How to Apply Orange Peel Texture to Your Walls

close up of orange peel texture

If you are seeking a light easy to match texture for your interior, orange peel or spatter coat, is for you.
It is great for new walls or to freshen up plaster.

Things You'll Need

• Air compressor
• hopper
• Unnagregated mud
• hose

Instructions

1. 

   Mask off everything. Cover the floor if it is finished, carpet or wood. A few dollars worth of plastic and tape save a lot of time.

2. 

   In a pail pour room temp water. About 3/4 of what you want to have in mud. Now add about 1/2 of that in the powder mix. Start mixing. Use a drill with a mixer attachment. You can mix by hand but I would recommend against it. It is very hard to get a smooth batch of mud by hand.
   keep the mud fairly thick without stressing out the drill, mix until lumps are all blended out. Let it sit for 5 min. It will thicken a bit more. Now start mixing to the thickness you want. Keep adding water and mixing until the thickness of a thin milkshake.

3. 

   Now to spray. Hook up your hopper to your air compressor and set compressor at about 60-70 PSI. Fill your hopper about 1/3 to 1/2 way up. Next turn on the air at the hopper. Test spray a patch to the texture you want. Use a box or a sheet of scrap drywall. Spray the walls and ceiling that you want textured. Keep moving, right to left.

4. When you think you are done, move the light in the room and check for light spots. If you need to spray a little extra. Now let it dry overnight before priming and painting.

Tips & Warnings

• One well placed fan will greatly speed up dry time.

• overspray will clean up with warm water.

• Higher air pressure means smaller drops

• smaller setting on the hopper means finer spay

• Have an empty bucket handy to set the hopper in so it doesn't spill when you set it down.

• wear ear plugs. It is louder than you think.