jamie_webb67•12d agoProlific Poster

Two layers of bond broke on my biggest drywall job yesterday

I was taping a vaulted ceiling in a house near Denver and the whole corner let go right after I walked away. Had to scrape it all off and start over with a different brand of mud I borrowed from the guy next door. Any of you ever had a tape blowout like that and figured out what caused it?

3 comments

3 Comments

king.val12d ago

Last year I had a whole hallway ceiling let go around 2 AM after I'd been up since 5. Switched to a lightweight all-purpose mud and started making sure my tape was fully embedded with no air pockets. That plus leaving the joint compound to sit a full hour before taping has kept everything stuck ever since.

the_fiona12d ago

The thing about drywall tape letting go is it's just another example of how rushing things never pays off, you know? I've noticed this same pattern with so many home projects where people skip the little steps and end up paying for it later. Like with painting, if you don't let the primer dry fully before the first coat you'll be fighting peeling and bubbling for years. Same with hanging heavy shelves - taking those extra five minutes to find a stud is the difference between a shelf that stays up and one that ends up on the floor at 3 AM.

martin.riley12d ago

Had the same thing happen on a 12 foot ceiling last fall. Used some cheap premix from the hardware store and it dried too fast, pulled the tape loose as it shrank. Switched to a mid-grade all-purpose like king.val said and started wetting my tape a little before embedding it. Also started leaving the mud to sit for about 45 minutes after mixing to let the air bubbles work out. That plus making sure the tape is fully pushed down with no air pockets has fixed it for me. I also stopped using those fast-setting compounds for tape joints unless I have to get it done quick.