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Interior Wall Textures – Sacramento Market Report

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Home Builder with Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 CSL#642819

 

Interior Wall Textures – Sacramento Market Report

 

This report covers the interior wall surfaces in homes in the Sacramento Region. The topic will be the interior wall textures in new and remodeled homes based on our knowledge of the area, contractor communications, and published trends.

 

When we talk about the interior wall surfaces, we are discussing drywall surfaces. Many of the older homes in the region have plaster walls, as a general rule, those remodels either remove the plaster throughout the project or patch to match the existing. These homes are not addressed in the current trends.

 

The vast majority of the homes are drywall interiors. There are many custom textures that are available to the homeowner, none of them are common, and they will not be addressed here. The textures come in several common types.

 

 

Orange Peel – This is a light texture to give some depth to an otherwise smooth wall. This is common in bathrooms and kitchens. This is a simple texture that many can do. The texture is sprayed on and left to dry before painting.

 

 

 

Skip Trowel – This texture was used in virtually alldrywall textures for several decades. It is applied to a smooth surface to create a random texture on the wall. The texture is applied by hand by skilled professionals. Many drywallers today do not know how to do this. This is a dying trend in new and remodeled homes; it was quickly replaced with the knock-down technique.

 

 

 

Knock-Down – The knock-down texture is applied by spraying compound on the smooth wall and knocking down the high spots to produce a random texture similar to the skip-trowel method. Because this technique can be done quickly, and get similar results to the knock-down texture, it grew in popularity. A crew can complete a whole home in a day – that is fast! This trend is not necessarily growing any larger

 

 

 

 

Imperfect Smooth – This surface is almost a smooth surface. There are some small voids in the finish, by design, to create an imperfect surface. This is a growing trend in both the new home and in homes being remodeled. The trend involves high-end custom homes and tract homes in the same types of neighborhoods. The imperfect smooth finish is not the most popular texture; however, it is the largest growing trend in the Sacramento market today.

 

 

When we look at the trends in the interior wall surfaces today in Sacramento, we can see that the latest trend is the imperfect smooth finish growing in popularity. The knock-down is the most common in both new and remodeled homes. The orange peel and skip-trowel finishes are limited to the remodel projects that require the matching of existing surfaces.

 

 

Comments (28)

Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

That is so true John, every area has its own trends. I enjoyed the story of your sheetrock finish - too funny!

Oct 09, 2011 02:26 AM
Judith Sinnard
SMARTePLANS; Houston, Texas - Houston, TX
The SMARTePLAN Lady

Tom, I recently repaired holes in the wall and was amazed at how easy it was --- and I ain't MacGuyver! I had four large holes in the wall from heavy pictures that had been hung in sequence improperly and each of the hanging anchors had dug out the surface. The overall sized surface I was trying to "fix" was about 3' long by 18" high.

I used compound to fill in the holes and sanded it after it dried so it was flat to the wall. Then at a big-box hardware store I picked up a can of spray-on orange peel texture. Man! do I love this stuff!!  I taped newspaper underneath my work area and practiced by spraying on the newspaper so I could see how it was hitting and the pattern it was making ... the can lets you dial in the spray pattern from sparse to thick. And then when I saw I was pretty much matching the same orange peel section as the wall, I sprayed it on the patched area ... let it dry and painted.  My brother could not tell where the repair was made (and actually accused me of hiring a Handyman dude who fixed it).  I had no idea this stuff came in a can, but was sure glad I found it. Would I attempt to do a whole wall ... NOT!  but for a fix-it-up repair like I had ...yes.  All the walls in my home are orange peel texture, so this is a "keeper" for me.  Thanks for the info (and photos) of textures. 

Oct 09, 2011 03:38 AM
Richie Alan Naggar
people first...then business Ran Right Realty - Riverside, CA
agent & author

When first made aware of the different textures, I wondered which one was the best and why...? What is the criteria thought I? There is no wrong or best choice I concluded. Cosmetically speaking, after a while, one doesn't notice the wall they pass a few thousands of times.....thank you

Oct 09, 2011 04:13 AM
Peg Barcelo
Fluff My House! Home Staging Inc. 250.486.6369 - Summerland, BC
The FlufftasticStager from Summerland, BC

Tom, texture on walls is such a matter of taste. I think the 'imperfect smooth' came about because there are so many people who think they know what it takes, but in the end can't get the wall 'perfect'ly smooth... :D

Oct 09, 2011 05:07 AM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

You rock Judith, I'm looking for a drywall repair dude. Interested?  :)   Great that you gave it a try, it's not to tough to do some repairs if you are a little handy. Good Job!

The thought process is probably different for everyone. Some may like one style over another, others may be concerned with how the home appears to those that don't see the home regularly, still others may be thinking about resale. I've worked with a lot of wall surfaces, I think it boils down personal preference; even no preference. Thanks Richie.

Peg - That may in fact be the origin because that is what it looks like at first. I've seen some beautiful imperfect work though.  :)

You hit this point square on the head Richard, it all about getting the match.

Oct 09, 2011 08:13 AM
Judith Sinnard
SMARTePLANS; Houston, Texas - Houston, TX
The SMARTePLAN Lady

Tom, I have the Hire-the-Handyman Dude on speed dial and truthfully... I figured if I really screwed up, I could call these guys to come fix it (I'm sure they all LOVE to get those types of calls) so I was determined to try first and was (thankfully) (delightfully) surprised. 

Oct 09, 2011 08:21 AM
Dana Smithers
PRES Staging Resource Centre - Vancouver, BC
PRES Staging Training, Redesign Training & Busines

Good article. In Vancouver Canada many of our older homes are plaster and really a challenge to hang art on. I've noticed though a lot are just getting the walls drywalled and of course this makes it easier for hanging art which we need to do when we are staging.

Oct 09, 2011 08:41 AM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

Always good to have a back-up plan Judith!

I bet it can be a challenge hanging art in plaster Dana.

Oct 09, 2011 10:50 AM
Carla Muss-Jacobs, RETIRED
RETIRED / State License is Inactive - Portland, OR

And when DIY'ers try to get a texture  . . . it can be terrible.  I didn't know the names of the various types, good to know.  Thanks.

Oct 09, 2011 11:29 AM
Rosalie Evans
Meritus Group Real Estate - Sioux Falls, SD
The Evans Group, Sioux Falls, SD Homes For Sale

You answered a question without my even asking it today! My last open house of the day has this impeftect smooth stuff! I like the crows foot stuff myself!

Oct 09, 2011 11:58 AM
Jennifer Fivelsdal
JFIVE Home Realty LLC | 845-758-6842|162 Deer Run Rd Red Hook NY 12571 - Rhinebeck, NY
Mid Hudson Valley real estate connection

Tom this give consumers a choice.  My personal preference is simple.

Oct 09, 2011 02:48 PM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

It is good to know the names, its hard to verbally describe the texture to someone if they have no knowledge of what it looks like Carla.

Imperfect smooth seems to be the latest craze, the crows foot must be an impression pattern Rosalie.

Jennifer, keepin' it simple!

Oct 09, 2011 03:12 PM
Sheila Newton Team Anderson & Greenville SC
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices - C. Dan Joyner - Anderson, SC
Selling the Upstate since 1989

I like the knock down best... the imperfect smooth always seems so... imperfect.. LOL

Oct 09, 2011 03:24 PM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

Too funny Sheila, I like the knock-down too.

Oct 09, 2011 03:29 PM
Janet Jones
Just Your Style Interiors, LLC - Kihei, HI
Home Staging, Interior Redesign Kihei, Maui, Hawaii

Hi Tom--thank you for giving a name and a picture to each of these.  In Arizona where I used to live it was mostly skip trowel.  I came to hate that.  I actually prefer totally smooth, like I grew up with in the Midwest but apparently that is harder for the trades to do and so it is done less these days. 

Oct 09, 2011 05:01 PM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

Thanks Janet, pictures can help to identify the different surfaces. There is nothing wrong with smooth.

 

Oct 09, 2011 05:19 PM
Marge Piwowarski
Phoenix AZ Horse Property - Phoenix, AZ
Phoenix AZ Horse Property, LLC

There are multiple variations on the knock down technique here in Arizona.  How the texture is sprayed, how long before it is troweled and the manner in which it is troweled all affect the final finish.  With remodeling and additions it is not uncommon to see two or three different "knock down" textures in the same home. 

Oct 09, 2011 07:37 PM
Mike Cooper, Broker VA,WV
Cornerstone Business Group Inc - Winchester, VA
Your Neighborhood Real Estate Sales Pro

That's for the tutorial, Tom.  I have not given much thought to wall surfaces, except when it comes time to repair them.  Good information to know.

Oct 10, 2011 12:51 AM
Silvia Dukes PA, Broker Associate, CRS, CIPS, SRES
Tropic Shores Realty - Ich spreche Deutsch! - Spring Hill, FL
Florida Waterfront and Country Club Living

Tom, who would have thought that the "imperfect finish" would be found in upscale homes!  Most of what we see around here is orange peel and knock down finishes.

Oct 10, 2011 01:07 AM
Tom Arstingstall, General Contractor, Dry Rot, Water Damage Sacramento, El Dorado County - (916) 765-5366
Dry Rot and Water Damage www.tromlerconstruction.com Mobile - 916-765-5366 - Placerville, CA
General Contractor, Dry Rot and Water Damage

I understand what your saying Marge, getting an exact match is very challenging.

No problem Mike, glad to add some thought to the day.

The first time I saw the Imperfect finish, I thought "Oh, they missed a few spots". Looking at the final, painted wall was amazing. A perfectly smooth wall, with a few "accent flaws by design", unbelievable finish Silvia.

Oct 10, 2011 02:41 AM