Do You Need to Prime the Surface Before Applying Knockdown Texture?

Prime, Paint, Apply Knockdown Texture

• You can prime the bare drywall and paint it before you add the knockdown texture. If you decide to change the wall color after the texture is applied, you have to prime the surface before you paint. This method works well if you are using a white or off-white paint and don’t mind the slight difference in color the texture will add.

Apply Knockdown Texture, Prime, Paint

• Your other option is to add the knockdown texture to the bare wall, and prime the surface after the texture has dried. In this case, you don’t have to prime the wall before you apply the texture. This is the better option if you are going to paint the wall after you apply the texture. If you are painting the room a dark color or if you don’t want any color variation on the wall due to the addition of the texture, this is the method to use.

Considerations

• Before you texture the walls, you have to prepare the area by covering and taping light switches and other items you don’t want textured. You also need to ensure that the drywall to which you are applying the knockdown texture is clean and dry. Ensure it doesn’t have any dirty or greasy areas, as dirt and oily residue can affect how the texture looks and how well it sticks to the surface.

Warning

• Once you apply texture, repairing the wall is difficult, because the repaired drywall won’t have any texture. You will need to use a small knockdown application tool to apply the texture to the repaired area. You probably will also have to repaint the entire space to get a consistent color, because the original paint has aged and the color may have changed slightly.