How to Make a Drywall Popcorn Finish

Drywall popcorn finish usually covers a room's ceiling.

A drywall texture installer usually applies popcorn-style texture to a ceiling. Popcorn, a spray-on drywall texture, uses vermiculite or polystyrene to create a rough surface that deadens the acoustics of a room. Drywall texture manufacturers make popcorn with coarse, medium and fine finishes. Popcorn texture covers the imperfections in the drywall, creating a flat-looking surface. Always use extreme caution when removing old popcorn texture from homes built in the 1980s and earlier. Older homes often used popcorn texture containing asbestos.

Things You'll Need

• Plastic sheeting
• Masking tape
• Flat white primer
• Paint roller
• Water
• Bucket
• Electric drill
• Paddle bit
• Electric texture sprayer
• Air compressor
• Air hose
• Hopper gun
• Rag

Instructions

1. Cover all surfaces not receiving popcorn texture with plastic sheeting. Use masking tape to hold the plastic in place.

2. Coat the drywall with a flat white primer, using a paint roller to spread the primer. Painting the drywall with primer prior to applying the popcorn texture eliminates dark spots in the finished texture. Let the primer dry before continuing.

3. Combine a bag of premixed popcorn texture and water in a bucket, using the texture manufacturer's recommended ratio. Premixed bags of popcorn texture contain all of the needed ingredients except water.

4. Stir the popcorn mixture in the bucket with an electric drill equipped with a paddle bit. Mix the popcorn until its texture matches that of lumpy cream.

5. Fill a texture hopper with the popcorn texture. An electric texture sprayer contains the hopper and an electric motor-driven sprayer in a single hand-held unit. A compressor-driven hopper needs an air compressor, an air hose and a hopper gun.

6. Hold the texture hopper 10 to 12 inches away from the drywall. Apply the popcorn texture to a small area. Adjust the hopper's pressure until the popcorn reaches the desired texture. Clean the drywall's test area with a rag.

7. Spray the popcorn texture onto the drywall, using back-and-forth motions. Start in a corner of the drywall, and work across its surface. Use even strokes, and do not pause in any areas.

8. Let the popcorn texture dry on the drywall for 48 hours before painting.

References

• Handyman-Do-It-Yourself: Drywall Ceiling Textures
• Plaster-Wall-Ceiling-Solutions: You Sure You Want Popcorn Texture on Your Ceiling?
• Home Repair Handyman: How to Texture Drywall - Tips & Techniques

Resources

• Puget Sound Clean Air Agency: How to Remove Spray-On "Popcorn" Ceilings