7 Best Uses for a Drywall Trowel

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A drywall trowel is a useful tool to have around. You’ll use it extensively when you’re putting up drywall in your house, but you can employ it for other things, too. With some imagination, you can find several different uses for a drywall trowel that really make it a valuable purchase. You’ll find that this tool is capable of working with most kinds of materials.

Applying Texture

When you’re working on a wall for faux painting, a drywall trowel is the perfect tool for applying the texture. As the texture is largely made up of drywall compound anyway, it’s a perfectly natural extension. The drywall trowel is flexible enough to apply the texture either thickly or thinly, depending on what you need for the wall, and it’s easy to scrape off the excess and sculpt the texture into the shape you want.

Plaster

A drywall trowel can also be easily used as a plastering tool. Not only is it remarkably similar in appearance, but spreading drywall and plaster use much the same technique. A drywall trowel won’t work quite as well and it will take more effort but if you don’t have a plasterer’s trowel, a drywall trowel makes a very adequate substitute.

Bricklaying

Bricklaying requires a layer of mortar on all sides of the brick. You can lay this with a drywall trowel if necessary, and you’ll find it will do a good job. Again, the tools are quite similar. You will need to have a thicker layer of mortar than of drywall compound, but you can adapt to this. The motion is different but once again, it’s something you’ll get used to very quickly and the trowel is excellent at removing excess mortar. There’s usually enough weight to a drywall trowel for you to be able to use it to tamp down the bricks too.

Flooring

If you’re putting down cement for flooring such as marble, a drywall trowel is an ideal way of spreading it quickly. You’ll find that your practice in spreading in drywall compound will make it easy to for you spread an even layer.

Cement

Although cement and concrete are poured they still need to be smoothed on the top, often with a light texture to ensure people don’t slip when walking on it. You can use your drywall trowel for this job as it will spread in easy arcs, giving an even surface and applying very light scoring.

Mixing

You can use your drywall trowel for mixing things like thinset if you don’t have, or don’t want to buy, a mixing trowel. You’ll need to clean it thoroughly afterward before you use it for anything else but this is easy work for the trowel.

Finishing

Trowels are used for finishing all kinds of things, not merely drywall compounds. Your drywall trowel is flexible enough to be able to work with many different items and apply a good finish. Depending on what you’re working with, you might need to exercise more care especially with very thin finishes where real smoothness can be difficult to achieve