I’m no beginner and I’m definitely no expert, but it is absolutely amazing that you can dig at the bottom of your bucket for mud and not get a single speck on your hand.

My dad is 80 years old and a retired house painter and I showed him this video and you made his day.

I just want to say THANK YOU!! Historically I have completed numerous of jobs with sheetrock repairs and my joints have always looked horrible UNTIL I came across your videos! I have watched hours of your videos and in one of my more recent projects I can finally give myself a pat on the back, THANKS to YOU!! Your videos are so informative and detailed! You have been such a great instructor!! Thank you so much!! Please keep doing what you do my friend!!

As a plasterer of 40 years I can agree with part of your process. No plasterboard finish can be achieved in one coat or even two it generally requires three coats of which the final coat is sanded. The taping coat and second coat need to be applied with a basecoat which is a gypsum based compound that sets up with a limited work time (usually within an hour) this compound has minimal shrinkage and is generally half the cost of a premix product ( a vinyl based compound) the top coat does not liked to be applied any thicker than 3 mm because it will create very fine bubbles that are hard to sand out and may require a recoat. I found the first 10 years of my trade the hardest. The trade has largely been condemned to the DYI realms but when you see a true master of the trade at work you will marvel at the speed and consistency. Ninety percent of any citizens in any country can drive a car but not everyone can drive like Michael Schumacher. Just observations.

I've learned more from this guy than any other youtube series. Ty for taking the time to make these videos for newbies like myself.

I wouldn’t never got this good at drywalling without your videos. There is a very large community grateful for you sharing your knowledge.

Nice job. I use pan and knives rather than hawk and trowel but, whatever a guy learns on works. I was a taper for 23 years as a profession and still dabble in drywall today, 42 years later. Started in ‘81. On a patch this size, I’d probably break out my Darby. I was one of very few that used a 4’ darby to float bad areas. Ultimately, always remember that sheet rock is cheaper than mud and labor. If an area is too torn up, remove it all and start over. Gonna save you a lot of headaches and a bunch of time.

EXCELLENT! I am a heavy DIYer. I just took out three walls that were tile halfway up. and replaced the old wire and concrete tile with drywall. I thought about just mudding the gaps. But then I thought "self, you handsome devil, your best chance of making those gaps invisible is to mud the entirety of the new drywall, and then sand it all smooth. I did not know if that was the way it was supposed to be done, but it made sense to my logical processes. It is already done, but when I saw this title I had to come see whether or not the pro thinks I am an idiot for the way I did it. Turns out I got it right! Now I will sleep better. Thanks man!

I don't know why, but your channel is one of my favorites out of many. I've learned a lot about all of the things I have done wrong and improved quite a bit . Thanks for sharing so much.

As a taper w over 20 yrs experience I love this video. It is something I instill in my apprentices. Well worded. I especially loved, think of this a liquid wall.

I admire you man!! I love watching your videos because I can see your passion and respect for your trade . When ever I need to reassure myself on a project involving drywall, I literally go straight to your videos and no where else!! Keep up the great teaching and content !

I really appreciate all your drywall videos. You are the Mr. Roger's of drywall and mudding! Thank you.

You make the major building of your fillcoat look so easy, and very smooth on your flattening . I guess when you do Drywsll everyday(almost) then your hand motions become very efficient. I watch your vids to see how it’s done🤙🏽 good work!

Ben you are excellent at what you do and always make applying mud look so easy!

I stumbled upon your channel and watched about six hours worth in the last day. Can't wait to watch this one. I'm beginning the mudding and taping phase of my garage this weekend and needed these pro-tips before I start! First time trying a big project and glad it's just my garage 🙂

Mudding is a tricky trade to learn. This is why I subscribed to this channel, thank you for taking the time to give us tips. Drywall patching is a big part of my remodeling gigs.

As a fellow drywall pro, you did it 100% correct. I would add, that as most of your audience is probably DIYers, folks starting out, or other traders looking to improve their drywall game, they could do it the "wrong way" you showed first and then fill in between everything after that has set/dried

The painters that are lucky enough to have to paint a house that you've prepped must be smiling. Great job as always.

These videos have been so helpful! They all strike the balance between being concise, but thorough!

Absolute best tutorial I've ever seen, on anything. So great to see some great filling techniques explained like this. It makes it much more transferable once you understand why it's done that way. I plan to use these west coast tips all the way out on the east cost, in NS.

You are correct about how you approached the 3 patches. Next level is why have 3 patches in a row like that? Make it one big patch and you only have to cut one piece. You also delete 4 vertical pieces of tape that still want to hump out a little when running mud over them perpendicularly. Im just a 23 year finishing pro.

I hope some day I’m half as good as you. Thanks for giving me the confidence to drywall my downstairs by myself, turned out great and I couldn’t have done it without you!

I would like to thank you on ur hot mud videos and teaching us the ways to use it . I do alot of repair work and hot mud has saved me so much time

LOVE your videos and humor. You crack me up. You’ve taught me to not get so anxious and tore up about doing drywall finishing.

It's always a joy to watch your instructional video's Ben!! I can't thank you enough for your free help. I've learnt absolute stacks over the years and it's lead me to be able to do some plastering weekend cashies, and was apart of the reason I left a high salary corporate job I hated and started a mature age chippy apprenticeship!!

In 3 minutes of "doing it wrong" Ben's garage looks better than 99.9% of DIY drywall patches but not good enough. 😂

Your personality / comments makes these videos so much more fun to watch! Outstanding teaching job!!

Thank you for explaining the different amounts of pressure and where to apply them, as you move across the all, to avoid lift-off. I had no idea about that. It explains a lot. I still have trouble with leaving little bubbles, think I'm not applying enough pressure.

This is really good. I've done it the wrong way before and I noticed the 'humps' 2 days later when I came back to finish and put a work light on the wall. In the end I sanded down the humps and used a straight edge to monitor the progress. Took longer than doing it the correct way but it did work out in the end.

such a nice blend of natural comedy, great recoveries. honest example of how well all literally try to be the best only to wreck the entire thing obviously easy to fix but it feels terrible when you always want the best. and of course top of the line information and viewer friendly video. a true master of his craft. thank you

Thank you, I’ve learned so much about drywall tools, products and techniques from you. It’s really helped to up my Sheetrock game.

My mud/tape work has improved greatly from watching your videos. I use to dread it now I actually enjoy it. More material usage in the right areas with a lot less sanding in the end. Thank you!

"drywalliest carpenter on the internet " 😂😂

Thanks so much Vancouver Carpenter!! I went out and bought a hawk & trowel because you make it look so fun (&easy! ), but it's NOT!! Any who I'm still practicing, getting better, and loving your vids, please keep posting your work!!

I’m a basic home owner that had a bunch of dry wall work needed on a house willed to me. You really helped me out

I just finished plastering my house. I knew some about plastering but you gave me the last 30 percent of knowledge. As a result it looks perfect now. Thx from Holland

I too am a carpenter that does way too much drywalling. After years of watching you'd videos, I have joined my skills to produce some very nice results. I keep watching you as there is always some little detail I can learn from & a big thank you for taking the time to teach all of us. Also, G'day from Oz.

I always love watching these "what not to do" videos so I can see what I've been doing wrong. I wait in anticipation to see where I've been going wrong. It's always satisfying when you reveal what it is we've been doing wrong to find that I in fact have been doing it correct. Well partially at least. By the time you hit that third patch I was thinking to my self "why not just patch all three as one big patch since they're so close together". Thanks for the tips

I’ve learned so much from your videos. I watch them even when I don’t have a project! Thanks for taking the time!

I just started learning stucco recently. I’ve gotta say I’m extremely jealous of the muscle memory you have with a trowel. It all just goes right in one pass. It’s like watching a cartoon.

I've only recently had my first couple of drywall repairs. Actually one was a ceiling where I replaced a 4x8 area of a textured ceiling. I used 2x4 sections working alone with no equipment or experience lol . So with tape around each of 4 panels by trying to blend tape and texture made the humpy borders even more pronounced. I eventually textured the new material and put a coat over the entire ceiling and gave it a knockdown appearance. Good enough for carport storage and fortunately only a 6x12 ceiling. Yes building up the high spots is stupid lol

Great job! And yes this makes sense!! I never knew how to prevent this from happening. Still a work in progress!! Keep up the great job!

Great stuff! I started off as a new construction finisher at 14 years of age. I’m 28 now. I’d work summer, winters, and weekends. Did this for about 4 years till I graduated high school. Then, I did commercial and industrial drywall for about 2-3 years and then I got into remodeling. I learned drywall from a guy that has now been doing drywall finishing for 30+ years. I dedicate myself to patching more than I do to any type of new construction. I have my own company and have seen hundreds, if not thousands, of finishers throughout the years and I can say that watching this made me happy. I had GC’s and contractors ask me in the past that why did I almost do a level 5 on 3-4 patches that are on the same wall. You just explained it the way I did to them. There will be noticeable humos on the wall due to the feathering in between each patch. Since then, I’ve done my own work and customers praise the finishing work I do. I wouldn’t have been able to do this without the people that taught me and from years of experience. Love the work man, keep it up

Thank you, Ben. I know this video is over a year old, but I needed to tell you that I just did a ceiling joint inside corner re-tape due to your videos, and instructions. The tape had failed, and was sloughing off, and pulling away from the ceiling so the wall had really bad bubbles from it. It was cracked, and all messed up. The job I did wasn't absolutely perfect, (a few minor bubbles), but it looks way nicer than it did before I did it. I had to do a ton of prefilling because the original installers left too much of a gap, which is probably why the tape failed. I'm leaving the bubbles as is until I sand down the hideous mop texture from the ceiling. Then I'll do it all at once. I'm not planning to skim coat because I'll be trying to not sand down to bare drywall. If I end up removing it to paper I'll use PVA drywall primer, and paint with dead flat ceiling paint as I'm not even close to experienced enough for a full skim. Once again, thank you for all your help, and contributions. I wouldn't have been able to do what I've done without it.

Had me worried. As you did each patch I was waiting for the “wrong”. I rarely (never) have had to do more than one patch close to another. Now I know what to do if that ever comes up.

You make this look so easy. Incredible skills.

Great video. The last pass you made to cause the liftoff line at the top, I chase those forever. Nice to hear you say that can just be sanded out. Great method to taper edges first, then flatten the middle. Never been taught. 64 years old and was in construction for 45 years, never drywall. Only watched the good ones, who like yourself make it look easy. Only do small patches at my house. Will check out all your other videos. Corner tape and corner to ceiling tape are killers for me. Thanks again!!!

Real tradesman he's very clean and nothing hits the floor , hard to find now a days and a pleasure to see , great job young man

Your videos are amazing and this one will probably be another amazing video of yours. Keep up the amazing work Ben.

You're easily the best drywaller on the internet. I love watching your videos but usually (and stupidly) it's right AFTER I've screwed up some of my own drywall repairs. Thanks for rocking your trade with awesomeness!

Glad you made a video of this. All your videos are vary educational.I've been taping for 10 years. Ppl don't understand how much we have to think about to be a good taper

Helpful video. Flatting out high spots like your 3 patches together, helps create the illusion of flatness, and will most likely look perfect without texture!

Perfectly done, I'm 4TH gen carpenter that specializes in taping. Love the fact you overworked ur last pass-glad I'm not the only one that does that. I wanna see stilts next, I spend a ton of time on them.

Firstly, thanks for your valuable time making these videos. How much do you thin your mud and do you add powdered quick setting compound to it? Yours certainly smooths out better than straight out of the bucket.

You’re my new fav KZfaq drywall dude. I’m now looking through your videos for corner patching.

Even when I don’t have a project going on, I find it super, and oddly, satisfying to watch the way you expertly mud drywall. It’s a trade I’ve never mastered, have tried again and again, and have accepted that I’ll never be good. Yet I still keep trying it. 🤷‍♂️

Hey Ben I’m a big fan of your videos I think you do a great job at educating yourself and then passing on that knowledge to others! So recently I was working on a job and had to tape some off angle corners in a vaulted ceiling and after I finished I thought wow that was actually pretty difficult and was wondering if you had any videos on mastering off angle tape seams! I didn’t see any but i think it would be a great addition to your drywall taping series!

Most people approach taping like they're just taping the joints. Maybe in new construction, that is the case. But in remodeling we're constantly patching or, tying into old drywall, In some cases we're patching into existing plaster. The thing that took me the longest to learn is to not be afraid of laying on the mud. Lay it on there and shape it. The second thing is to leave well enough alone...get it on the next coat...lol Even if it looks perfect now, when you come back the next day after it dried and shrinks, it's gonna look like ass again. Sand the highs and apply more mud where needed. The thicker it is, the more it shrinks.

Great personality. Intelligently presented. You can never be a politician.

I agree. Never do a patch if multiple. Treat it all as one large patch. Good job. Well informed and very professional.

You taught me how to do drywall. It's now my spiritual practice. Just wanted to say, when I was learning, I never really understood how "ok" it was to leave large liftoffs, non-smooth textures, etc. I know it's a PITA, but close ups or indirect lighting would enlighten your students much more.

Very interesting to watch. But I have never encountered three large areas to handle as one. In fact, I have never felt the need to use a hawk and trowel, just various width knives. Still, I enjoy watching pro's at work.

love these videos, what brought me here was I paid a “professional” drywaller $1300 to frame in a wall /mud and tape and do large patches and ceiling work in my basement for an apartment project i’m doing . He made an absolute mess. The wall was twisted /crooked and the mudding was horrendous. So i had to fix his mess myself. I’m no drywaller. I’m ok around reno’s etc but there’s a reason I hired someone to tape and mud. Anyways thanks to your videos I finished the project and the walls/ceilings looks pretty decent now but god damn the amount of sanding and coats I had to put on. lol. Thought my arms were going to fall off. Respect to this trade.

Vancouver carpenter, I have honestly learned everything I know about drywall finishing from your videos, proud to say I make some damn fine work from your instruction! And no more subbing out my finishing on my Reno’s. You the man cool guy! Love from Victoria bc

I've made an art of doing it the wrong way :) I'm currently fixing up my bathroom and the original walls are terrible. I see every glob, divot, pop out, and mistake the original drywallers did. I'm fixing them all. The walls are looking better now than when the house was new. It's amazing how much better the quality is when you're doing the work for yourself vs paying someone else to do it.

I almost always coat the entire wall because I don't have years of experience. I trade my time and mud for that lack of experience. And I'm almost always dealing with texture so I fill in the texture to flat and then texture again. It's the only way for me because matching textures is not in my tool box. Same with painting...whole wall.

Ok, dude I love your videos, but the issue with this one is that, that bad drywall patch technique looks better than any patch I have ever done. I have so much to learn. Thank you for taking the time to teach. Love it.

excellent, thank you. mixing the mud to consistency for coating vs. taping is important, i was trained to use a banjo, 'tube' or bazooka and evn a hopper box. had a blast rebuilding 'n remodeling. ☮️

Please include footage of the walls after the mud dries. Additionally I’d love to see the sanding process and the finished work. Great content.

Drop the vid already , I need to watch this so I can stop doing 1 day patches 😂

Liked how you showed the troweling technique. It seems to me that this kind of work is all in the wrist and how you hold the trowel. as well as the methodology of application. Actually leaned something. Thanks again.

Thanks for showing how to switch holding the trowel as you’re going across it. Thanks for the comedy too. Keep doing what you’re doing!

While I agree about not leaving the in-betweens, it's far and few that anyone has 3 or 4 giant patches. If it's that bad, just bid to float the whole thing.

I always end up skim coating the entire wall

I've picked up some good knowledge because of you brother! Love your videos always super helpful! Literally if I ever have a question about drywall I go on your page and look for the videos LOL. Good job brother.

As soon as you stepped back I was thinking from an auto body stand point there would be voids between repairs lol. It the same way when we repair dents close to each other. Great video

According to that theory you should coat the whole wall… there are different ways you could coat patches, one is individually then tie them in after they dry which makes it easier to mud. The other is to do it the way you did it. You will always leave humps no matter what unless you have a big straight edge and you go really wide then level 5. It comes down to the customers wants/needs in my opinion. Like the thought that you put into your videos by the way.

Dang! A whole two days! You stinker 🤣

The best drywall expert on KZfaq. Period!!

This is the truest thing ever. I had a ton of patches in a wall and had so much feathering and what not I should have just skimmed the wall. Textured and primed, and during paint got the light across the wall at a shallow angle and it looked....insane. Just blend it all together man, he's right.

You can tell an expert by how CLEAN THEIR JEANS ARE👏👏👏 bravo man.

Been doing this for 20years. Your point is very good and clear. You definitely need a larger trowel at least 18-24 inch. Will Give your better leveling and finish. Good luck.

VC @4:25 a lightbulb lit up in my head. Thanks and godspeed to you and family.

As always some welcome tips for better drywall. Thanks!

Rookie here, you make that look easy. Understanding the goal, seeing the how to, and then the practice starts as I am doing a bathroom over. Thanks for the video any help is good. Cheers!

Good lesson teacher! This may even help me when I lay the epoxy micro filler on my homebuilt aircraft! It's called a Europa XS Monowheel btw.

Thank God for this because I have small patches in the same area and I would have done it separately. Now I know to do it like this! Thanks a bunch!

Love watching a real pro at his craft. So satisfying

I went through a union training program back in the day, and my instructor was super old, and super skilled, he taught me to use a hawk and trowel, and also sheetrock knives and pans. In the day, I mostly used the trowels when dealing with plaster and lathe. But , yeah, I've carried the banjo, and the bazooka..lol

Far and away the best drywall instructor on KZfaq!

I swear I've watched tons of your video and you do it effortlessly. Great video

I appreciate you covering this material prior to going to work.

i'M RE- doing my whole livingroom for me this is a big job and I watch your videos to help me through this.

Your sense of humor is quite entertaining on top of the instruction

Thank you for all of the knowledge you have shared with us.

Great the tip on the inclination of the spatola

I learn something new every time I watch your channel.

"Liquid wall" that...is actually a very helpful visualization!

Texture is relevant and light as you pointed out. Taping is all about creating an illusion of flatness Cuz it ain’t flat unless you coat the whole wall

Wow! Now that I’m done I’ve noticed I’ve done it wrong. Like you said, “Now you know”. Thanks Brother. I laid eggshell paint onto my project and I got humpty humps.