Whenever I spackle before painting, it always looks like I did a good job, but when I paint over it, I can always see where I spackled. Is there a trick?
– Bad painter
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Dear Bad,
There is a trick: sell the house and begin anew. If the wife doesn’t understand, leave her – they didn’t make one fish and stop. Tell the divorce lawyer you don’t need anything but the clothes on your back and the tunes on your car radio. Wait – your TV remote, you’ll need that. And your ashtray – that’s all you’ll need.
Is there a job more godless than spackling? If Bossy had a dollar for every ceiling she spackled, she’d be richer by about a buck twenty-five. Kidding – because Bossy earns her living as an interior painter so if spackle were a highway and paint the yellow line, she’d be clear to Chattanooga. Maybe even Murfreesboro!
Here’s what: Bossy suggests there’s a difference between spackle and “mud”. Spackle is heavier, denser – it is the Karl Malden of finishing products – used for patching small holes and barely visible cracks. Included in the spackle category is everything on the shelves already pre-mixed.
Mud is Joint Compound – it’s thinner and more flexible in a variety of situations – the Fred Astair of finishing products. Unfortunately like the fussy actor, Mud needs a lot of attention and can be difficult to work with. First of all, you have to mix it up yourself, walking the I-beam from too goopy to too loosy. And because it’s thin and shrinks when dry, you usually have to apply a second or even third coat.
But it’s this whole coddling element – applying it in thin layers and sanding in between – that makes the end result so smooth. And usually Mud’s quicker drying/recoating times allow for several coats on the same day. The other trick? Use your hands, not your eyes. It has to feel perfectly smooth or else your applied paint will be the Mae West who tells your ass off for a job poorly accomplished.
http://www.vertri.com/
http://www.vertri.com/drywall_mud.html