Match this drywall texture

[Stephen Tashiro]

What technique would be used to make the drywall texture in the photos?

Its from the walls of a house built in 1964. All the walls are textured the same, so I assume the method was quick and simple. The texture is only used on the walls. The ceilings have a different texture.

It's has fewer ridges per square foot than a "stomp brush" texture - which I tired, using a drywall brush I purchased at home depot.

It also has fewer ridges per square foot than I can get by using paint roller to apply joint compound.

The tops of the ridges are rounded and smooth - they aren't "knocked down" to make them flat.

A significant part of the surface is flat so, when painted with semigloss paint, light reflecting off the surface gives it a sheen.

[James Tibbetts]

I would say it was sprayed on.

[John Terefenko]

The one on the left I did in my basement. Just put compound on the wall and they sell a roller to match that stipple. The more thicker the mud the deeper the stipple. I chose to go lightly. After I just lightly hit with sandpaper to knock off the sharp points. It would hurt if you lean aganst the wall. Then just use a 1/2" napp roller for paint. The one on the right I do not know and actually do not like it.

[James Pallas]

If you are just trying to patch and not do whole walls, try this. Get an old fashion stiff straw wisk broom. Thin down some compound. Dip the tips of the broom about 1/4 to 1/2 inch. Hold the broom with the bristles up and flick the bristles with your other hand. Some experimenting is required. I seen whole walls done with a straw broom.
Jim

[Rick Potter]

Looks like plain old spray on texture to me, basically diluted drywall mud. You can buy the spray hopper for a compressor at HD, if patching they also sell spray cans. Practice on a piece of cardboard first.

Also remember, if this is original to '64, it probably has half a dozen paint jobs over it, each of which smooths it out a bit. You can put a couple coats of primer on then a couple coats of paint, and come close.

[Stephen Tashiro]

After trying various techniques with rollers and trowels and various methods of spattering the joint compound, I conclude the texture on the walls is a spray-on texture. A spray can of "orange peel" texture somewhat matches it. Like the existing texture on the walls, orange peel bumps are not very high and not very closely spaced and they have a rounded surface. The orange peel texture doesn't make ridges like those on the existing texture. However, orange peel spray seems good enough to cover patches. (At the local Home Depot, the only choices of texture in spray cans are "orange peel" and "knock down".)

[Pat Barry]

I don't think the walls are drywall like is built today. I suspect they are plaster. The surface texture will be difficult to duplicate over a large area. Over a small area you can probably make a close match if you are artistically inclined using joint compound, a syringe to apply it, and a roller to lightly smooth it out.

[Stephen Tashiro]

The walls in the house in question are definitely drywall - not any type of plaster lathe.

[Tim Hoyt]

Both photos look like "orange peel" to me. This is commonly sprayed with a hopper gun. Orange peel appearance can vary greatly, depending on how the gun is set up, how thin the mud is mixed, and how the operator sprays the stuff. It is VERY hard to match a texture for a patch. Many people will skim coat an entire wall once or twice (no, it doesn't have to be perfect) and then respray just that wall.