Overheard a foreman say my mud mix was too thin...

I was on a job last week in a big new build out in Maplewood and this old foreman walks by while I'm mixing, just shakes his head and says 'that's pancake batter, not mud.' Turns out I was adding too much water because I was rushing... been doing it wrong for 6 months apparently. Finished the tape job and it took way longer to dry and I had more cracks than usual. Anybody else had a foreman call them out on something basic like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

nancybailey1mo ago

Agree with @ray_miller41 that it happens to all of us, but I actually see it the other way. A good foreman catching your mix early saves a headache later, and a little less water makes a big difference in drying time and cracking. Better to hear it from him than from a homeowner calling you back for touch-ups.

ray_miller411mo ago

Gotta love when a foreman suddenly becomes a mud sommelier on you, lol. I once got roasted for my mud looking like soup, guess we’ve all been there.

pat_coleman1d ago

I worked with a guy named Jerry for three years who used to say mud should be "a little stiffer than you think." That's about all he'd offer. Honestly, I think people blow this whole mix consistency thing way out of proportion. You add a splash more water to speed things up, it takes a little longer to dry, big deal. Unless you're taping a whole house solo in a rainstorm, it's not going to cause that many more cracks. Most of the time it's the tape job or the bed itself, not the mud.