But forwallpaper, textured walls are a poor base.
Fortunately, there is a relatively easy fix that transformstextured wallsinto the perfect substrate forwallpaper.
Poor Adhesion
When gluing one surface to another surface, the more surface contact, the better.
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With flat walls, the depth is consistent from one sheet to an adjacent sheet.
With textured walls, there are thousands of slight texture differences between adjacent seamed sheets.
Even if you lightly apply the wallpaper, peaks and ridges will invariably show.
Apply on Flatter Textures
Orange-peel texturehas rounded ridges and looks much like the peel of an orange.
While mostly recommended for more bumpy textures like orange peel or slap-down, it’s still helpful onknockdown textures.
Withpeel and stick wallpaper, though, the wallpaper has no fill product.
It must bridge from one ridge to the next.
Clean Walls
It is critical to clean textured walls if you intend to directlyinstall wallpaper.
With reduced surface contact, you want those surfaces to stick as well as possible.
Move the knife in the direction of the blade.
Using clean microfiber cloths and TSP, thoroughly clean the walls.
Even if the walls initially were clean, running the drywall knife across will leave debris.
Prepare Joint Compound
Add joint compound to a drywall tray.
Push down the compound to press out bubbles.
Spread Joint Compound
Pick up the compound with the edge of the drywall knife.
Spread the compound in long strokes across the wall.
Finish Wall
Continue until the wall is complete.
Let theskim coat dryfor at least two hours but preferably 12 or more hours.
Keep the room warm and run a fan on low speed to promote drying.
Sand Wall
Sand the wall with fine-grit drywall sandpaper.
Sand just once, and do so only lightly.
Clean off the drywall dust before applying wallpaper.
You may want to touch up some areas after the first coat to better ensure the wallpaper sticks well.
