I'm gettin' pressured to put up another wall in my basement, and my wife says she saw on diynetwork (TV show) a guy showing that you can mud the seams as you normally would, then let it dry only 1-2 hours then come back with a wet blade and skim them...instead of sanding them: No sanding necessary.

Anyone had good experience doing it this way, or know of people who have?

I'm a skeptic and cant help but think "If this works as well as sanding, why isn't it the norm?"

Thanks!!

kp2171

i have not seen this...

have you used a sanding sponge when finishing before? had to do some work in a few rooms and i was very pleased with the results. i think i covered the seam, sanded, and then just once more had to cover again and sand...maybe third time touchup.

best regards.

RickJ

Yes, I've had good results using a sanding sponge...I'm just looking for a way to avoid the dust and save the tennis elbow

kp2171

yeah.

if you try it and find this other method works you need to post and let us know.

RickJ

Sure can't hurt to try it on a seam. I will try it and give a "review".

skiberger

Rickj, the "mud" the guy on TV may have used was Durabond or Sheetrock brand spackle. This is a powdered spackle you mix yourself w/ water. I use this all the time in my business. It comes in 20, 45 & 90. Each number means the drytime before recoat, depending on the rooms humidity level. Hence the draw back, if you mix to much and you have low humidity it dries extremely quick in the bucket or pan. Mix just enough to coat the seam(s) depending on what "number" you buy. You can spackle out this wall in half a day, and paint the latter half of the day or weekend. (all depending on the humidity level in the room)
When the spackle gets where you dont leave a finger print impression, you can recaot even though it doesnt look dry. It feathers easily to where you can get a wet sanding sponge or a regular sponge and finish the joints.
Once you get the hang of the dry times you'll never use bucket spackle again unless on big jobs. This stuff works great for patching nail pops, holes, cracks etc.
Just a side note, if you go this way make sure the bags are white and not brown. The brown bags are topping compound and its tough to sand.

RickJ

Yeah, Durabond is great. I acutally use it for all small stuff.

This'll be a wall 18' long, 9ish feet tall, drywall both sides. I figured this too much for the hassle of the mixing Durabond... Would you use durabond for a job like that?

skiberger

Yea, I'd use the Durabond. I'd install 10' sheets vertical. There would be 4 vert. seams each side, then your inside corners. With indirect light, vetical seams show less than a big oversized horizontal seam.

RickJ

What's the max amount that you mix at a time? Can I dump a bag of it in a 5-gal bucket and mix it with a mud mixer?

skiberger

I usually mix half bags at a time. Its easier on my drill & dont want to waste if I dont need a whole bag. This with the 90. The 20 & 45 I only mix enough I'll think I need b/c there is very little working time to get it on the wall.
That mixer is the same one I use.
Found it easier to add some water to the bucket first, then the spackle. Then add water or more spackle as needed to get the consistancy you want to work with. Adding water first makes for a smoother mixture, IMO.