Tricks to Make a Ceiling Application

Preparation

• While ceiling texture covers slight imperfections, it’s best to make the ceiling as smooth as possible before you begin. This means that you need to apply drywall mud to all of the drywall joints and screws then smooth it out as much as possible. Sand down any rough spots left from the mudding process. Once you finish with the drywall base, use a vacuum to remove any lingering dust. Paint the ceiling with an interior latex primer that has a high concentration of solids. The primer gives the ceiling texture something to adhere to, as well as giving the ceiling a uniform color.

Mixing Texture

• To mix ceiling texture to a uniform consistency, use a paddle attached to a drill. It’s important that you avoid whipping the texture at too high a speed, or the texture compound may get tiny bubbles in it that are almost impossible to remove. Once these bubbles are on the ceiling, they make the ceiling texture resemble Swiss cheese. It’s also important not to add too much water to the ceiling texture. If you get too much water in the mixture, you can expect the texture to have a poor bond to the ceiling and cracks. It may also develop pinholes in it. For a texture pattern that looks like orange peel, add no more than 3/4-gallon of water per 48 pounds of product. Spatter and knockdown ceiling patterns typically use no more than 1/2-gallon of water per 50 pounds of texture.

Practice

• No matter what texture pattern you are installing, it’s necessary that you practice the application process before applying the ceiling texture to the ceiling. Find a piece of scrap drywall or plywood and practice layering on the texture, creating a pattern and knocking it down with a trowel and hawk if you are doing a knockdown ceiling texture. Experiment with patterns using a variety of tools, such as brushes and knives. Add some texture product to the spraying machine if you are applying spray texture so you can get the feel for how the machine operates.

Additives

• If you aren’t comfortable making knockdown patterns that are uniform throughout the ceiling, consider placing an additive in the ceiling texture mix instead. Additives give the texture a roughened effect but are much easier to apply, either by hand or with the sprayer. Mix up to 8-1/2 pounds of silica sand into each gallon of texture for a gritty texture. Add 1-1/2 pounds of small Perlite beads per 2 gallons of texture for a different look.