How to Fix Nail Pops in Drywall

Published December 22, 2024 by Mike Sullivan

Key Takeaways

  • Always drive new screws above and below the nail pop before pushing the nail back in
  • Nail pops occur because wood framing expands and contracts with seasonal humidity changes
  • Use joint compound (not spackle) and apply 2-3 thin coats with 24-hour drying between
  • Prime the repair before painting to prevent visible dull spots in certain lighting
  • Houses built before mid-1980s are especially prone to nail pops due to nail construction

First winter in our 1978 house, I woke up one morning and found a small bump in the hallway ceiling. Poked it. Paint cracked and a nail head was staring back at me. By spring, I counted 14 of these things throughout the house. Welcome to nail pops.

Uncle Frank, who spent his career building and fixing houses, told me this was completely normal. "House is just settling," he said. "Those old builders used nails instead of screws. Nails back out. Screws don't." Fixing them is genuinely one of the easiest drywall repairs you can do, and I'll walk you through exactly how.

Why Nail Pops Happen

Wood moves. That's the simple answer. The studs and joists in your house expand and contract with seasonal humidity changes. In winter when the heat runs constantly, wood dries out and shrinks. In summer when it's humid, wood absorbs moisture and swells.

Every time that wood moves, it loosens the grip on the nail just a tiny bit. After enough cycles, the nail works itself out far enough that it pushes through the paint and compound on your wall or ceiling. You end up with a little bump, maybe a crack, and eventually a visible nail head.

Houses built before the mid-1980s are especially prone to this because builders used nails almost exclusively. Modern construction uses drywall screws, which have threads that grip the wood much better. My house was built in 1978 and I'm still finding new nail pops after 15 years. Dave's house from 2015? He's never had one.

What You'll Need

This is a cheap repair. Total cost runs maybe $15-20 for supplies that will fix dozens of nail pops:

  • 1 5/8-inch drywall screws (a box of 100 is about $8)
  • Drill with Phillips bit
  • Hammer
  • Nail set or another nail
  • Joint compound
  • 4 or 6-inch drywall knife
  • 120-grit sandpaper
  • Primer
  • Touch-up paint

You probably have most of this already. If you're buying a drill just for this, go cordless. Holding a corded drill above your head on a ceiling gets old fast. Learned that one while fixing the hallway ceiling. My arms were sore for two days.

Step-by-Step Repair Process

Step 1: Drive Screws Above and Below

Don't just push the nail back in. It will pop out again, guaranteed. Instead, drive a drywall screw about one to two inches above the nail pop, and another one to two inches below it. These screws will hold the drywall firmly to the stud while you deal with the nail.

Drive the screws until they're just slightly below the surface of the drywall. You want a small dimple, not a crater. If you break through the paper facing, you've gone too far and the screw won't hold as well.

Step 2: Set the Nail

Using a hammer and nail set (or just another nail if you don't have a proper set), pound the popped nail back in until it's about 1/16 inch below the drywall surface. You're not trying to remove it. That would leave a bigger hole. Just sink it back in past the surface.

Some people try to pull nails out entirely. Pete at the hardware store says this is a bad idea. "You'll damage the paper and make a mess," he told me. He's right. Just sink them and forget them.

Step 3: Apply Joint Compound

Using your drywall knife, spread a thin layer of joint compound over the nail and both screw heads. Smooth it out, feathering the edges into the surrounding wall. Don't glob it on thick. Multiple thin coats work better than one thick coat that will crack as it dries.

Let it dry completely. This takes anywhere from 4 to 24 hours depending on humidity and thickness. I've made the mistake of rushing this step. You can feel when it's dry because it changes from dark gray to light gray/white and feels hard, not cool and damp.

Step 4: Sand and Apply Second Coat

Sand the dried compound lightly with 120-grit paper. Just knock down any ridges or bumps. Apply a second thin coat of compound, feathering it out slightly wider than the first coat. Let it dry again.

For ceiling repairs, you might need a third coat. Ceiling work is harder to get smooth because you're fighting gravity and looking at it from below. Take your time.

Step 5: Final Sand, Prime, and Paint

Once your final coat is dry, sand it smooth. Run your hand over it. If you can feel any bump or ridge, sand it down. The goal is completely flat.

Prime the repair with a small brush or mini roller. The primer seals the compound so it doesn't absorb paint differently than the surrounding wall. Skip this step and your repair will be visible as a dull spot in certain light.

Touch up with matching paint. If your paint is more than a few years old, you might need to paint the whole wall for color match. Paint fades over time, and touch-ups can look obvious. My hallway ceiling took the whole ceiling repainted before it looked right.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

  • Trying to fix the nail without adding screws: The nail will pop again. Maybe not this year. Maybe not next year. But it will pop. The screws prevent this.
  • Using spackle instead of joint compound: Spackle shrinks more and doesn't sand as smoothly. For anything beyond a nail hole, use actual joint compound.
  • Applying too thick: Thick compound cracks. Three thin coats beats one thick coat every time.
  • Skipping primer: You'll see the repair. Maybe not straight on. But at an angle, in certain light, it'll flash at you.
  • Not matching the texture: If your walls have orange peel or knockdown texture, you'll need to recreate that. Plain smooth compound on a textured wall is obvious.

What to Expect

A single nail pop takes maybe 10 minutes of active work spread across 2-3 days for drying time. The first one might take longer as you figure things out. By your fourth or fifth repair, you'll have the rhythm down.

If you find multiple nail pops in one area, fix them all at once. Might as well dirty one knife and open one container of compound for a batch. I did all 14 of my first-winter discoveries in one weekend.

Will more appear? Probably. Older houses keep settling. I find maybe two or three new ones each year, usually after a particularly dry winter or wet summer. But now that I know how to fix them, they're just a minor annoyance. Takes longer to get the supplies out than to actually do the repair.