Tried to skim coat a whole room with just a 6 inch knife. Bad idea.

Had a small bedroom job in Fresno. Figured I could save time and skip the wider blade. Used my trusty 6 inch knife for the whole thing. After two hours, my arm was dead and the finish looked like a washboard. Took me another three hours to fix it with a 12 inch trowel. Learned the hard way that the right tool for the area is not just a suggestion. Anyone got a good method for picking the right blade size for different rooms?

2 comments

2 Comments

faithwalker2d ago

My first apartment in Phoenix had textured ceilings I wanted smooth. I tried using a 10 inch knife on the whole living room because it was all I owned. The results were so bad, I had to sand for hours and start over. Now I keep a 4 inch for corners, a 12 inch for walls, and a wider trowel for ceilings. Matching the tool size to the flat area you're covering is the only way to avoid those waves.

jakeb251d ago

Man, @faithwalker, why do we all have to learn that lesson the hard way? I did the exact same thing with a tiny putty knife on a big wall patch and it looked like a topographical map. You're totally right about matching the tool to the job, it's not just a suggestion. Trying to save a trip to the store always costs you way more time later when you're fixing the mess. Getting the right size blade makes the mud almost spread itself flat.