Spackling vs. Wood Filler

Drywall products will be much easier to use (go on quick, sand really easy, etc.), but they are not very hard/durable. They also shrink alot (if you have a big or deep dent). If your shelf gets dinged up now, it will be even worse with spackling. Just add a tiny bit of water to the wood filler. Or just spit in it. Really. And don't fuss -- just put it on and sand it when dry.

-Kev> I need to smooth out lots of screw holes and various dings in some

where are you from???country

Kevin is right on all points. Listen to him.

I'm sure Kevin's advice is good, and I'm not saying not to use wood filler, which sounds like it would be the right thing.

But I have to tell my story about spackle.

Bought a new vinyl roll floor for my apartment, then went home to take up the old floor, before they installed the new one the next day. Found some holes or uneven spots underneath it, and stores were closed and didn't have anything else so I filled them with spackle. I'm sure I stepped on these spots many times, but it seemed fine for the 8 remaining years I lived there.

It may be of course that the spackle crumbled into powder and the powder filled up the hole as well as something solid would. Never looked under it again.

Thanks! This is just some kind of Kevin love fest thread today!

Previous owner in our house did the same.

Ours seemed to last fine too. When I replaced ours (due to water damage, not bumpiness), the spackling indeed had crumbled and cracked quite a bit. Not enough that I could tell through the vinyl flooring (so I guess it doesn't matter in that case), but certainly not something I would have wanted visible. I used floor leveling compound when I replaced, just to be anal.

-Kevin