Polyfilla not drying

[Poita]

Ok this is a pretty basic DIY inquiry.
I wasn't happy with the positioning of a shelf I put up so I took it down and drilled fixing holes a few inches to the right.
I then removed the plugs in the old holes and bought a tube of Polycell 'Flexible Gap' Polyfilla.
It says at the bottom 'For gaps, along skirting, door and window frames'.

I didn't realise I needed a skeleton gun to go along with the tube and don't have one so I just opened the bottom of the tube and put some of the polyfilla on a wooden block. Then I used a pencil to push the polyfilla into the screw holes and a wallpaper stripper to flatten more of it over the surface around the screw hole.

The tube says that it dries in an hour or so but it's been three days and it's still soft. It has firmed up a bit but I can feel it flex when I test it with my finger and my fingernail can easily imprint on it. That's also the case for the excess which is on the periphery that is spread super thin on the wall so it's not just the mass within the screw hole.

I realise that as it goes deep the moisture within might have nowhere to go so I left a fan blowing over it for a few nights and it doesn't seem to be drying.
I'm not even sure if I can sand it down in it's current state of 'playdough' like plasticity. But I guess I could use the wallpaper striper to scrape it more or less flat with the wall.
That being the case, can I just paint over it and leave it as it is or should I wait a week for it to dry totally?

 

[RandomGrinch]

Hi,
I'm afraid as it's a 'flexible' gap filler, it isn't designed to fully set, but to remain flexible to allow for differential movement between skirting and walls etc.
This means it can not be sanded either!
You could dig some out and use conventional filler over the top.
It is overpaintable though!

 

[Poita]

Ah thanks so much for that.
I guess in my inexperience and not knowing there are different types I bought the wrong one.
Well, the worst kind of mistakes are the ones you don't know how to remedy, or especially the ones you don't even acknowledge.
Knowing what a mistake is and how to remedy it is cause for good cheer.
Thanks.

 

[Wayners]

Dig it all out and fill with power filler mixed up with water. Use something like toupret. Not any ready mixed though

 

[blup]

Drill it out, use a matchstick covered in tissue paper which has first been saturated with filler, that will help with the narrow hole you are filling. Ronseal does a good deep hole flexible filler, but a mixable powder gives greater control over the slump.

Blup

 

[Poita]

Yeah I drilled out the spongey stuff then sanded the crap out of the hole entrances, stuffed the back of the hole with tissue then put proper filla in. It's drying nicely so I'll sand it down and paint over.
Also, my £49 Black & Decker has gone a bit wonky so two of the new holes were drilled wider than the plugs so I'll fill those two and insert the plugs before it dries.

 

[Colaris]

Was going to post the exact same question.

Before repainting my bathrom ceiling I touched up a few cracks and left it 24 hours before painting over it. Was a little suprised to find it was still wet and just smeared when I went over it with a brush even though I had left it to dry way over the 2 hours it mentions on the packet.

Another lesson learnt!

 

[tell80]

Properly mixed and applied the Flexible stuff is designed to be painted over when dry.

Anyhow, you've made a mess - so dig out & remove the mess, & then use a packet of any cheap filler powder or even a small amount of any regular plastering powder.

Mix as semi-dry and simply fill the holes to just below the surface.
When the initial filler has dried then mix some sloppier powder and go over the area filling in the obvious spots, & attempting to match the plaster surface pattern effect.
Dont leave blobs of filler like you did previous.
Use a light hand, and only apply small dabs at a time - never slap on big lumps.

 

[Colaris]

Thanks.