c/drywall-installers

24

jaken23•8h ago

TIL drywall mud has a shelf life and I've been using expired stuff

Honestly, I was cleaning out my garage and checked the date on a bucket of all-purpose mud I've had for like 18 months. Turns out it goes bad after a year and that's why my last batch was so lumpy and hard to sand down. Anyone else ever use old mud and regret it?

2

janac59•1d ago

Three hours on one corner bead. THREE HOURS.

Thought I could breeze through a corner bead job on a closet return. Cheap metal bead, old house, walls not square at all. Spent 45 minutes just trying to get the damn thing to sit flush. Then the nails kept bending. Then the mud wouldn't stick right. Ended up pulling it off, cutting a new piece, shimming the whole corner with paper tape. Sun was going down and I was still mudding the thing. Finally called it at 8pm. Next time I'm just using vinyl bead and saving myself the headache. Anyone else have a bead job that snowballed into a whole day project?

11

taylor82•1d ago

Taping compound vs pre-mixed - one blew my whole ceiling job

I was mudding a living room ceiling in an old house near downtown Nashville last Tuesday and tried switching to a fast-set taping compound mid-job because I was in a hurry. The stuff set way too fast and I ended up with ridges I couldn't smooth out before it hardened, had to sand for 2 extra hours. Do you guys stick with pre-mixed for ceilings or is there a trick to using the bagged stuff without it ruining your finish?

17

white.alex•1d ago

Had a job last Thursday where every single sheet was 1/4 inch off

Finished up a basement on Birch Lane and the studs were so crooked I had to shim every seam. Anyone ever run into a house where the framing was just completely out of whack?

23

emerychen•2d ago

Pro tip: Use a straight edge and a razor to avoid sanding mud off outlets

I overheard this from an old-timer at the supply house on Elm Street last Tuesday. He said just score around the outlet boxes with a utility knife before the mud dries, then pop the excess off clean. Saved me at least 20 minutes on a 12-outlet basement job today. Anybody else tried this instead of sanding the crap out of your switch plates?

16

the_william•2d ago

Had to pick between lightweight compound and all-purpose for a ceiling repair

I went with the lightweight stuff cause I figured it'd be easier on my shoulders after a long week... but man, it shrunk way more than I expected on the second coat. Anybody else run into this or is it just me?

1

roberts.jordan•18d ago

That 1997 job in Phoenix taught me to never trust pre-mixed mud again

I was on a crew finishing out a strip mall in the summer of '97. Boss bought a pallet of pre-mixed joint compound from a local warehouse. First coat went on okay. Second coat just would not dry. Sat there tacky for three days in 100 degree heat. We had to scrape off half the ceiling and start over with powder mix. Turned out that batch had been stored wrong. Lost a week of labor and the client was livid. Now I only mix my own mud from bags. Never had that problem since. Anyone else ever get burned by bad pre-mix?

19

palmer.zara•19d ago

Had to choose between paper tape and mesh for a ceiling repair in my own house

I was doing a small ceiling patch in my living room in Phoenix last weekend and couldn't decide if I should use paper tape or mesh tape for the joint. I usually go with mesh on flat walls since it's faster, but everyone says paper is better for ceilings because it doesn't bubble. I went with paper tape and pre-filled the gap with compound. Took me about 20 extra minutes but the finish came out super clean with no cracking. Anyone else stick with paper for overhead work or am I overthinking it?

4

cole_robinson•20d ago

Update: I was totally wrong about self-tapping screws for metal studs

For like 3 years I refused to use self-tapping screws on metal studs. I was convinced they were a gimmick and would strip out or snap off. Last month I had a 12,000 sq ft job in a new warehouse in Charlotte and the GC specifically asked for them. I had no choice so I ran a test on a small section first. Used my regular collated screw gun with the right setting and man they went in smooth as butter. No pre-drilling, no fighting with the bit walking around. After doing 40 sheets of 5/8 on that job I'm a total convert. Has anyone else had that moment where you finally gave in to a tool or method you were sure was overhyped?

8

the_tara•21d ago

Found a massive crack in a ceiling patch I did 6 months ago in Phoenix

I used paper tape and durabond on a 4-foot seam near a HVAC vent, and now there's a hairline split right down the middle - anyone else deal with temperature swings causing tape to fail like that?

3

reese86•21d ago

Old timer in Denver told me to stop pre-filling screw holes and I thought he was nuts

I used to spend 20 minutes per board pre-filling every screw hole with joint compound before taping. A 30 year veteran in Denver watched me do it on a commercial job and said I was wasting my time. He showed me how to just tape and mud over the screws in one pass with a 6 inch knife. I thought he was crazy but I tried it on the next room and it saved me almost an hour per room. The finish came out just as smooth and I didn't have any bubbling or cracking like I expected. Has anyone else had a similar experience with changing how they treat screw holes?

30

ryan_nelson•25d ago

Was dead set against those automatic taper tools, now I get it after a job in Phoenix

I always thought the $400 automatic taper was a waste for residential work, you know, too much cleanup and setup time. But last month on a 32-room hotel in Phoenix, the foreman made me use one, and I finished hallways in half the time, no joke. The trick is keeping the mud at the right consistency (like mayo, not peanut butter) or it jams up. Anyone else come around on a tool they swore they'd never touch?

14

amy_foster56•25d ago

Switched to a cheap $10 mud pan and actually like it more than my $50 one

I always thought spending more meant better results but after 3 jobs with the cheap pan I noticed it's lighter and cleans up faster, anyone else find cheaper gear works better sometimes?

33

abby_henderson•25d ago

Rant: Homeowner watched me work for 3 hours without saying a word

Last week in Phoenix I was finishing out a garage and this guy just stood in the doorway staring at me the whole time. Didn't ask a question, just watched. Has anyone else dealt with people hovering while you're trying to tape and mud?

12

mark676•27d ago

Had a tape job fail on me in a basement remodel last Tuesday

I was finishing up a basement in St. Paul and the paper tape just started peeling off the corner beads after an hour. Turns out the mud was too dry from mixing it the night before, had to scrape everything and start over with fresh compound. Anyone else run into this with leftover mud?

7

jesse773•27d ago

The debate on pre-filling screw holes before taping...

I got into it with a guy named Hank on a job site in Austin last Tuesday. He swears by pre-filling every single screw hole with mud before he even thinks about taping. Says it saves him time on the second coat and prevents bubbles. I've always just done my tape coat and let the mud fill the holes at the same time... it's how my old foreman taught me 3 years ago. But Hank's method seems to make the tape stick flatter with no air pockets behind it. I tried it on a small bedroom last week and I gotta say the finish sanded out way smoother. Still feels like an extra step that slows me down though. Is there a consensus on this or is it just whatever works for you?

19

skyler_anderson65•27d ago

Had to decide between fiber tape and paper tape for a ceiling repair last week

I was patching a 4-foot crack in a living room ceiling and couldn't decide if I should use fiberglass mesh tape or the old school paper tape. Usually I go with paper for inside corners but this was a flat ceiling seam that kept popping. Ended up using paper tape with a thin layer of all-purpose mud and it's been 6 days with no cracking. Anyone else have a hard rule about when to switch between the two?

22

alices16•28d ago

Switched from hand taping to a bazooka and I'm still getting used to it

I used to tape all my joints by hand for 15 years, but my shoulder started giving out after 8 hours on a big job in Austin last spring. Got a Level 5 bazooka and it saves time but I keep getting these little bubbles in the compound that I never had before. Anyone else have trouble adjusting to a mechanical taper or do I just need to slow down my mud consistency?

21

elizabeth_king•1mo ago

Hit 10,000 square feet of mudding in one month and my wrist still hurts

Last month I was tracking my time on a big hotel job and added up all the drywall I finished. Didn't think much of it until I hit 10k sq ft in 30 days. That's way more than my normal pace of like 6-7k. The hotel had these huge ballroom walls with no cutouts so I just kept going. My taping wrist is still sore three weeks later. Anyone else ever track their monthly numbers and get surprised by how much you actually do?

19

wren_carr•1mo ago

I finally figured out I was overloading my drywall cart for 2 years

Used to stack 15+ sheets of 5/8 fire code on the cart like a tower. One day in Austin my boss watched me wobble across a plywood floor and just said 'you know that cart holds 12 max, right?' Checked the sticker and sure enough. Now I do two trips instead of one and my back actually works at the end of the week. Anyone else find out they were way over the limit on something basic like that?

5

ryan719•1mo ago

Old timer told me to stop using paper tape on inside corners...

He said just use mud and a corner trowel instead, so I tried it on a small closet in Denver last Tuesday and it actually came out way flatter with less bubbling. Anyone else ditch paper tape on corners or is it just me?

3

black.beth•1mo ago

PSA: Found a cheap fix for hiding nail pops that actually works

I been fighting nail pops for years on remodels and new builds. Tried mudding over them, tried the screwdriver dimple trick, even tried that expensive spray stuff from the supply house. Nothing stuck long term and they'd always come back after a season of settling. Finally after a bad job in Austin last spring where the homeowner was breathing down my neck, an old timer on the crew told me to use a center punch before setting the nail. Not the normal hammer tap, but a real center punch to mushroom the drywall around the nail head. Then you set the nail, cover with lightweight mud, and sand it flat. I did a whole 2,000 square foot house that way six months ago and not one pop has shown up. Has anyone else tried this or do you have a different trick that actually holds up?

1

the_elizabeth•1mo ago

My tape measure finally gave up at exactly 3,147 feet

I was hanging board in a new basement in Spokane and my old Stanley tape just snapped clean in half. Counted the pulls in my head after that - exactly 47 sheets of 12-foot rock before I had to dig a new one out of the truck. How many sheets do you get out of a tape before you just toss it and grab a fresh one?

0

jake191•1mo ago

Shoutout to the old timer who changed how I hang board

Was talking to a retired drywaller named Frank at the lumber yard last Tuesday, and he said I was wasting time by not staggering my butt joints on a specific pattern. He showed me a trick where you cut the first board two inches shorter to offset the next row, and it cut my taping time by about 30 percent. Anybody else had someone older drop a tip that made you rethink your whole method?

24

hayden587•1mo ago

I finally gave in and tried that 10 minute mud set time trick on a big ceiling job

Always thought letting mud sit for 20 minutes before taping was the only way. Last Thursday on a 12x14 bedroom ceiling, I mixed a small batch of Plus 3 and only waited 10 minutes like some guys swear by. The tape stuck way better than I expected and I saved a solid hour on the whole room. Now I'm wondering if I've been wasting time for years. What's the fastest set time you'll go on a standard joint compound before you start taping?