does
Drywall is basically pressed gypsum with paper on both sides. When it gets soaked, the paper feeds mold and the gypsum turns soft and crumbly. A wall that looks "mostly fine" after a leak can be mush behind the paint. We check by pressing on it — if it gives, it comes out.
How far the damage spreads depends on how long the leak ran. A supply line that burst and got shut off fast might only wreck a two-foot section. A slow drain leak inside a wall can soak three stud bays before anyone notices the stain.
How we fix it
1. Cut it out. We remove every piece of drywall that got wet — plus a margin of dry board around it, because moisture wicks further than the stain shows. Baseboards come off too if the water ran down.
2. Dry the cavity. We check the studs and insulation behind the wall. Wet insulation gets replaced. Studs get dried — if a stud is rotted, we say so and talk through options before anything is covered up.
3. Hang fresh board. New drywall goes up, taped, finished with three coats, sanded, and textured to match the rest of the wall. When we leave, you cannot tell where the leak was.
The mold question
Everyone asks. Here is the straight answer: if drywall stayed wet more than about two days, assume mold is growing on the back of it. That is exactly why we cut wet board out instead of trying to dry it in place. Once the wet material is gone and the cavity is dry, the mold source is gone with it. We are not a mold remediation company — if you have mold spread across a whole room, you need a remediation crew first, then us for the rebuild.
Will insurance cover it?
Sudden leaks — a burst pipe, a failed supply line — are usually covered by homeowners insurance, and the drywall repair is part of the claim. Slow leaks that ran for months usually are not. Photograph everything before we start, and we document the damage for your claim as a matter of course.
A note on prices: every job needs different work, and material and labor costs move around. Treat any numbers here as starting points, not quotes. The written price we give you after our free visit is the real number for your project.
A single-section leak repair — cut out, dry, hang, finish — typically starts in the low hundreds as a rough starting range. Bigger jobs with insulation replacement and multiple rooms run higher. Your free written estimate is the real number.
Get your free estimate
Call (240) 213-2890 or send the form. We come look, measure, and give you a written price — free, no pressure.