With over 15 years of experience in residential construction, Patrick specializes in painting, wallpaper removal/installation, drywall, staining decks and fences, and kitchen cabinetry painting. You can use this process to smooth a textured wall, taper out tape seams after fresh drywall, or repair a damaged wall from ripping off wallpaper. Make sure your strokes overlap, and that you work fast enough that the joint compound doesn't dry as you're working with it. Expert Interview. To learn how to prepare your room and your compound before you skim coat, read on! Close! DIY Skim Coating- In this video I’m gonna show you how to mix the skim coat and also all of the tools needed to for mixing an all purpose joint compound for skim coating. Setting compounds are like concrete: they don't dry out. Mud used for roll skimming is nearly the thinnest mud used for any step of the finishing process. Pre-mixed joint compound comes ready to apply to the surface. If you do come across a lump of dry compound during application, you can probably smash it into the surrounding wet compound. Nope! To date, Patrick and his team have painted over 2,000 houses and stained over 800 decks. ... Mixing equipment will be re­quired, too, including an empty joint compound bucket or the equivalent, and a mixer bit for your drill. Mixing skim plaster is where it all goes wrong for most people. By signing up you are agreeing to receive emails according to our privacy policy. Add 5.5 quarts of water for each 55-pound bag of Thin Finish. The bubbling usually happens during the skim coat if the unsealed drywall has been damaged… the … Correct! If you think your joint compound is too thin, it's very simple to wait for it to dry and then add another coat. Not necessarily! A high-speed drill will whip air bubbles into the mixture, which will pop as the skim coat dries on your chosen surface, leaving pin holes behind. We use cookies to make wikiHow great. However, there are certain circumstances where an oil-based primer is appropriate, though usually not by itself. They are ideal for walls and ceilings in places that have been exposed to moisture, such as bathrooms and kitchens. This can also be done with a roller brush if the compound is very thin. The amount of color added to the mix depends on the desired color and product, so check with the manufacturer for more specific instructions. Mix the concrete in clean five gallon buckets using the paint mixer. Learn how to pour a concrete floor for a masculine feel to a bathroom. 1. Patience is key, but you must work efficiently so that the mixed compound does not dry out before you finish. Then it should be ready. This article has been viewed 261,653 times. For example, if your top coat color is white, get white emulsion paint. If you removed wallpaper from a wall you want to skim coat, what kind of primer should you apply? Patrick Coye is the owner and operator of Patrick’s Painting & Home Improvement in Alexandria, Virginia. As such, you can add more water to the mixture to extend your working time. Wipe light smudges with a damp, clean sponge or paper towel. Mixing compound is much like mixing cake batter. Choose another answer! If you try while it's wet, the pressure of the vacuum could make the coat uneven, and the wet joint compound could stick to the vacuum. Pour small portions of the Thin Finish on the floor at a time. Today I’m sharing my easy “skim coat like a pro” process to get a super smooth wall with minimal fuss. This is a thinner mixture than the Texture Pave below and will be approximately one-eighth of an inch thick. If the lump is too big to crush, remove it with a small putty knife. The dry plaster must be added to water and mixed -the water should not be added to the powder as with mixing … Is it necessary to have a finished surface before the skim coat? Discover the best vertical mixes for skim coating a concrete wall Updated August 11, 2020 Bag of vertical concrete mix from Flex-C-Ment. But the whole point of the lath and brown coat were to give a viable and strong substrate to which the finish coat could be applied, while also allowing for some minor separation of the base coat from direct contact with the building's framing members. After application, it gradually dries out. Expert Interview. Step 4 This will make it easier to mix large amounts of compound. With over 15 years of experience in residential construction, Patrick specializes in painting, wallpaper removal/installation, drywall, staining decks and fences, and kitchen cabinetry painting. © 2020 Discovery or its subsidiaries and affiliates. Since you need to sand the wall between each coat of joint compound, you're going to end up with a lot of excess plaster dust. Read on for another quiz question. How to Apply an Acid-Stain Look to Concrete Flooring, How to Install a Base for a Concrete Floor, How to Create and Install Concrete Countertops, Installing Hardwood Flooring Over Concrete, How to Install a Cobblestone Patio on Concrete or Bare Soil. Learn how to skim coat with this mixing skim coat mud quick tip. This may make your arms tired, it may lead to compound falling off your skimmer, and you may need to go over the area later to remove excess compound. Expert Source You will hold the skimmer plate in one hand—or place it somewhere within easy reach—while you apply the skim coat. All rights reserved. Guess again! Patrick Coye is the owner and operator of Patrick’s Painting & Home Improvement in Alexandria, Virginia. Start in one corner of the wall, and work down from the highest point. Try again! Nice! And even if you don't plan to paint, there's still a benefit to vacuuming the wall. Read on for another quiz question. This article was co-authored by Patrick Coye. Almost! Concrete can be an interesting design statement for kitchen floors. Often, when wallpaper was being applied to a room's plaster, the brown coat was the final coat, as there was no reason for the finish coat. ", "It was wonderful. If you are skimming a ceiling, start at an edge and work towards the center. A repair area isn't flat: it is a low, smooth mound, made to look flat. Try rubbing stains with a paste of baking soda and water. Did you know you can read expert answers for this article? Give yourself enough time to complete an entire section. Apply the First Layer of Thin Finish. This easy step-by-step tutorial shows you how to skim coat damaged drywall after wallpaper removal (with my favorite products that make things easier!). Try again... Not quite! Mix the mud to a very thin consistency. Wetting the floor will allow the Thin Finish to bond to the Texture Pave below. [1] Include your email address to get a message when this question is answered. Clean tools with a rough sponge or towel to get them completely clean. Setting compounds are much more durable than "mud" and will not come apart when wet. Cover doorways with plastic sheeting—held in place with painters tape—to contain the splatters and plaster dust within the room where you are working. Look at paint swatches to confirm the colors match. I’ll show you how to mix an all purpose joint compound to the right consistency for going over a textured surface. With this method of how to retexture a wall, you don't just spot-prime; … I'm going to try thinning mud I mix to a cake mix and apply, "I made use of the advice and tips offered here, and it is a great help. You thin down the epoxy, and then apply the skim coat over the concrete before applying the normal and final coat of epoxy. Mixing up Your Skim Plaster. Not quite! It is thinner than taping mud. Not exactly! A high-speed drill will whip air bubbles into the mixture, which will pop as the skim coat dries on your chosen surface, leaving pin holes behind. Fill a 5-gallon bucket halfway with water and add skim-coat cement mix. Approved. Learn how to make a custom concrete patio with a rock-salt finish. In this skim coating tutorial I’ll show you the the tools you need to mix the skim coat mud. Shine a light along the surface to identify areas where the wall is sunken, and mark those spots with pencil as you go. Support wikiHow by Remove cover plates from light switches and wall sockets to keep them splatter-free. It may seem weird, but a wall that you removed wallpaper from is a special case. You’ll need body filler, hardener, and a plastic squeegee. Remember not to pull the drill mixer out of the compound while the drill is running, or you may have flecks of mud flying everywhere. How to apply a skim coat video series. Pick a color that matches the top coat color. Can I mix the binding glue with skim coat and apply it to a wall? What is Skim Coating? X What to do after skim coat dries? Learn how to fix a crumbling concrete step. Allow this Thin Finish coat to dry overnight before using the acid stain. Should I remove the paint from the wall first when skim coating? Consider using commercial surface-cleaning products like 409 and Pine-Sol. If the mixture is too wet, move the mixture around using the trowel until it's stiffer and easier to work with. Why should you vacuum the walls after you're done applying your skim coat? A glop of setting compound will set even if dropped in water. Pour the thinned down mud into a paint tray. You love to DIY. 22 July 2020. Each coat has to dry before the next can be applied, so even though multiple thin coats may each dry faster individually, they'll probably require more drying time overall. They then use the drywall knife or trowel to scrape it smooth. In this case, 84% of readers who voted found the article helpful, earning it our reader-approved status. Full disclosure here.. joint compound aka drywall mud: there are a few kinds, see Step 1 for tips on which one to use. I'll also show how to mix the skim coat and what skim coating … An old drab concrete pad can look fresh and new with an application of concrete stain and sealer. This also means that you have know exactly where you will apply it and be ready, because as it stiffens it cannot be re-wetted. Don't miss your favorite shows in real time online. A word of warning! A large five gallon bucket for mixing the skim coat. Choose another answer! Skim coat is a thin coat of joint compound also known as mud. ", "This article is helpful and informative.". Browse a full list of topics found on the site, from accessories to mudrooms to wreaths. If you think it's too thick, however, scraping off the excess is difficult and time-consuming. Experiment with how to use the trowel so that it creates a desirable texture. Read on for another quiz question. For the first layer, some people prefer to thin the drywall mud to the texture of cake batter and apply it with a paint roller. 22 July 2020. The goal is to have it spreadable, but not soupy or runny. Apply an acid-stain look to concrete flooring using environmentally-friendly dye. All of the things work well, thanks a lot. How to turn a bland concrete slab into a stunning painted floor. Right! Advertisement. % of people told us that this article helped them. How to Skim Coat Concrete Blocks. Following the directions carefully, and mixing up small batches at a time (2 cups powder to 1 cup water), I found this was much easier to use than the ready-mixed stuff I tried first. If you want, you can always dilute it with more water, but you can also use it as-is, which makes it ideal for people who are new to skim coating. I read lots of reviews and watched a number of videos on how to use this type of skim-coat for a floor I needed to level. “Skim coating” is just what it sounds like. To skim coat, first take a small scoop of compound and mound it up at one end of the repair area. Only texture mud may be thinner depending on the type of texture applied. References Why does my mud continue to bubble in spots? Protect furniture and entryways from dust and splatter. The RX-35 is a sealer/primer, so this has worked well for me. If you really can’t stand to see another ad again, then please consider supporting our work with a contribution to wikiHow. Mix your skim coat mixture with a low-speed drill. We love to DIY. The plaster must be mixed to a thick, creamy consistency which is a bit sloppy. Use a 2 to 1 ratio of powdered compound to cool, clean water. A basic water-based primer is a good pick for just about any wall you want to skim paint, regardless of what that surface is like. Patrick's Company won a "Top Job" award from the American Painting contractor magazine in 2020. To store pre-mixed joint compound overnight: Carefully wipe down the side of your bucket of mud at the end of the workday and pour 2 inches (5.08 cm) of water directly on top of the mud. Also known as a level five drywall finish. You might need to skim coat if you’re repairing after wallpaper removal, after drywall repairs or ceiling repairs, or even if your walls are just doing the damage from every day where in tear from your family. In general, you should favor water-based primers over oil-based ones when you're getting ready to do a skim coat on a wall. Despite that, it's still best to do multiple thin coats. wikiHow marks an article as reader-approved once it receives enough positive feedback. Choose another answer! Instead, scrape the excess mud into a trash bin. Remove all furniture from the room. Mix your skim coat mixture with a low-speed drill. The skim coat help saves the epoxy by filling in pits and holes, and prevents bubbling by allowing the concrete to outgas through the skim coat. A metal mixing rod that attaches to a drill. When you're ready to resume work, simply pour the water off and the mud is ready for use. Apply the drywall compound at a 45° angle, then pull it in whatever direction you need. Concrete countertops are becoming more and more popular, mainly because natural stone is durable. Skim coating walls for beginners tutorial video I will show you how to skim coat by doing a skim coating demonstration with my paint roller trick and a 12" drywall taping knife. Getting a smooth, well-blended skim coat has more to do with your technique and speed than with the thickness of your layers. Add color and interest to your outdoor space by staining concrete pavers. Patrick CoyePainting Specialist To date, Patrick and his team have painted over 2,000 houses and stained over 800 decks. That said, though, a wall that you took wallpaper off of is a special case that works a little differently. Materials and tools to skim coat and smooth a textured wall or ceiling: ( Some of the helpful resources are affiliate links. If you have never applied a skim coat before, you may find it easiest to use a ready-to-use pre-mixed product. The color and water should be mixed first and then the Thin Finish added. Use a 12" applicator for leveling. {"smallUrl":"https:\/\/www.wikihow.com\/images\/thumb\/2\/28\/Skim-Coat-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/v4-460px-Skim-Coat-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","bigUrl":"\/images\/thumb\/2\/28\/Skim-Coat-Step-1-Version-2.jpg\/aid1344664-v4-728px-Skim-Coat-Step-1-Version-2.jpg","smallWidth":460,"smallHeight":345,"bigWidth":"728","bigHeight":"546","licensing":"