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One way to increase living space is to remove doors. But it is not always possible or willing to destroy the walls. Then the former doorway is made out in the form of an arch. Another option for using arched openings is to divide a long corridor into zones, breaking up too simple geometry. When repairing on their own, drywall arches are most often made: they are the easiest to do with your own hands.
Types of arches
Interior or corridor arches can have a different shape. They differ mainly in the shape of the upper part and sometimes in the way they are connected to the vertical parts. Their main types are shown in the photo.
This group lacks one of the most popular lately – the semi-arch. They have a rounded corner on one side only, on the other it remains straight. Hence the name – semi-arc. It looks good in modern interiors: minimalism, hi-tech, maybe in art deco.
The classic is distinguished by the correct shape of the top. This is strictly a semicircle, the radius of which is equal to half the width of the doorway. This view looks good with an opening height of at least 2,5 m. It fits well into any interior, but looks best in a long corridor, or instead of the front door to the kitchen.
The arched opening in the Modern style is distinguished by a small radius of curvature and a sharp transition at the junction with the vertical components of the opening. It looks good if the walls and ceiling have a more or less simple design. Looks great on the site of the former balcony door, good at the entrance to the office.
The arch of the “Romance” style is rather just rounded corners (mostly masters call it that). It looks good with a large width and not the greatest height.
The shape of the “ellipse” is very close to the “romantic”. It differs only in greater curvature in the middle part. Also suitable for low and wide openings. It just looks a little softer.
A trapezoid is a non-standard design consisting of broken lines. It is hard to play up in the interior, therefore it is used infrequently: for some non-standard designs.
It is very similar to a regular opening, but in fact it is, only without a door leaf. For greater originality, it is often accompanied by wooden carved elements in the form of columns on the sides. In this form, it is good for classic interiors, as well as ethnic style – Greek or Roman, depending on the type of columns.
For decoration in modern styles, another example is used – next to the main arch, smaller portals are located. This technique allows you to “beat” a simple form.
Before you start making an arch, you need to decide on its parameters. select the type, and then the options: where it will start from, and what the radius of curvature will be. It can be a really sharp bend, or it can just be some rounding of the corners.
To understand how your chosen shape will look, you can cut a template out of cardboard and attach it to the doorway. Rate the effect. If everything suits you, you can make a blank according to this template. But only one – for one of the sides of the opening. The second must be done in place, otherwise it will turn out crooked.
Step-by-step instructions with photos: the fastest way
Do-it-yourself drywall arches are made in different ways. This takes the minimum amount of time. Having decided on the form, we proceed to installation. On the prepared opening – cleaned of peeling plaster and relatively leveled, we fix the frame according to the size of the future arch. It is made from a profile for drywall or a dry wooden block of a suitable size. Sometimes, if the wall is narrow, you can only pick up wood.
To begin with, we cut out a rectangle from drywall according to the size of the future arch, find its middle, mark it, and then temporarily screw it into place. We retreat from the edge of 12,5 mm – the thickness of the drywall sheet. If the adjacent walls are already plastered, add a couple more millimeters to the putty so that the surface can be leveled.
Now we take a piece of a profile or a hard corner, set aside half the width of the opening from one edge. At this place in the corner we make a hole, insert a carnation into it. We stick this nail into the middle of the doorway marked by us earlier on the sheet. It turns out a kind of compass, with which it is easy to draw a perfect line.
By changing the height of the mount, you can get a more or less high arch. If you need a flatter curve, increase the length of the “compass”.
Having removed the sheet, we cut out the arc along the outlined contour. This can be done with a special drywall file, a metal saw with a fine tooth for a smoother edge, a jigsaw (there will be a lot of dust). If the cut is not very even, we level it with sandpaper fixed on a grater. With this device we achieve a perfectly even curve of the shape we need. The cut out fragment of the arch – the side wall – is again fixed in place.
If everything is even, there are no distortions or irregularities, on the other side of the opening we attach the same drywall sheet as a few steps earlier – a rectangle or a square – depending on the shape. It must be fixed strictly vertically. Now transfer the shape of the arch to it. We take a square, at a right angle and with one side we press against the drywall, on which we transfer the arch, with the other side – to the arch. Having set the square perpendicularly, we mark a point with a pencil. We make such points along the entire arc. The more often they are made, the easier it will be to draw a line and the match will be more accurate – there will be less grinding.
Why is it so difficult and not just to make a copy of the first sheet? Because few openings are symmetrical. As a result, it is very problematic to install the second sheet so that the lines of the arch coincide.
Having noted all the points, we remove the sheet, draw a line, cut it out along it. We mount in place. Now again we take a trowel with sandpaper and now we level both edges until they completely match. One point – the trowel should be wider than the opening so that both walls of the arch are captured in one pass.
We measure the length of the arc, cut out a piece of the profile of the same length, make notches on the walls every 3-4 cm. This tape will need to be fixed along the arch of the arch from one side and the other.
We fasten it to self-tapping screws, carefully, pressing the profile and holding it with a bar, and not with your fingers: it is elementary to get into your fingers with a self-tapping screw. By the way, you need to work with a cut profile with gloves. If not, you will cut your hands for sure.
By the way, the back of the profile can be set along the edge – it’s easier to work, and then the joint will still have to be sealed. Screw the strip to the other side in the same way.
There is a second way to attach the profile – to put it on a quick-setting universal glue, such as liquid nails. This method is acceptable if the width of the opening is small. With a large thickness of the arch, the adhesive may not withstand the mass of drywall, which will be attached from below.
The next step is to attach the jumpers. First, the depth of the arch is lost, 1-1,5 cm is subtracted from it. This will be the length of the jumpers. Cut pieces of a profile of this length.
In the places where the jumpers are attached, the “petals” are cut off, the prepared fragment is installed and fixed. It should not rest against the walls, it is located approximately 5 mm from the back. Jumpers are needed to make the design more rigid, otherwise it “walks” when pressed.
Next, from the drywall, you need to cut a rectangle that will cover the structure from below. Its width is determined simply – from the outer edge of one sheet of plasterboard, to the outer edge of the second sheet. The length is measured with a flexible tape (it can be tailor-made) or a tape measure with an assistant. We fasten this sheet with screws to the arch frame. The sheet has to be bent, and how to do this, read a little lower – towards the end of the article.
Then there were finishing works: a special corner is attached to the corner, everything is puttied according to the usual technology: first, the starting joints and corners, then the finishing one.
Arched opening made of drywall: the second method (photo report)
This method is good if the thickness of the partition is small: try attaching the profiles if the gap between them is several centimeters, and then attach the jumpers. It all starts the same way: the first wall of the arch is cut out, fastened and transferred to the second sheet.
After the width of the gap between the two sheets, wooden crossbars are cut out, which are attached along the edge of the arch to self-tapping screws.
The cut-out strip of drywall is fixed, starting from one side. To make it more convenient, you can fix it with clamps, since the thickness of the wall is small. When attaching the strip, you can focus on the screws with which the bars were screwed. That way you’ll hit the crossbar for sure.
Then it remains only to fix a special perforated corner along the corner and level the irregularities.
It is also more convenient to level the dried putty along the arch of the arch with the entire plane of sandpaper fixed on a grater. It is unpleasant that dust falls into the eyes, so it is almost impossible to work without glasses.
How to make an arch instead of a door: the third method – typesetting
Another way to make drywall arches with your own hands is stacking. The vault is broken into segments and assembled from pieces that create close to the required curvature.
They are attached to putty, diluted with a mixture of PVA and water. Such a batch dries quickly, so first we cut the plates and try them on. It can be folded on the table, only the vault will turn upside down, but it will allow you to evaluate how correctly the plates are assembled.
Then the plates begin to be attached to the opening, for reliability, periodically reinforcing with self-tapping screws. Washers are placed under the heads – so as not to push through the cardboard. Remove excess putty immediately. If it gets stuck, it’s impossible to tear it off. The finished surface is primed to improve adhesion (adhesion), and then puttied, leveling the arch. To make it easier to display, you can use a template attached on both sides.
Making sharp bends using this technology is not easy, and for rounded corners and semi-arches it is a great way to do without profiles.
How to bend drywall
One important detail: standard wall drywall does not bend well. For curved surfaces, a thin one was specially invented – 6 and 6 mm thick. This bent part is easier to make from it. With a slight curvature, such a thin sheet can be bent easily and without tricks. If there is no desire to buy thin GVL, there are two ways to bend the standard one.
First – take a needle roller and roll the cut segment well on one side. You need to roll with effort so that the plaster breaks. Then the leaf is wetted with water and left for two to three hours. After such procedures, it should bend well. Take it, fix it on one side, and gradually pressing it against the arch frame, bend it, screwing it gradually along the edges with self-tapping screws. The method is not bad, only with a lack of experience and insufficient processing of gypsum, the sheet may burst. You will either have to mask the gap later, or start over.
Second way to bend drywall: on one side, make notches with a knife about every 4-5 cm. The notches should cut the paper. Such a strip is also gradually fixed, breaking the gypsum as necessary. It bursts along the incision lines from a light pressure.