Drywall Tape - Paper or Fiberglass

Okay folks,

2015 almost 2016 here. Modern day drywall tapes have flooded the market but the two most common are paper and fiberglass, at least around here. As a novice drywaller, I have worked with both and can say that the fiberglass tape is easier for me to work with since I can put it on, and begin mudding. I can also mud in thinner coats which means it drys faster, but it also requires hot mud...or the powder mud that mixes with water. This mud apparently dries harder and stronger. I can tell it is harder to sand so I would agree. I have not seen the fiberglass in a wall long term, but only read critical reviews saying it cracked.

Paper tape seems to be much more difficult to work with until I get the hang of it, and by then it's about time to call it a day! I know beveled joints are supposed to be a breeze, but I find it difficult to put enough mud in the bevel for the tape to rest in but also allow mud to 'squeeze out' from behind it. This is much easier on the butt joints because there is no 'hole' for the tape to hide inside of. The beveled joints also result in being the full thickness of the beveled which I am guessing is about 1/4" or so at the seams.

Should I stick to what I know is easier to work with, or try to perfect the tried and true paper tape?

 

Paper tape is better! with enough practice you will master it

As you know if you use the sticky tape you must use a setting compound to lock it down. Whenever I use setting compounds I like to switch to regular ready mix j/c for the final coat as it is easier to sand.

 

Just to be clear, you are talking about the self-adhesive "fiber tape", right? Because there is actually a new type of fiberglass tape on the market which is installed exactly like paper tape, only it is a lot thinner, and actually embeds right in the mud (as opposed to paper tape which is basically sandwiched by the mud).

 

Unless I am skim coating a wall, I use setting type compounds almost exclusively. It is something I carry on my vehicle at all times. I also have both mesh and regular tape. I use mesh for any flat seams (beveled or butt) and use paper tape for all corners. There is a trick to setting type compounds and paper tape and that is to cut the tape to length first, soak it in water for a minute, wring it out and then set it into the setting type compound. The extra moisture helps it stick better to the setting compound as the compound dries so fast. Paper in the corners as it is sometimes tough to get the extreme corner of mesh filled with compound and it leaves holes.

You also have to be mindful of sanding because if you sand down to the mesh tape, it makes the job frustrating.

 

Huh? You fill the bevel up! Lay the tape on it. Wipe it with an 8" knife. Put the excess that squeezes out back in your pan.

If you can't get the mud to squeeze out from behind the tape, you probably either aren't putting enough mud in the joint or you have not thinned it enough. You don't want it to be runny like pancake batter but just thin enough that it comes out easily, and still doesn't drip off your knife. Stirring a bit of water into a pan of premixed mud is often all it takes. The mud shrinks slightly as it dries, leaving the tape slightly recessed in the joint... and adding some water helps it shrink even more. This is why you "generally" don't want to use a non-shrinking mud for your taping, because you kind of WANT the tape to shrink back into the joint as it dries.

The hot mud is generally for small jobs or time sensitive ones.... like if you NEED to get all your coats done in a day. Almost any professional taper will be using paper tape and regular mud if he is taping an entire house. They will tape all the joints then leave. Come back and fill joints, then leave. Etc. Time is not a factor cuz they have other jobs to go to and cleaning hot mud out of their tools is a real pain in the neck if you don't have to.

If I needed to get done fast, I would probably use paper tape and several small batches of 20 minute easy sand, and tape everything out. Butt joints first, horizontal belly joints next, vertical inside corners over that, then ceiling perimeter last. That particular order ensures that each layer of paper overlaps the next and you're knife won't catch on the edges.

If I don't need to get done fast, I always tape with bucket mud and don't come back for the next coat until it's completely dry.

If you can't master the paper tape, I'd give up. Or watch some videos on it... it's really the easiest part. If you use mesh tape, You HAVE to tape with hot mud and then cover it with hot mud on the 2nd coat. My opinion is paper tape all the way. I never ever use mesh. (unless its cement board!)

 

A drywall tape reel and a hawk will make your job much easier. The hawk not only holds your mud, but gives you a place to manage that mud and keep your knife clean. Sometimes you want the mud on one side of the blade. Clean it and pick up what you need and as you force the mud out from under the tape, the hawk is where you put it. If you picked up some junk in the mud, put it to one side and keep going.

The reel lets you start a run and then hole the tape against the drywall with your blade and tear it off. Just drop the remaining end and it will be there for the next run.

Keith, as for sandwiching the paper tape between two layers of mud, that doesn't work, too much mud and the paper is still just paper. By drawing the blade across the tape firmly, you drive the mud into the paper and it then becomes part of the paper. If they are having difficulty getting the mud out, angle the blade away from the tape and draw one side at a time. As mentioned, I will sometimes run my tape through a pan of water to help the mud soak in.

Bud

 

And then there's the banjo...

http://www.amazon.com/By-MARSHALLTOW.../dp/B001RJ2V6Y

 

Bud, just to clarify, what I mean is with paper tape, there is mud on the underside albeit very little, and also over top. With the new fiberglass tape, the tape actually becomes part of the mud, as it is more like a web and is litterally embedded. The advantage is that you can use much less mud in your corners or butt seems to cov er it.

 

For paper tape, the mud is the glue that holds it to the drywall, so mud needs to be on both sides and then struck off. The mesh tape is self adhesive and becomes part of the mud once embedded.

I've used a hawk for skim coating walls, but always use a pan for taping.

 

I usually do the hanging/installation of the rock and let someone else do the finishing. I learned a couple of tips here today. Wetting the paper and setting compound for fiberglass tape.

 

Here is a video on paper tape. I use fiberglass tape when I use hot mud.

https://youtu.be/kPIIWGqzmRw