Apartments, condos and small homes require more wall maintenance than larger places…at least in my mind. Let me justify that statement.  Having less room to maneuver will cause you to impact your walls more. This is even more so apparent in higher traffic area like hallways. Knowing how to re-texture your walls and corners will save you money and keep your apartment in tip-top shape!

This past weekend I was noticing that the corners in my home were looking pretty bad. They tend to get chipped up from moving furniture, kids playing with toys and just normal wear and tear. We also just repaired a hole in our hallway that happened when we were moving a new bed into our house. We patched the hole (another post) So I decided to retexture the corners and the patch that we had in our hallway.

First off there are several ways to re texture, but I will show you the cheapest and fastest way to do it. I like using a product that can be found in any home improvement store. It’s called Homax Orange Peel spray texture. It’s quick drying and odorless. It’s also water based, so clean up is very easy. This spray texture comes in can and is available to two sizes – 20oz and 10oz. The top of the can has an adjustable nozzle to give you three options.

  1. Orange Peel – this is a lighter thinner coat that is most common in apartments. A 10oz can will provide 50 sq.ft of coverage on this setting.
  2. Medium Splatter – As the name states a slightly thicker coat than orange peel. You will be able to cover 35 sq.ft with this medium setting.
  3. Heavy Splatter – The heaviest and thickest coat and will only yield 25 sq.ft of coverage.

If you are unsure about which setting is right for your walls just test it on a piece of cardboard, let it dry and then match which setting fits your apartments texture.

After you have found the setting that will best fit your application. It’s as simple as coating the area with a even coat. Keep a safe distance away from the wall. I recommend a sweeping motion with a distance of 36 inches. You might need to make two coats depending on how much damage there is to the wall. On corners you may need up to four or five coats. I say this because below the paint is a metal railing that is intended to protect and add durability to you walls. The texture spray has a hard time sticking to this metal, but usually several coats will give you the look your looking for. I also try to wait 10-15 minutes in between coats.

Once I have the texture that I want, I will let dry for about an hour. Once the texture is dried it is as simple as painting over and your done! The key to a professional finish is also matching your paint. Taking a chip over to the local paint store will help in the matching process.

 

 

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