How to Fix Nail Pops & Hairline Cracks

Nail pops and hairline cracks show up in almost every home as it settles and the seasons swing. Most are purely cosmetic and take a few minutes to fix for good. The trick is fixing the cause, not just smearing over the symptom.

Fixing a nail pop

A "pop" is a little round bump or a fastener head showing through the paint, caused by the drywall shifting slightly on the nail or screw. Don't just fill over it, it'll come back. Reset it instead:

1. Drive a new screw nearby. Put a drywall screw into the stud about an inch or two above or below the pop, sinking it just below the surface without breaking the paper. This re-anchors the drywall to the framing.
2. Deal with the old fastener. Either drive the popped nail back in slightly below the surface with a nail set, or back out the old screw. If you snug it below flush, you can just cover it.
3. Fill in thin coats. Cover both spots with a thin layer of joint compound, feathering the edges. Let it dry, sand lightly, and add a second thin coat wider than the first.
4. Prime and paint. Spot-prime so the patch doesn't flash, then paint to match. See our paint touch-up guide for blending the sheen.

Fixing a hairline crack

Thin cracks commonly appear above doors and windows and along seams, where the house flexes. For a stable hairline crack:

1. Open it slightly. Run a putty knife or a utility knife along the crack to widen it just enough to hold compound, and knock off any loose edges.
2. Tape it if it's a seam crack. For a crack along a drywall seam, bed a strip of mesh or paper tape in compound over it so it doesn't just re-crack. A plain hairline in the field can often be filled without tape.
3. Fill, dry, sand, repeat. Thin coats, feathered wide, sanded smooth between. Two or three light coats beat one thick one every time.
4. Prime and paint.

Know when to call a pro

Cosmetic pops and hairlines are solid DIY. These cracks are worth a professional look because they can point to something structural:

• Cracks that keep coming back in the same spot no matter how well you patch.
• Cracks wider than about an eighth of an inch, or that run at a diagonal from the corners of doors and windows.
• Stair-step cracks in a basement or foundation wall, or a crack paired with a door that's started sticking or a floor that slopes.
• Any crack with a water stain — that's moisture, and moisture has a source.

Those are the ones where covering it up hides a clock that's still ticking. If a crack looks like one of these, let us take a look before you patch.