After 20 years, I finally switched from joint compound to hot mud for my first coat

I used regular all-purpose joint compound for my first coat on every job I ever did. But last year on a big house in Tucson, a guy I respect told me to try hot mud for the first pass. I figured it would be harder to sand or crack easier, but I was wrong. The stuff sets faster and I can get a second coat on the same day without waiting overnight. Has anyone else made this change and found it saves them time on big projects?

2 comments

2 Comments

oliviat171mo ago

Ngl, I tried hot mud once and hated every second of it. On a kitchen job in July, that stuff set up in like 12 minutes and left me scrambling to smooth out the edges before it turned into concrete. Regular joint compound might take overnight, but at least I can walk away and come back fresh without fighting the clock. Plus, I found the hot mud harder to sand off the tape lines after it dried, left these little ridges that took extra passes to flatten. I'll stick with the slow stuff and just schedule two days for the first coat.

alice_palmer201mo ago

Wait, 12 minutes? That's insane. I've used a lot of hot mud in my time but never had it grab that fast, even in summer heat. Sounds like you got a bad batch or maybe the water was too warm when you mixed it, that'll mess with the set time every time.