Last fall on a job in Portland I realized those automatic corner tools just leave too much buildup for my taste, so now I take the extra 20 minutes per room to do it by hand and the finish looks way cleaner, has anyone else gone back to an old method after trying the new gear?
Been using the slow set stuff forever but switched to quick set for a bathroom job last week. The flatness on my butt joints is way better now, no more waiting forever to sand. Anyone else notice a difference switching mud types?
Last week on a job in Portland I had a whole ceiling start sagging on me. Mud was too thick and I didn't let the tape set right. Had to tear down 3 boards and start over. Lost half a day and pissed off the lead. What do you do when your tape job goes sideways? Do you scrape and re-tape or just cut it out fresh?
I was on a job in Fresno last Tuesday, running a long wall in a living room, and I got 200 feet of taping and mudding done without a single bubble or tear. Felt proud for about five minutes, then my knee bumped a bucket of water and sloshed it all over the fresh mud on the floor, ruining the bottom foot of the whole run. Has anyone else had a perfect day crash down because of one dumb accident?
Was working a job in Denver last week and this 60 year old finisher told me he thinks mesh tape is a scam, he only uses paper tape for everything. He said mesh causes more cracking in his experience and the only time he sees it work is on green board where people are too lazy to mud right. Any of you guys actually stick with paper tape over mesh or am I missing something?
He told me he's seen tape blow out on three separate builds because guys skipped pre-fill on butted joints, and it hit me hard since I've been lazy about it for years. Anyone else ever had tape fail on a wide gap and wish you'd gone back to pre-fill?
Used to waste 20 minutes each hour refilling my pan from a bucket on the floor, but after I bought a $45 pump pot at the supply house three months ago, I just strap it to my belt and keep taping without stopping, anyone else try one of these yet?
Been doing drywall 15 years now and I always just taped and mudded butt joints like everyone else. Last week an old guy named Ray at the supply yard on 3rd street told me to pre-fill them with hot mud first before taping. Tried it on a house in Oak Park and the results were way flatter than I ever got before. Anybody else do this or is it just a Midwest thing?
I switched to using a 5-inch knife for taping flat joints about a year ago after a guy in Tucson showed me how it gives better control on the mud. Everyone swears by the 6-inch, but I've been getting fewer bubbles and faster finishes since I changed. Anybody else ditch the standard sizes?
I had a ceiling joint blow out on me last Tuesday in a new build over in Tacoma. I always tape first then mud, but a guy at the supply house swears by pre-filling the gap. Which way do you guys go on butt joints when the gap is over 1/8 inch?
I stopped by the new Home Depot off Power Road last Saturday to grab some 5/8 firecode and the aisle was a complete disaster. Pallets everywhere, stacks leaning sideways like they were about to tip, and half the boards had busted corners. I counted 12 damaged sheets just in the first 10 minutes of looking around. Who is in charge of stocking that place? Has anyone else run into a store layout that just makes you want to walk out?
Was doing a job for a new builder, 12 foot ceiling in a hotel bathroom. I hung the board but forgot to put a crown bead on the curved part. Middle of the night the whole section drooped about 4 inches. Builder called me at 6am, had to rip it down and rehang it with extra blocking. Anyone else had a ceiling sag on them like that?
I was finishing a ceiling job at a church in Austin about 3 years ago. The general contractor walked in, looked at my butt joints, and said 'those better be flat or you're ripping it all out Monday.' He showed me how to pre-fill the tapered edges with 20 minute mud before taping so the joint doesn't hump up. Has anyone else had a jobsite boss teach them a trick that just stuck?
I was working in this house built in the 40s near Denver and the corners were all out of square by like an inch. Tried to just float it out with mud but it kept cracking. Had to rip the old bead off, shim the studs, and put on a new no-coat bead. Took me from 8am to almost 2pm just to get that one damn corner flat. Has anyone else dealt with framing that's just completely wonky like that?
Last week in Phoenix I tried pre-filling all my butt joints before taping, saved like 20 minutes per room but the finish seemed rougher than just taping directly with 20-minute mud. Am I overthinking this or is the pre-fill method actually worth it for bigger jobs?
Been doing drywall for about 4 years now and always struggled with inside corners looking messy. Last week a guy from Omaha on a job site showed me how to fold the paper at a 45 and pre-crease it with my knife handle before applying. Makes the corner come out razor sharp every time. Has anyone else tried this or do you stick with the metal corner bead approach on inside corners?
I was working alone in a basement remodel off Elm Street in Denver and tried to carry a 12-foot board down a narrow stairway. The board twisted, I lost my grip, and the corner landed right on my steel-toe boot, bending the toe cap inward and crushing my foot. Has anyone else had a close call with big sheets in tight spaces, and do you have a better method for handling them solo?
I was finishing a living room in a new build over off Maple Ave and hung 20 feet of crown on studs that were still damp from the day before. By the next morning the nails had started popping and the whole thing sagged a good quarter inch in the middle. Anyone else run into this with fresh lumber and have a fix that actually works?
Tbh last Tuesday was wild. I had a three-man crew show up at 7am sharp to hang 80 sheets of 5/8 on a new build in Mesa. No one was hungover, all the tools were dialed in, and we finished by 4pm. Then the next day we did all the taping and mudding without a single callback. But I swear it's usually the opposite - guys leaving gaps bigger than my fist or forgetting to stagger the seams. Has anyone else had a crew that just clicked like that?
I was finishing my own basement last month and kept going back and forth on whether to use tapered edge or square edge drywall for the ceiling. Tapered edge is what I usually do on walls for that smooth joint compound look, but square edge seemed easier for a DIY ceiling where I didn't want to mess with compound buildup. I ended up going with tapered edge because I figured the extra time mudding would pay off in the long run. Man, I was right... getting those butt joints to lay flat took some patience but the final ceiling looks seamless. My buddy who helped me said he wished he'd done the same in his place. Anyone else ever debate this on a personal project and regret their pick?
I tried using that LevelQuik RS stuff for a basement floor last month. Realized halfway through the job that regular mud would have worked fine for the tiny dips I was filling. Now I got a half-used bag that's gonna harden in the garage. Anyone else fall for the marketing on expensive levelers when basic compound does the trick?
Was taping a bedroom in a new build and the rubber seal on my Bazooka just gave out. Mud was dripping everywhere, had to stop and clean it up with a rag for 20 minutes before I could finish. Anybody have a fix for those seals or is it time to just buy a new box?
So my cousin who does handyman stuff on weekends says he always wets his boards before hanging because it makes them easier to bend around corners. Tried it last week on a basement job in St. Paul. Board started crumbling at the edges, got heavy as hell, and I ended up throwing out 3 sheets. Cost me like $60 and a whole afternoon. Has anyone else ever fallen for some wacky shortcut advice from a relative?
I was working a small bathroom remodel near Spokane last fall, about 10 feet up on a standard metal scaffold, when my mud pan slid right off the edge and landed in a fresh bucket of water... It splashed everything, had to scrape the whole corner joint and start over. Has anyone else had a tool mishap that set them back a whole afternoon?
Picked up a case of 500 rolls of fiberglass mesh tape from a liquidation place for $120 thinking I scored. Every roll I opened had the adhesive failing within 10 minutes on the wall, tape just sliding off the mud. Anyone else run into bad batches of the stuff or is paper tape just the only way to go now?