hi fiishing the drywall in my basement, having trouble finishing (1st coat) the outside corners with the metal bead, any tips or suggestions? I cant seem to get a smooth coat on. Either taking too much or not enough off. Will run down and get a pic of what I have done so far (not pretty)
Dan
Tips for picking the right paintbrush based on paint type, surface, and personal comfort.
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1st coat?
takes about 3 coats to finish it, maybe more if you're not experienced
don't worry if the first one doesn't look to good
hi thanks for the response, thought i could do a better job on the 1st coat but end up with air pockets or craters or part of the metal showing. This is my first time doing outside corners, did my garage but that was all flats and inside corners. I have seen a product called no coat mentioned on here....is that easier and anybody have a price per lf on it?
Dan
one of the mistakes I see beginners doing is expecting too much out of each coat.
Just trowel it on, DON'T keep going over it to make it perfect.
It doesn't matter if there's craters or air pockets; they'll be filled in with further coats.
If you see metal showing, you can go back and renail those areas to set them in further.
did you set the bead with a cornerbead tool
hi Maddog, no just used nailes, however checked the gap between the drywall and edge of corner bead an it looked liked approx 1/8" + or -. This is a utility room and thought I would practice my taping and finishing before moving on to my main room. Having two soffits in the room i hung the metal corner bead on one and use the paper/metal corner bead on the other.
Thanks
Dan
hey danz, I think that tool fastens the metal bead flush and centered on the corner,
I have watched tapers use that for just about every corner on the job. (Since I basically just stand around a lot)"
General rule for novices doing mudding: Plan on doing four coats. Apply the thinnest possible coat each time. If you're lucky you'll end up managing with three.
Try to get away with two coats and you'll end up doing 4-5, with poorer results.
After each coat has set, do something to knock off the high spots. Some folks like a damp sponge, but I just like to scrape with a broadknife.
Never put on extra mud, planning to sand off the excess. Put on less than you need, not more.
Are you whipping the mud up real good with a little water and some liquid dishsoap?
Can you please expound on your water, soap and mud recipe?
How much of each?
What's the benefit?
thanks,Joe
Water makes the mix a little creamery, In a 5 gallon pail I quess I would put about a 1to 2 cups never really measured it, kinda a eye ball and feel thing. As far as the liquid dish soap it just kinda slicks the mix up and seems to eliminate the air bubbles. I just squeeze the the bottle, would quess about 2 shot glasses of the soap.
You have to get a stiring paddle, Home depot or any good hardware will have it. You need a drill that has some guts to turn the mix, I think with this a little more practice with the spreading and your required results will improve. Just remember not to mentally masterturbate it. If you keep on trying to make it flawless with each pass you will still be spreading the same corner next week.
Just remember that your metal corner will sit ever so slightly proud of your wall board, so your first pass is going to fill the void. I usually use a 6 or 8" knife for first coat, and then bump up to a 10 or 12 for preceeding coats. I always use durabond for my first coat, and then proceed to compound for next coats.
Good luck
danz...for a beginner please don't add much water or you'll be taking a bath in the mud. To a five gallon bucket add maybe 1/2 a cup of water if you really have to. Far as the dish soap goes. Thats only for the last coat to make it go on smoother. Add a minimal amt or you'll be bathing in that too. MAybe half a shot glass per five gallons or there abouts.
When guys come work for me and theyre apprenticing they "all" think putting corner bead up is soooooooo simple. Its not! Not if you're not experianced so take your time. The bead (far outside corner) needs to stand pround of the walls and the wings of the CB by about 3/16" or so. If the wings stick out you'll never cover them with mud and if you leave too much of a gap you'll be using tons more mud than you need to. If you have to do an archway for instance be sure all corners and gaps are equal. Set the CB where you think it should go then Start nails in the top corners and gently nail there...then the bottoms. Use your spckle knife edge across the wall to the bead outside corner to see what kind of gap you have. If you have to shift the CB to where it should be (which is why I say start by nailing loosely or gently) and go to town nailing.
I don't like the neading tool even though I have one. i don't think it keeps the bead up as well as nails. Learn to hand nail then play withthe toys if you need to. If you use the tool I'd still throw some nails in.
Have fun
Be playin' in da mud
a...
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For starters, just dribble a little water into your mud pan and work it about with your knife. Once you get a feel for it you can mix larger batches.A big problem for many novices, working with premixed mud, is probably failing to mix it thoroughly (whether you add water or not) before applying. For large jobs a 1/2-inch drill on a mixer paddle in the bucket is the way to go, but for smaller jobs just mix it up in your pan with the knife or (better) a potato masher.