TOP TIPS! What are your top tips that you CAN share?

[fordy]

Surely using hot/warm water will decrease the amount of play time with the filler?

Did it once when i was an apprentice and the gaffa went loopy, but then again he was a hard task masters at the best of times!!

[Have Brush Will Travel]

Don't really use this one anymore as I use easifill, but back in the days when the main filler was Tetrion it always mixed up nicer and smoother when using warm water.

I should imagine this works still with other fillers like polycell and your general DIY powder fillers

Intersting...Ill try that...I hate tetrion...I always found it very course, gravely, and didnt stick to painted surfaces very well...you could also rub it down with your finger..

[Colour Republic]

Surely using hot/warm water will decrease the amount of play time with the filler?

It does a little but then Tetrion always took a week to go off anyway

I do sometimes do it with Easifill but not to make it mix smoother but to speed up the setting time, although it's only now and again as most of the time I'm using Easifill 45 and normally have 1/2 a bag of Easifill 20 knocking around, so it's only exceptional circumstances that i'd want it to set faster than that anyway.

[Puma]

Talking of easifill - add water to the powder - about 1 part water to 2 parts filler. It is much easier this way.

Polyfiller vice versa. Add powder to water.

[Colour Republic]

Talking of easifill - add water to the powder - about 1 part water to 2 parts filler. It is much easier this way.

Really?? I've never had a problem but then I normally mix up quite a bit in a bucket with a whisk. Clean bucket, water in the bottom and tip in the easifil whilst mixing with a paddle mixer.

To be fair i've never tried the other way but i'd imagine you'd end up with dried powder at the bottom. no??

Or are you saying it mixes better like this for smaller quantities in a paint kettle?

[Have Brush Will Travel]

Talking of easifill - add water to the powder - about 1 part water to 2 parts filler. It is much easier this way.

Polyfiller vice versa. Add powder to water.

Puma...are you sure you have that the right way round?..easi-fil is normally mixed in large amounts in a bucket..I have mixed it on a tray before but I find the water goes all over the place.

[bobbie-dazzler]

Don't really use this one anymore as I use easifill, but back in the days when the main filler was Tetrion it always mixed up nicer and smoother when using warm water.

I should imagine this works still with other fillers like polycell and your general DIY powder fillers

Intersting...Ill try that...I hate tetrion...I always found it very course, gravely, and didnt stick to painted surfaces very well...you could also rub it down with your finger..

Oh Dear HBWT, we usually agree on most things, but I love tetrion I find it the opposite of what you say. lol
I suppose its what your used to.

[Have Brush Will Travel]

And you probably have smoother fingers than me...mine are like P40!

The only time I have enjoyed the experience is when I have some PVA mixed with the water..

[Puma]

Yes for paint kettles bung the easi fill in first is my preference for three reasons:

Easi fill is really difficult to serve when pouring out of a large bag, if you get it wrong you can bung some back in the bag if necessary if you have just poured it into a dry kettle.

I find easi -fill also floats on top of water sometimes when you pour it on to water so that when you mix it, (in a kettle) it can spray out of the kettle.

It is then once you've got about the right amount of powder in a kettle quite easy to estimate 50% water needed for the mix. If you do it the normal way around and the easi fill semi floats on top of the water it's really difficult to estimate what kind of mix you are going to get because you cannot see the proportions so easily.

A large bucket doesn't require such fine pouring of the powder I guess and goes well the normal way around. I find it quicker to whisk this way even though as cc says you have to stir in the claggy bottom of the kettle.

[splashofcolours]

reckon ive wasted as much easi fill as ive used , always mix to much.

[Puma]

Yeah pouring from the bag on to water I almost always achieve a random, usually ridiculous, amount of mix.

[johntomkins]

No more mixing filler 4 me lafarge smartmix 20kg tub, you can get it at buildbase, selco, easier to rub down than easifill and you don't have to keep mixing up filler, opened my eyes up
http://www.trademate.co.uk/products/pro ... ccessories

Also, put your rollers in a pillowcase and wash them in the washing machine, don't listen to the wife moaning about it, put her in there as well

[fordy]

Joint cement is good for feathering and face filling but anything of depth and it slumps all over the place. I use it when im getting a room ready for papering, anything of depth id use easifill or tertion or even two part!

Tertrion is course and totallly agree with HBWT, once youve used easifill you never wanna use tetrion again IMO. Polyfilla well thats just the worst of the worst!

[Have Brush Will Travel]

Toupret is the one for me...the only downside being its twice the price of everything else.

[splashofcolours]

Am i missing a trick here ?
I use easi fill and like it but cant do deep fills as it always slumps . read somewhere to use bonding plaster for deep then face fill with easifill!
Weeble