Mud Consistancies Are Out To Lunch

AARC Drywall

Hey all..
I cant seem to get the right consistancy for taping..for tapes i am using 10 cups of water or 2.5 liters of water. I have tired to use less, but it does not seem right.. I seem to be wearing more than i want to expecially on celings.
First coat we are using the same mixture but with blue mud.

any suggestions.
The mud flows nice from the box's, but it just does not seem right.


Jay

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taper71

Switch brands of mud. If I use syncos product I wear it. When I use proroc it stays on the wall. I have to mix alot more water in with proroc than synco though and every box is different. It is a matter of achieving the right consistency for your taste and not so much about how much water to use.

theworx

Exactly Taper71. There is no formula for how much water to add. Not to mention, I have used different brands. It comes down to knowing exactly the consistancy you require (and prefer to use)!! Every box or pail will be different from the factory, just have to know when you've reached the consistancy you require. For me, it's dipping my finger in to test it each time you add more water to the mix. From experience I know when I've achieved it!!

Sir Mixalot

I use a stainless steel ball on a metal braded string. It came with my RTX1500

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kgphoto

Can you explain this process more fully please? It sounds interesting.

AARC Drywall

thanks guys its what i figured out today...very interesting. did better though.

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CrazyTaper

My wife got me one of those too-though it has many balls on it and came frrom Ambiance(The Store For LOVERS).

Bill

Oh no! How do you get any work done then

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Sir Mixalot

kg, i just drop the consistency ball into the mixed material. Then I see how far up the string the material line is. Repeat on next batch until the material is close to the same spot on the line as the last material mix.

Here's a picture I took of it.

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kgphoto

You mean you dunk the ball and when you pull it out, the mud slides down the string and you compare the stopping point with previous batches?

Sir Mixalot

Dunk the ball and you can see the mud line of how far the ball goes down in the material (more of a buoyancy thing). Sorry about the confusion.

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kgphoto

So the ball never really submerges? I guess you just set it in there, cause if you drop it from differnt heights it will sink to different levels.

LukeOR

"A Consistancy Ball" C'mon guys, this is drywall, not the Space Program. I'm not trying to be an ass, and yes, mud thickness is a big deal. The best way to learn is get out there and mix more. You don't need too be packing tools around that look like they should be in a tackle box.... this aint rocket science!

LukeOR

If one of our guys showed up w/ that he'd be laughed off the job..

CrazyTaper

Tackle box? That thing was in my a$$!!

Mudstar

bet that feels good when you about to ...............

JBBS

looks like something that would come in handy for collecting a final payment too!

Bill

not rocket science? Why dear friend, let me say that the constant consistency of the mud is consistent only with the one who mix's the consistency of the mud.

let me preach on. The consistency of the mud fluctuates with different amounts of water added along with the atmospheric pressures that are applied to the mud. therefor all mud must be consistently mixed so as to maintain consistent consistency at all times. Otherwise there is no consistency to the muds consistent mixture.

So in short Mud+H20 divided by the square root of pi equals a sum greater than its parts.

OR
You should know that the solution of ax2+bx+c=0 is an analogous formula for polynomials of degree three: The solution of ax3+bx2+cx+d=0 is x = {q + [q2 + (r-p2)3]1/2}1/3 + {q - [q2 + (r-p2)3]1/2}1/3 + p

there, that should clear thing up just fine!

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LukeOR

I've also found distilled drinking water works best, also for hot mud I recommend a mixture of half snapple, half evian.
gimme a break....

Brock

we shoot an infrared laser into the batch. red works the best. then we measure from the top of the pail down to where the laser stops. our first coat we like it at 4 3/8 inches from the top. this is the perfect slump. now if you use this method and the ambient humidity in your space is more than 72%, you have to subtract an 1/8 of an inch to your measurement or as much as 1/2 half an inch if you are hitting a plus 85% on your humidity reading. be careful though. you have to mix at the same speed, with the same mixing utensil, for the exact amount of time. we use 1 man with a stop watch and one man whacks the subfloor with a framing hammer to start the watch and the drill at pecisely the right moment. this should help you with the basics. if you need more info, i have put up a full tutorial at www.perfectmixedmud.com