Walls and Ceilings - drag texturing

i am trying to find out how to do drag texturing. is it a do it yourself texturing? does wall paper need to come off first?

I assume you are refering to a knock down texture? If so, spray the texture on the ceiling, at this point it is a splatter texture, then you take a knock down kinfe and run it over the top of the texture to knock it down, hence, knock down. There are many different kinds and sizes of knives used. I prefer ones that are similar to a window squeegee.

You need a hopper gun and an air compressor to spray it on the walls or ceiling. (both usually available at tool rental stores. Don't get suckered on the gun, inexpensive ones can be had for $50-60 US, ie. don't pay $45 for half a day.) Follow the directions on the bag of texture. If there is anyway possible to try this somewhere else first, by all means do so. Throw a couple of sheets of drywall up in the garage or basement ceiling. Get a feel for compressor and hopper settings, and how much texture to spray for the desired results.

Get a roll of painters plastic and blue painters masking tape and mask the walls off if this is for a ceiling. Stuff has a tendency to spray all over. Oh yea, cover the floor also. Good luck. Don C.