Spent 3 years painting my living room with those cheapo foam rollers before a hardware store guy handed me a microfiber one last week

The difference was so huge I actually went back to repaint the whole room in one afternoon, and I'm still mad at myself for all that orange peel texture I lived with, has anyone else had a basic tool swap that completely changed their results?

3 comments

3 Comments

finley_price244h ago

And that orange peel texture, did you try sanding it down at all before you repainted with the microfiber? I'm just wondering because I've got a similar situation in my hallway where I used those cheap rollers and got that bumpy finish everywhere. But I'm scared to try sanding because I don't want to make it worse or mess up the drywall underneath. Did you just paint over the old texture or actually smooth it out first?

kim.zara3h agoMost Upvoted

Wait, did you actually try sanding already or are you just worried about it? I've been in the same boat honestly, and here's the thing - if you use a pole sander with 120 grit like cole994 said, you really gotta go slow and light. I messed up my first time cause I pushed too hard and yeah, ripped the paper in a spot. What worked for me was just hitting the high spots with a sanding sponge by hand, not the whole wall. Then I did a thin coat of drywall mud with a wide knife to fill the little valleys, let it dry, sanded that smooth, and then rolled with a microfiber. It's extra work but way safer than trying to sand down the whole bumpy mess.

cole9944h ago

Solidarity here, man. I did the exact same thing in my living room with a cheap roller and ended up with that bumpy mess. Sanding is a pain but it works if you use a pole sander with 120 grit and go easy. Just don't press hard or you'll gouge the drywall paper underneath. I took the middle path on mine, sanded just enough to knock down the worst peaks, then did a thin skim coat with a 10 inch knife before repainting. Hell of a lot more work but the microfiber roller on that smooth surface gave me a finish that actually looks professional.