Best Way to Use Homax Wall Texture So That It Actually Works

For texturing small wall areas, Homax Aerosol Wall Texture is an easy way to go.  The more difficult alternative is the way professionals do it:  with a spray gun, hopper, and bags of dry texture mix.  By contrast, the aerosol type is self-contained.  But user-reviewers often complain about this product, saying it splatters and doesn’t produce the texture seen in Homax’s pictures.  What’s the easiest way to do this and still get a good texture?

Best Answer

Shake more thoroughly than you might imagine, keep the can warm, test outdoors on scrap material, and view results with a low-angle light.  And hang onto your store receipt so you can return it if necessary.

Details

All those negative comments from users about Homax Wall Texture have some validity.  Sometimes, for whatever reason, Homax just will not spray a good texture.  That’s why you returning the product to the store is part of this technique:  don’t settle for cans that don’t work.

I’ve had more good experiences with Homax than bad experiences.   My tips will not produce perfect results 100% of the time, but you’ll greatly increase your chances of a good finish.

Shake It Forever

If you think you’ve shaken it long enough, you probably haven’t.  Shake the can for about 2 minutes.  You need to hear that ball freely clacking around inside of the can.

Keep the Can Warm

Success with Homax is all about temperature.  Any can from the cold or even cool outdoors should be brought indoors and left for about 2 hours before you even consider using it.  When Homax says “Sprays best between 68° F and 72° F,” you should believe them.

You can also warm it up under running warm water but don’t do this until you’ve test sprayed it on board (below) because it might be fine as-is.

Test-Spray Outdoors

Homax Wall Texture is extremely messy.  Its job is to be messy.  Use a dark piece of cardboard or the dark back of a scrap of drywall for this one.  Dark is better than light, because you won’t see the results as well on light surfaces.

Spray at a Distance

The 36 inch distance that Homax recommends is the distance you should start at.  I have found that farther away is usually better with these Homax texture products.

Check Texture With Light

Look at the texture in a dim place with a light held at a low angle.  This is the only way how you can see if the texture is correct.

Voices

I have never understood why a company allows negative product reviews on its site, but whatever–it benefits the rest of us.  Homax’s company site has some choice reviews of its products, along with a number of positive comments.  In general, it’s fairly well balanced.

• “I purchased five different cans of the Pro Grade Knockdown texture and only one worked.”
• “I bought two cans of this. One worked flawlessly. When I went for can two, the nozzle broke when removing the safety tab. I’ve reapplied the nozzle in a few different ways but absolutely nothing is coming out.”
• “I needed to repair a relatively small area in a very visible wall. By following all the instructions and testing various spatters until I found just the right one, the product worked perfectly. I was able to match the existing orange peel spatter and paint the repaired area within an hour.”