# Fixing an ugly gnarly ceiling patch



## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

I shouldn't be surprised after the caulked patch that the previous HO did but there's a fugly ceiling patch in the downstairs living room. I dug out all the tape that separated and retaped, and now I'm contending with the humps from lack of feathering. My question is this, the ceiling is knockdown, do I need to remove the old or can I float, feather, sand, and spray with my gun? 

I sure hope I don't have to remove the old......my God what a pain.


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## griz (Nov 26, 2009)

Reaper81 said:


> ... can I float, feather, sand, and spray with my gun?
> 
> I sure hope I don't have to remove the old......my God what a pain. ...


Depends how good you are....


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

I'm no blacktop but I know how to hide stuff.


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## aptpupil (Jun 12, 2010)

Then you'll be fine. It won't match perfectly, but most customers are fine with that...


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## CarpenterSFO (Dec 12, 2012)

If the whole ceiling or wall is getting painted, we often shoot some compound, and knock down, over the entire ceiling or wall, right over the old. For a pretty small effort, you get a consistent look across the whole ceiling, which is usually more important than achieving an exact look.


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

Yeah the whole ceiling is going to get painted. I did sand down the hideous knockdown they went back over the seams with, it came off pretty easy but the original is hard as a rock. I did feather out a foot on each side and floated the hump. I think when I shoot the knockdown I'll take it out a little around each side and see how well that blends in. I couldn't really see the hump that well without my flood lights pointed down towards the wall so I have high hopes.


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 6, 2008)

How big is the patch?
If it's not to big I like to use my knockdown texture sponge to apply the texture and then knock it down. 

I've found that the knockdown sponge is better for blending than trying to spray the knockdown on. Because the texture tends to build up to much where the existing knockdown starts when you try spray it on and match the texture on a ceiling repair.




 
Is there much natural light coming in the windows?
If there is I'd skim coat the entire ceiling if your customers are willing to pay for it.. Then re-spray the knockdown texture on the whole ceiling.

I always try and give some options so the Homeowner's can make that call. :thumbsup:


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

There are 3 good size windows. The patch looks like 2'x3'. The sponge idea is a very good suggestion.

I did sand down the previous attempt at blending the knockdown, looks like they just threw mud on the ceiling and smeared it. 

I floated over the middle of the humps and feathered out a foot on each side making sure I don't add more mud to the hump. I think if I take my time sanding the skim coats and using the sponge method you'll never see it.

HO is such a tight wad I seriously doubt he will want to pay me more for doing the entire ceiling.


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

Sir Mixalot said:


> How big is the patch?
> If it's not to big I like to use my knockdown texture sponge to apply the texture and then knock it down.
> 
> I've found that the knockdown sponge is better for blending than trying to spray the knockdown on. Because the texture tends to build up to much where the existing knockdown starts when you try spray it on and match the texture on a ceiling repair.
> ...


What consistency would the mud need to be for sponging? Looks thicker than pancake batter for spraying but not straight out of the bucket either in the video.


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 6, 2008)

Reaper81 said:


> What consistency would the mud need to be for sponging? Looks thicker than pancake batter for spraying but not straight out of the bucket either in the video.


When using the sponge technique, I use USG(Green Lid) All Purpose JC. I thin it down just a little bit with water and spin it with my mixing drill.

If it's a bigger thicker knockdown type texture I won't add any water at all. I'll just mix it smooth first.

This video has some good tips for texture matching using a sponge.


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## dsconstructs (Jul 20, 2010)

Those sponges are great!


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

I didn't have very good luck with the sponge. Not saying it doesn't work but I need more practice with it. I did get the patches of knockdown done with my gun and I think it blends quite well. I'll post pics from my computer later.


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## Sir Mixalot (Jan 6, 2008)

Reaper81 said:


> I didn't have very good luck with the sponge. Not saying it doesn't work but I need more practice with it. I did get the patches of knockdown done with my gun and I think it blends quite well. I'll post pics from my computer later.


What type of sponge did you use? The one I have has been modified with bigger holes to replicate the spray knockdown blobs before they are knocked down.


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## dsconstructs (Jul 20, 2010)

I was originally taught using wadded up paper wrapped in plastic. The switch to the sponge was easy, and much nicer to work with. 

Take some scrap and practice. Being able to do small patches without setting up to spray texture is worth it. I do occasionally run into some textures that just have to be sprayed to match, but most can be accomplished like this.


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## Reaper81 (Nov 30, 2015)

I think it was the sponge I was using. Nobody in town had a sponge similar to the one in the video so I tried a sea sponge with a flat side. I started out with straight out of the bucket joint compound and tried it on a piece of scrap. First test looked horrible so I watered it down some and tried it again. Looked better but I didn't think I'd get the results I wanted without an actual knockdown sponge and not a sea sponge. So I got another piece of scrap and set up my hopper and compressor for testing. Am I on the right track with that one about it absolutely needs to be an actual knockdown sponge?

HO and I did a walk through last night and he was pretty happy with it except one spot in the ceiling that needs very minor touch up.


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