# Interior New construction painting question



## tsvehla1220 (Nov 20, 2011)

Hey all im new around here but ive had my own painting company for a few years and have been able to stay really busy. Ive done new construction and repaints. Now the larger homes dont paint ceilings they mud them white and leave them. Normally i spray and back roll walls then mask walls with paper and spray ceiling. Any tips on painting walls and not getting overspray on. Eiling? Mask ceiling, sheild ceiling? What? Ive debated back and forth and just trying to figure out time efficency the builder wants me in another house on wednesday. Any tips or advice on this issue would be awesome, sorry for misspelling and grammer on a damn touch screen phone!!!

Have to prime and paint walls, going to tint primer 60% of wall color. Good idea or no? Thanks for any help!!


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## HJ61 (Nov 14, 2011)

I'm not quite clear, they mud the ceiling and then no prime or texture?

You are used to spraying just you're prime coat or finish coats too?


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## Rcon (Nov 19, 2009)

If you're trying to knock out a house quick, then it's easier to spray ceilings, spray trim, and cut/roll walls. That's how I always did it though i'm sure there are other ways that work just as well.


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## Damon T (Nov 22, 2008)

Yeah, not clear if you are not painting ceilings on this one. Not really sure how to approach if you're not painting the lids. I guess spray trim,mask and cut and roll walls.

If painting lids, some guys will shoot trim, mask trim, cut and roll walls, don't worry about getting wall paint on lids, tape and drape plastic on walls covering all walls and trim, spray and backroll ceilings as last operation. The nice thing about this approach is you don't need guys who can cut a perfect line, as you are masking all lines at one point or another in the operation.


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## tsvehla1220 (Nov 20, 2011)

Awesome input. What i was saying about ceilings is the drywallers tape mud and then texture and leave the ceilings because they dry white. So they typically dont want a bid for painting ceilings because theres no need to. But normally i speay trim, then spray prime n paint on walls then mask walls and spray ceilings. Didnt know if there was a quicker way to do walls without cuttin it all in, maybe paper ceiling and spray? Debating on spraying ceilings for free because the time i would take to spray walls and then tape walls to paint ceilings would be faster than cutting it all in and cost less labor wise/


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## [email protected] (Feb 24, 2008)

I've seen many knockdown ceilings that were never painted. Actually, sometimes they prime the rock then do the knockdown and leave it like that. It gives it a two color effect. Not sure how you can paint the walls with a sprayer in this situation. May as well cut and roll the whole thing.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

I've painted thousands of production homes, I am fairly confident that I have never seen or heard of not painting raw drywall ceilings. I would also say (at least in Cali) that it is against code. 

I'd be like :huh: you want what?


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## Conley (Dec 6, 2010)

I would work out a deal with the contractor to paint the ceilings or at least cheaply prime the ceilings so the tape can stick to them. 
Then a 12 inch paper mask with a small tip if I wasn't back rolling. Otherwise just cut and roll. 
If I had alot of houses to do that way I would try a few different techniques on the first one and keep track of it all to see whats best for me.


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## AztecPainting (Jan 28, 2010)

I used to do a lot of new construction homes like this, usually the builder gets his drywallers to texture ceilings (Don't need to be painted)

If you are good with the sprayer you can still spray and back roll primer and the first coat, then cut in the tops, spray trim after and finish second coat on walls by cutting and rolling only. That's the way I do it.


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## AztecPainting (Jan 28, 2010)

If you aren't talking about texture on ceilings then you might be talking about Level 5. 

You still gotta prime Level 5 (if not, I can't wait to see those ceilings after a year turning yellow)


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## Paradigmzz (May 5, 2010)

Scenario : new family in the house a year later, baby gets a cold, mommy runs a humidifier all night, comes in the next morning and looses it. WTF are my ceilings grey?!? 

It never amazes me any more the shortcuts builders take these days.


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## DeanV (Apr 18, 2007)

Textured ceilings here are usually stomped texture and should get at least a coat of something flat.


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## WisePainter (Dec 27, 2008)

my refusal to cut corners to build GC profits is the reason I avoid GC NC...


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

I occasionally run in to unpainted ceilings that have a heavier knock down that's a slightly different color than the smooth base. Does give that two tone effect. Had to do one a few years back where the owner was all upset that painting would eliminate the two tone look. However water stains necessitated the painting. I'm not a fan of unpainted ceilings but they do exist - at least around our territory.


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## prototype66 (Mar 13, 2008)

a lot of GCs here in Michigan do a heavy stomp or knock down and dont pait it. Never got that????
In Florida no matter what I painted every ceiling and so did everyone else I worked with.


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## ewingpainting.net (Jun 2, 2008)

I just asked a city code inspector if I had to paint the ceilings, I was told it is in code that all drywall must be painted. Dam regs here in Cali. :jester:


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## PatsPainting (Mar 4, 2010)

Would not all kinds of issues come up if you did not at least seal the ceilings? I have never heard of just leaving the exposed mud like that. I can see cuttin a few corners now and then but this blows me away.

Pat


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## [email protected] (Feb 24, 2008)

researchhound said:


> I occasionally run in to unpainted ceilings that have a heavier knock down that's a slightly different color than the smooth base. Does give that two tone effect. Had to do one a few years back where the owner was all upset that painting would eliminate the two tone look. However water stains necessitated the painting. I'm not a fan of unpainted ceilings but they do exist - at least around our territory.


I'm glad a local can confirm my claims... :thumbsup:

Some times it's just the living room areas not necessarily every room.


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## DeanV (Apr 18, 2007)

PatsPainting said:


> Would not all kinds of issues come up if you did not at least seal the ceilings? I have never heard of just leaving the exposed mud like that. I can see cuttin a few corners now and then but this blows me away.
> 
> Pat


Bathrooms can have issues from the constant humidity. Our first house was built in 1985, we bought it around 2003, and the stomped bathroom ceiling had never been painted. Turned gray when shower ran. 

Pretty common to find on repaints as well.


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## paintgurl (Sep 20, 2011)

I work new construction. We don't prime. Anything. (Its wrong. I hate it. Its the bain of my existance.) But hey. I'm just the deficiency painter so what do i know. Anyways. The way we do it is we spray our walls 1 coat before they put the trim up. Once its up we go back in and spray the ceilings and then the trim, then cut and roll the walls. If there are door frames that touch the ceiling they paper and tape above those. Of course then when u pull the tape it rips the ceiling but if you are actually priming first then this shouldn't be an issue. Anyways that how we do it so u don't end up with wall paint overspray on your ceilings.


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## paintgurl (Sep 20, 2011)

Oops. Sorry. Just went back and reread ur post. Realized my reply really doesn't apply but can't figure out how to delete the dumb thing. My apologies.


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

paintgurl said:


> Oops. Sorry. Just went back and reread ur post. Realized my reply really doesn't apply but can't figure out how to delete the dumb thing. My apologies.


Just hit the red exclamation point icon in the lower left hand corner (report a post) and ask the mods to delete. In the meantime you can edit your post to read ........ or whatever (probably best not to use triple X).


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## PatsPainting (Mar 4, 2010)

paintgurl said:


> Oops. Sorry. Just went back and reread ur post. Realized my reply really doesn't apply but can't figure out how to delete the dumb thing. My apologies.


Oh I would not worry about it since you are a deficiency painter. Now if you ever upgraded from that status it might be a issue :jester:

Pat


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## RH (Sep 7, 2010)

[email protected] said:


> I'm glad a local can confirm my claims... :thumbsup:
> 
> Some times it's just the living room areas not necessarily every room.


Can't remember if the last one (last spring about a six year old home) had it elsewhere or not (only painted the great room and hall ceilings). Seems it was in the bedrooms as well. Never have seen it left unpainted in kitchens or baths.


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## prototype66 (Mar 13, 2008)

Yea my house was built in 88 and none of the ceilings are painted . when I get ambitious I might paint them but kinda pointless at this time....and I'm really not THAT ambitious. So far the only problem was when the skylite wasnt sealed correctly and it leaked. A can of Kilz upshot did the trick.


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## jenni (Aug 4, 2011)

prototype66 said:


> Yea my house was built in 88 and none of the ceilings are painted . when I get ambitious I might paint them but kinda pointless at this time....and I'm really not THAT ambitious. So far the only problem was when the skylite wasnt sealed correctly and it leaked. A can of Kilz upshot did the trick.


just be sure to use behr


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## CNQ (Mar 5, 2010)

I know exactly what you are talking about. We are doing a site where the DW contractor is doing a knock down finish with a 4 inch border before we prime. And we dont paint it at all. It looks nice, there like a 2 tone effect. Problem is if you tint your primer and spray it, you'll totally mess up the ceiling. We tint our primer 100% to the finish colour. We found the best way to do it with out ruining the ceiling is the old school way....roll it! How ever we are spraying the closets, bathrooms, kitchens, bulkheads etc.... spray where ever you can.


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## CK_68847 (Apr 17, 2010)

ewingpainting.net said:


> I've painted thousands of production homes, I am fairly confident that I have never seen or heard of not painting raw drywall ceilings. I would also say (at least in Cali) that it is against code.
> 
> I'd be like :huh: you want what?


Most ceilings around here are textured or knockdowns. Most ceilings are not painted around here. If I were a homeowner I would paint them because they tend to look more white and clean. Also if there is ever any water damage, it touches up easier with paint than mud.

This refers to the first poster. Trim your ceiling line in nice and straight and round your corners down when your trim. Round the corners down a couple feet. When you spray, do not take the gun straight into the corner or you will overspray the ceiling. Get on a ladder or bucket depending on the height of the ceiling and keep your gun facing down and round off when you get to the corner. If you go in straight into the corner, you will definately overspray your ceiling. A lot of times I even stay a foot down from the trim line when I spray. I spray in heavier at the top, so I can roll in the foot or so I haven't sprayed. Since you are new to this use a smaller tip and turn your pressure down until you get the hang of it.


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