I finally listened to a plumber about drywall mud mixing and it clicked

Last week I was complaining to a plumber named Rick on a job about how my mud always seemed too thin no matter how much powder I added. He just laughed and said the problem wasn't the mix, it was that I wasn't letting it sit long enough for the water to fully soak in. I had been rushing the process for years, adding more powder trying to fix it. He told me to give it a full 10 minutes before even touching it, and I've done two jobs since that came out way smoother. Anyone else have a random trade advice that totally changed your routine?

2 comments

2 Comments

the_mia16h ago

Oh man, wait so you were just not letting it hydrate at all? That's wild. How many years did you go making mud that was basically useless before Rick set you straight? I gotta know because I've been mixing for like 5 years and I always mix it, let it sit maybe a minute while I grab a trowel, then start working it. Now I'm wondering if I'm doing the same dumb thing and just never noticed my mud was off.

ivan_fisher9916h ago

... it's kind of like how everyone rushes everything these days, from letting bread rise to giving paint time to cure... we just want to get to the finish line without doing the waiting part. And then we wonder why the results are always a little off, like we're fighting against the materials instead of working with them. You're probably fine letting it sit for a minute, but maybe try giving it a proper 10 minutes next time and see if you notice a difference in how smooth it lays down.