Best all purpose mud for DIYer


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Old 09-07-18, 08:43 AM
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Question Best all purpose mud for DIYer

After hanging all of my drywall, I have decided to also tape and mud everything myself due to money restraints. I noticed HD and Lowes have a number of muds including all-purpose so I'm wondering what one would be the best for a DIYer.

My plan was to buy a small batch of 90 min "hot mud" for filling in any gaps or damaged areas and then using whatever all in one mud is recommended.

Any help is appreciated!
 
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Old 09-07-18, 08:46 AM
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The only 'all purpose' mud is the one with the green lid. It can be used for taping along with the next coats and can be thinned down to use as texture. Many like the light weight muds [including me] but they aren't the best for the tape coat. IMO brand names don't make much difference.
 
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Old 09-07-18, 08:57 AM
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Thanks marksr, that last part should have stated "using whatever mud is recommended". If all-purpose mud is not recommended then I'm willing to go with something else.
 
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Old 09-07-18, 12:03 PM
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All purpose mud is called all purpose because it can be used for any stage of the finishing. Lightweight mud [also called topping] should only be used over top of the tape coat. If you only need one bucket of mud - get the all purpose.
 
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Old 09-07-18, 03:45 PM
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Personally I use the topper for everything, it's easy to apply and I've never seen a long term difference even when I used the all purpose and topper muds.

Dont forget to get the fiberglass joint tape. much, much easier to use than paper and again, never seen a difference!
 
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Old 09-07-18, 04:32 PM
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I like to mix small batches of 20 minute setting compound for prefilling gaps. (Just a half pan at a time) 90 minute mud takes too long to dry, imo. I use regular all purpose mud (Either ProForm or USG) and thin it for taping... and ONLY ever use paper tape. What you use is up to you. But if you use fiberglass tape, coat it with setting compound initially.

The next coat I apply after taping will also be a setting compound... (dries faster, harder and shrinks less). Once it's dry, the following coat is all purpose mud... the final skim coat is also all purpose mud...but thin like the consistency you tape with.

Recently I have been priming walls with USG First Coat.
 
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Old 09-07-18, 04:55 PM
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I'm almost exclusively 20 minute setting mud. As a remodeler, I don't have the luxury of waiting days for regular joint compound to set up and dry. Small batches, plan the attack because you don't have a lot of working time and perfect your technique so you don't have to sand a lot (I hate sanding). If you use paper tape with setting type compound, you need to wet the tape first before embedding it. Otherwise, it will suck too much moisture out of the setting compound and it will not stick.
 
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Old 09-08-18, 03:34 AM
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I've seen too many failures with the mesh or 'sticky' tape. If you do use sticky tape it's imperative you cover it with a setting compound to lock it down.

I'm also fond of the 20 minute mud but it can be hard to find locally so I often get the 45 minute mud. All setting muds are pretty much the same so in some ways it doesn't matter which one you use. The quicker set time just allows you to proceed/finish quicker.

Like Z, I'm not fond of sanding. The smoother your learn to apply the mud the less sanding you'll need to do!
 
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Old 09-08-18, 04:44 AM
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I've seen too many failures with the mesh or 'sticky' tape
So I am inquiring for the average DIY individual who does not work with drywall as part of their profession.

For a DIY the use of paper tape is probably one of the most frustrating aspects of dong drywall fnish.

I've used mesh tape for 40 years on all types of repairs and basement finish and it simply eliminates one huge step of trying to apply tape into mud.

Simply tape it on and apply mud!

For that DIY individual you are making the product seem inferior and it is not!
 
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Old 09-08-18, 04:50 AM
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My opinion is based on all the failures I've personally seen where the sticky tape didn't stay stuck long term. When it first came out and most everyone started using it I've seen miles of tape that came loose or wrinkled up after the finisher was done and gone. It's since been accepted that the only way to insure that doesn't happen is to coat the sticky tape with a setting compound. That's why professional use of sticky tape is pretty much limited to repairs.
 
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Old 09-08-18, 06:36 AM
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Paper tape is not hard to do, you just have to learn what to do. Most diyer's eventually learn the best way to do things. Until they do they make rookie mistakes or do things "the easy diy way" because in their mind it is just as good (even though its not) and don't know any better unless someone tells them. Not going to waste time debating it. Marksr covered how to apply fiberglass tape... for best results, bed it with setting compound. For those who want to learn paper tape:

1. thin the joint compound with a little water so it is more like the consistency of pudding. Put it in a 12" pan.

2. wipe a generous amount of mud on the wall where the tape will be applied. Gently lay the tape on the wet mud, centering it over the joint.

3. Wipe the tape down. Using a 3 or 4" knife, drag the knife over the tape and squeeze out as much mud as you possibly can, putting it back into your pan. When the mud has been thinned properly, this is easy.

4. Let the tape dry.

If the tape moves on you while wiping it, you just need to put your a finger on it... start in the middle of the tape and wipe left... then go back to the middle and wipe right. Simple. You don't wipe from both ends in, that can wad up the tape.
 
 

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