Hot take: I used to hate pre-filling screw holes until a job in Phoenix changed my mind

I always thought pre-filling screw holes was a waste of time on big jobs. Like, who has an extra 2 hours to dab mud on every single screw before the first coat? But last month on a 4,000 square foot house in Phoenix, the GC insisted we do it. Turns out, it cut our second coat time by almost a third because we weren't fighting dimples and popped heads. Now I'm a convert for any house with textured walls. Has anyone else found a situation where it's actually worth the extra effort?

2 comments

2 Comments

webb.stella3d ago

On textured walls it's a total game changer honestly.

tessawebb2d ago

Wait... did I just get called out for being a lazy drywaller all these years? Yeah, I was in the same boat... thought pre-filling was just busy work for guys who like to waste time. But you're totally right about those Phoenix walls... the texture there is brutal for hiding screw pops and dimples. I finally tried it on a smaller job after reading this and now I feel kinda dumb for all the extra sanding I've been doing. It's like learning you could've been using a hammer drill the whole time instead of a regular one.