How to Fix a Bad Tape & Orange Peel Textured Ceiling

Cover the floor with drop cloths. Set up your stepladder. Scrape the high points off the textured ceiling, using a 12-inch drywall knife.

Use a screw gun to pull up any uneven drywall edges. Drive a 1-1/4-inch drywall screw through the board and into the ceiling truss every 8 inches along the edge of the board. Keep the screws 1/2 inch from the edge of the drywall. Countersink the head of each screw.

Scoop some drywall compound out of its bucket with a 6-inch drywall knife. Fill a drywall pan one-half full of compound. Apply a thin, smooth coat of compound to each seam in the ceiling, using the 6-inch knife.

Unroll the drywall tape. Press it into the wet compound on a seam in the ceiling. Center the tape over the seam. Drag the blade of the 6-inch knife along the tape to press it into the compound and smooth the seam. Let the seams dry completely. Sand lightly with a sanding screen to remove any thick compound that's still exposed.

Open a bucket of white primer paint. Use the mixing paddle on the drill to mix the orange peel texturing with the paint. Remember to keep the entire paddle below the surface of the paint while you are mixing, or it will spray everywhere.

Place the bucket of texture-laden paint in front of your spray rig. Lean the spray rig back, wheel it forward and lower the intake tube into the paint. Turn on the unit. Point the nozzle into an empty bucket and tap the trigger several times to prime the hoses.

Remove the ladder from the work area. Aim the nozzle of the sprayer at the ceiling while you stand on the drop cloths on the floor. Spray the ceiling with the textured mixture, using short bursts while moving the nozzle in a smooth, side-to-side motion.

Cover the entire ceiling with the texture. Use a spray shield to protect the walls when spraying around the edges. Clean the spray gun with clean water while you wait for the ceiling to dry completely.