Warning: my living room ceiling almost fell on me Saturday after a bad DIY patch job last month

I tried to fix a small water stain on my ceiling in April using that quick dry spackle from the hardware store and thought I was good. Last weekend I was watching a movie and heard this cracking sound, looked up and saw a big bubble forming right where I patched. Turns out I didn't sand down the old paint enough and the new stuff just peeled off in a sheet about 2 feet wide. It crashed onto my coffee table, missed my TV by maybe 6 inches. My neighbor who does drywall for a living said I needed to use joint compound and mesh tape for anything bigger than a nail hole, not that spackle crap. Anyone else had a ceiling patch fail on them after a few weeks?

3 comments

3 Comments

tessaperry1d ago

The issue with quick dry spackle is its made for tiny holes like nail pops, not for anything bigger than a quarter. You really do need joint compound and fiberglass mesh tape for patches that size, otherwise the spackle just cracks and peels because it can't flex with the ceiling. I learned that the hard way too when my bathroom ceiling patch fell off after three weeks.

samrodriguez1d ago

HOLY SMOKES that's terrifying! I had something similar happen but with a bathroom ceiling that got wet from a leaky pipe above. My friend told me to just use that lightweight spackle and I packed it in there like I was stuffing a turkey. Three weeks later I'm taking a shower and hear this THUMP and the whole patch is floating in the tub like a dirty iceberg. I guess the moisture from the shower made it let go completely. Now I only trust mesh tape and all purpose joint compound for anything ceiling related.

jordan_hill1d ago

The "dirty iceberg" thing got me. That's horrible but also kinda hilarious in a messed up way. I can just picture you standing there in your underwear staring at a lump of spackle floating in your tub. Spackle is garbage for any patch bigger than a dime. It dries like chalk and has zero grip. Lightweight spackle is even worse. It's basically just air and glue. Your friend totally set you up for failure. Mesh tape and compound is the only way to go.