# How do you finish ceilings for texture?



## Oldtimer (May 6, 2015)

Just wondering how you all finish your drywall ceilings for texture? Do you just tape and coat? Do you rough sand? Finish coat like walls with 3 coats and sand?

On the subject of texture. Do any of you also texture your jobs or just tape? I do both. Living in a rural area there's not many trades people around here so I tend to include ceiling texture in all my quotes if they want it. 95% of my texture work is done using Span-Lite premix. 75% of the texture is knock-down and the other just a splatter coat.

PS: feel free to move this post if it's in the wrong forum


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## Wimpy65 (Dec 17, 2013)

Sorry Old Timer, but I have never sprayed a texture. My area, dear old Lancaster, PA, is mostly a smooth finish. The only texture I ever did is what they call a "butter coat". A "butter coat" is all-purpose joint compound & sand mixture applied 1/8" - 3/16" thick and troweled to a random textured finish. When we prep for that, we didn't coat the ceiling angle & only 2nd coat on flats and butts (no sanding). Back in the "old" days, they would often leave these ceilings unpainted. :blink:

We did lots of this in the 80's, but I haven't done one in years. Like anything else, styles change, fads come & go. :yes:


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## endo_alley (Nov 2, 2013)

I think the level of finish depends on the type of texture. I generally assume that bead must have a straight fill on it and all joints must be made sufficiently flat when checked with a straight edge, regardless of texture. After this, you decide what level of smoothness is necessary.


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## chris (Apr 13, 2011)

Most everything we do has a texture . We tape and 2 coat all the seams , bead and srews. When I say 2 coat that means hitting the flats twice after tape. We split our butts twice and then when dry we coat the centers to make flat. The texture we do is on walls and ceilings by hand. We do spray on occasion but mostly a hand texture ( full coverage flat texture)


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 7, 2008)

We hang, finish, texture, prime and paint all of our drywall jobs.

Level 3 for skip trowel or knockdown on ceilings. Level 4 for orange peel texture.


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## BOBTHEFIXER (Oct 28, 2013)

I finish ceilings as if they will be painted flat, so that its ready for any thing like: "we changed our minds" lol


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## embella plaster (Sep 21, 2013)

In aus texture doesnt exist any more it was only done on houses pre 70s we only every have to do patches on it most people get me to level 5 it


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## Oldtimer (May 6, 2015)

Thanks for your input guys  I figured it would depend on the type of texture being applied. When I first started (early 1980's) we used a product called Snowtex or Styrotex. These were the old Styrofoam pellets mix. The Styrotex had a powdered primer in it and it would prime and texture at the same time, no need to pre-prime. Using either of those only required a tape and one coat. But the span-lite requires a 3 coat job most times and ceilings need to be primed before the spay goes on.


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## Bevelation (Dec 20, 2008)

I'm closer to the area you work in so I can give you better input. I do 2 coats on ceilings for spanlite texture work all the time, whether it's sprayed orange peel or knockdown.
Yes, we mostly prime before spraying with quick dry or roll on.


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## Bevelation (Dec 20, 2008)

The local Co-op here still stocks snowtex. Nobody buys it!


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## Oldtimer (May 6, 2015)

Bevelation said:


> The local Co-op here still stocks snowtex. Nobody buys it!


WOW..wasn't sure they even made that texture any more lol
The last powdered texture mix I used was about 10 years ago and it was called Walcel. Kind of like the snowtex but had fine grit to it. It dried hard like span lite but all you could do with it was a splatter coat. Because of the grit in it knock down was not possible.


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## endo_alley (Nov 2, 2013)

We haven't done a spray texture on new work in 20 years here. Popcorn type ceilings maybe 25 years. Only occasionally on repairs. Spray texture is about as popular here as mullets.


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## Wimpy65 (Dec 17, 2013)

What are you saying Endo, are mullets out of style? :whistling2:


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## Bazooka-Joe (Dec 31, 2010)

2 coats and sometimes 3 on butts


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## Oldtimer (May 6, 2015)

Wimpy65 said:


> What are you saying Endo, are mullets out of style? :whistling2:


 I'm going to bring back the receding hairline mullet!:thumbup:


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## endo_alley (Nov 2, 2013)

Wimpy65 said:


> What are you saying Endo, are mullets out of style? :whistling2:


For the time being yes unless your in an eighties nostalgia band. But I think next year it will be mullets, orange shag carpet, and dayglow one piece ski suits again. Don't throw out the polyester leisure suits just yet either. I still have a spray rig setup collecting dust. Give it time. I have to wonder if one of these days even full body tattoos and pierced nipples may go out of style.


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