Honestly, my buddy in Tampa swore by them for inside corners on a big condo job last month. I finally tried one on a small bathroom ceiling after fighting with my metal trowel for an hour. Ngl, it laid down the mud way smoother and saved me a ton of sanding. Has anyone else switched to these, or did I just get lucky?
I was hanging board on a 1920s warehouse conversion last month, and the old timber frame was way out of square. We're talking gaps over an inch in some spots. My old method was to just shim and force it, but the lead guy on site showed me his trick. He pre-cut long, tapered strips of 1/2 inch board and glued them to the studs with construction adhesive before we even touched the sheets. It took an extra half day upfront, but the finish was perfect with zero stress cracks. I've used that method on three jobs since and it's saved me so many callbacks. Anyone have a different fix for really bad old walls?
I was fixing a water stain on a 10 foot ceiling in a house in Bakersfield, and my mud pan kept falling off the stilts. I cut a small notch in the end of a wooden paint stick and hooked it over the edge of the pan, then wedged the other end under my armpit. It held the pan steady so I could use both hands on the knife. I got the whole patch done in one go without stopping. Anyone else have a simple hack for working on ceilings?
Read it in some old trade magazine at the supply house while waiting on an order. They said it's why the paper face can hold so much mud without falling apart. I always just slapped it up without thinking about that. Makes you look at a scrap piece a bit different, you know? Ever come across a weird fact about our materials that stuck with you?
We were hanging board on a wall that looked fine, but the top plate was almost an inch out over 12 feet. The foreman kept saying 'mud will fix it,' but I knew that was a bad call. Had to pull it all down and shim every single stud before we could even start taping. Now I bring my 4-foot level to every old building job, no exceptions. How do you guys handle major out-of-square walls without adding a ton of time?
The finish is SO much smoother when you don't rush it.
I now use a paddle mixer for all batches.
It messes up my mix and ticks off the whole group. Got any smart moves for this without a blowup?
A slight bump leaves a mark. I miss when you had to put some muscle into hanging a sheet.
I always struggled with getting smooth lines in inside corners. By using less mud and a narrower knife, I reduced the ridges. Letting each coat dry fully before the next one made a big difference. It's not perfect yet, but I'm proud of the progress.
Now I leave every site cleaner than I found it.
I was taping a big seam and air pockets kept popping up under the paper. I figured out that dampening the tape a little before laying it down stopped the bubbles. What do you guys do to prevent this from happening?
Sanding always left a huge mess. I saw someone use a wet sponge on a job site. Tried it myself last Tuesday. It picks up all the dust without spreading it. Makes the final wipe down so much easier.