PSA: That old timer's tip about dampening boards actually works

Been doing drywall for about 5 years now and always thought wetting the back of boards before hanging was some old school waste of time. Last week at a job in Austin, this guy Bob who's been hanging since the 80s showed me his trick on a ceiling with really tight corners. He just wiped a damp sponge along the back and the board bent like butter without cracking. Saved me from having to cut extra pieces on a 12x12 room. Anyone else got a weird trick from a veteran that you ignored at first but now swear by?

2 comments

2 Comments

morgan31615d ago

My uncle Larry swore by this for years and I straight up thought he was messing with me. First time I tried it on a tricky vaulted ceiling I felt like an idiot for not listening sooner. You gotta be careful with the moisture though, I went too heavy once and the board started separating at the seams before I even got it up. Just a light mist with a spray bottle works way better than a sponge honestly, faster too. Bob sounds like he knows his stuff, I bet he's got like thirty other tricks nobody teaches in the YouTube era.

kevin_carr15d ago

Wait, are you saying the board actually fell apart when it got too wet?