Last Update: 25 Sept 2020

How to Spray Paint Interior Walls and Ceilings?

James Kelly

Hi! This is James. I'm a professional writer and working on this field for a long time. Basically I love to write about everything related to tools, diy and home improvement. All my writings speak for itself as I'm passionate about this. I love to explore new things as well as new places whenever I get free time. You'll never find me free for this reason!

Renovation, alteration, rebuild – the obligation remains incomplete with surface painting. And it has to include all the indoor walls with overhead ceilings. Smart homeowners go for spray paint rather than rolling or brushing. Once you’re set, you’ll have to ask yourself – how to spray paint interior walls and ceilings properly? That’s where we would like to help with certain tips.

Spray painting may sound simple, but the complexity starts to appear on implementation. Whether its interior or exterior, spray painting made its way to rise the ladder. Doing it right is essential from the first to have beautiful results. Only facilitating DIY guidance can help you to get the job done. You can count on our detailed tricks below to accomplish the task with perfection.

Initial Prepping Before Everything Else

Beautifying your indoor living environment is the ultimate objective. But spraying alone can barely fulfill your desire alone. You’ll have to start preparing the working platform prior to applying paint.

Getting Ready with Paints

Materials/Tools: Paint, Turpentine/Mineral Spirit, Mixing Stir

Spray painting is somewhat different from common methods centering brush or roller. In fact, the entire painting calls for thin viscosity to ensure flawless action. Therefore, you’ll have to prep the paint carefully to utilize with the sprayer.

Mineral spirits or turpentine is indeed the typical option to treat the color. Check the manufacturer specs closely to understand the intact condition. Not all the compositions come with equal viscosity. And some paints aren’t suitable for thinning either.

Preparing the Intended Surfaces

Materials/Tools: Cotton/Cloth, Putty

Any surface prior to spray painting requires initial prep. Wipeout all the dust using a clean cotton ball or soft cloth. Concentrate on corners & edges to take out grimes or other deposits. Fix all the cracks, holes, or undulation marks through top-quality putty. Try to erase deep scratched spots/stains resulted from impact, oil, or markers.

Masking Gaps & Specific Areas

Materials/Tools: Old Newspaper/Cloth, Painter’s Tape, Canvas Tarp

There are floors, windows, doors & other structural elements to skip. Masking off anything out of your radar is specifically essential. Finer paint mists simply overturn the natural appeal of affected objects. You should ensure the necessary precaution to keep the surfaces intact.

You can consider the painter’s tape along with the attached drop cloth of plastic. Floor surface remains vulnerable throughout the entire process. Therefore, you may want something more protective than wide tape. You can either purchase or hire canvas paint tarps in this regard.

Knowing How to Spray Paint Interior Walls and Ceilings

Home improvement project requires the finishing of surface exaggeration at some point. Modern technology unveils different methods to beautify your surroundings. There are particular advantages to adopt spray paint in the first place. And even you know the benefits to check it out for walls & ceilings. Without specific tricks, time with sprayers is likely to turn into an unpleasant experience.

Materials/Tools: Air Compressor, Airless Sprayer, Paint, Ladder

Spray Painting Interior Walls

Joining edges requires more attention to ensure a precise detail. Start spraying paint on one corner to continue painting across the wall surface.
You may want to start with distant, narrow, or irregular edges. Comfortably hold the system sideways to cover the corners at once.
After completing the corners, you should look for the irregularities. It should include abnormal inclinations, special shape, or sensitive portions.
Now all you have is plain, smooth & flat wall surfaces all around. Try to keep the strokes in an even & uniform pace to curtail finishing the touch-up job.
Complete one wall at a time without worrying about the others. Let the 1st coat dry to impose a 2nd & even 3rd coat to get the desired shade.

Spray Painting Overhead Ceilings

Ensure a comforting & secure position up in the ladder for you. You may require to move the position often, but it’ll keep you safe.
You may want to cover the ceilings in an acceptably faster way. That’s where you can purchase a reliable spray gun to shoot your paint.
Don’t forget to mask the upper wall right above the ceiling. Of course, you’re to paint the wall first to keep going with overhead ceilings.
The rest of its proceedings are more or less the same as wall spraying. Pay attention to anything out of the ordinary surface characteristics.
Start with low-pressure spraying to continue from the edges. Initial high pressure is likely to trigger unexpected running towards poor coverage.
Keep readjusting the pressure on the course till you get it right. Don’t stay right under the stroking line to avoid drips on yourself.

Operating Airless Sprayer Equipment

Simplified spray painting is the primary advantage of using airless equipment. You can cover a large area in the fastest way. And you’re to receive a glass-smooth finish on the undulated surfaces. You have to hold & operate the sprayer from the righteous position. Otherwise, the finishing is to get affected badly over the poor application of coats.

Try to spray the paint straight at the surface. Tilted gun deviating from 90° action eventually causes an uneven finish. Appropriate pressure is necessary to skip over-spraying issues.
Get the right tip according to your intended application. In fact, different tip sizes are there to accommodate specified paints. Don’t forget to check out the hose length as well.
Maintain a reasonable distance from the targeted surface. Maintain about 12” distance between surface & nozzle. An approximate 50% overlapping on the previous coat is essential.
Trigger the shot on every single stroke to ensure a singular coating. Move-in & move out from the pull to start over another stroke. Just don’t fan the gear to retain color consistency.

Sprayer Support to Carry Out the Job

Airless sprayer requires mechanical support from outside, like an air compressor. Not to mention, almost all professional services utilize a compressor system. The gear can regulate the necessary pressure to spit out paint just right. You can rent one for occasional & light painting jobs. But you should purchase one to handle a whole lot of surface area.

Don’t miss to check our Air Compressor models in Tools sections to back up your spray painting job.

What to Spray First – Walls or Ceilings?

You’re still to go with how to spray paint walls or ceilings. As it happens, it includes one simple yet effective trick. We’re talking to spray both walls or ceilings; you have to prioritize the surface. It doesn’t matter with a roller or brush painting. But the wrong segmental approach can initiate further hassle.

You have to start with the ceilings to follow spraying on walls. It’ll save you from over-spraying certain points repeatedly. Cover the surrounding walls – whether to paint or not to paint. Use old clothes or newspapers to seal the surface. Let the ceiling paint dry before moving to the interior walls.

Painting One Segment Only – Either Walls or Ceilings

You don’t have to colorize both walls & ceilings al the time. It’s possible to add a certain finish to a particular portion to match the corresponding others. Either you need to paint the ceiling or you can set out for the walls.

Coloring the ceiling only is pretty simple, in terms of time & effort. Of course, the coverage area is somewhat lower than the interior walls. You’ll need lots of paper/cloth to mask the interior surfaces.
Only wall spraying requires the covering of ceiling corners. You really can’t appreciate the over-spray blowing out the finished surface. It’s somewhat challenging to mask the upside-down design.

Watch Out for Spray Fumes

Oil-based paints tend to throw small particles in the air. The indoor air starts to get toxic with the intensity of the spraying task. Obviously, inhaling the fumes will eventually lead to physical problems. Therefore, you need to keep yourself along with the family protected.

Wear a respirator mask to prevent the fumes from getting inside the nose & mouth.
Keep the entire area ventilated through openings, don’t close the doors in the least.
Check out all your family members from the space, keeping at a certain distance.
Try protective wear with a body cover to avoid damage from long-term exposure.

Final Verdict

All the words may seem difficult to implement at once. Of course, the process is somewhat difficult for any first-timer DIY enthusiast. Still, you should perpetuate the tricks to create a startling indoor surface. We’re to help with the process aiming at simplicity & convenience.

Tips on how to spray paint interior walls and ceilings should make it clear. Once you get the basics, there’s nothing to stand on your way. It becomes another easy task ahead of your household maintenance DIY job. You need patience even for the fastest means to succeed.