Popcorn Ceiling Repair
- By Cleo Pet
- •
- 23 May, 2017
- •
Popcorn ceilings was used for its bright, white appearance, ability to hide imperfections, and acoustical properties
Is it easy to remove?
Popcorn ceiling can be both easy and hard to remove, it really depends on
Application:
We have seen popcorn ceiling using different binding agents which makes it very hard to scrape off especially if its over concrete ceilings.
Painted Ceiling:
Another potential problem that can make removing a popcorn ceiling much more difficult is if paint has been applied over the texture. This prevents the texture from absorbing water, which is necessary to loosen the material. While a painted textured ceiling can be removed, it usually requires the application of a stripper to breakdown the paint barrier.
Height:
If it is not painted and no special binding agent was used,than the height of the ceiling might cause some challenges.
We don't recommend trying to do it yourself if your ceiling are 12 feet and above
Give it a try:
To determine if either of these conditions applies to your ceiling, combine a few drops of liquid dish washing soap with warm water in a hand sprayer. Lightly spray a small spot in an inconspicuous location, and wait a few minutes for it to absorb the water. If the water will not soak in, the ceiling has been painted. Otherwise, the texture should come off easily.
- The application
- Has it been painted
- How high are the ceiling
Application:
We have seen popcorn ceiling using different binding agents which makes it very hard to scrape off especially if its over concrete ceilings.
Painted Ceiling:
Another potential problem that can make removing a popcorn ceiling much more difficult is if paint has been applied over the texture. This prevents the texture from absorbing water, which is necessary to loosen the material. While a painted textured ceiling can be removed, it usually requires the application of a stripper to breakdown the paint barrier.
Height:
If it is not painted and no special binding agent was used,than the height of the ceiling might cause some challenges.
We don't recommend trying to do it yourself if your ceiling are 12 feet and above
Give it a try:
To determine if either of these conditions applies to your ceiling, combine a few drops of liquid dish washing soap with warm water in a hand sprayer. Lightly spray a small spot in an inconspicuous location, and wait a few minutes for it to absorb the water. If the water will not soak in, the ceiling has been painted. Otherwise, the texture should come off easily.
Tools and materials needed if you plan to do it yourself ............... REMEMBER IT IS A VERY MESSY JOB
- Tank sprayer
- Drywall trowel or wide putty knife
- Plastic sheeting
- Tape
- Ladder
- Breathing mask
- Water
- Safety glasses/goggles
What you may need
- Joint compound...........to apply to seams and joints and loose tape
- Sandpaper.......need possible to make it smooth and ready for paint
Once the popcorn has been removed how will it look?
If you are lucky and did it right then it should look like below
But in most cases people doing it the first time will have a lot of gouge mark which will need to be repaired after
When scraping the popcorn off, try to keep the putty knife as level as possible against the ceiling. Do not put too much pressure on the edges, or you will end up tearing the paper of the drywall.
Prepping for Paint
DRYWALL CEILING ONLY !
After the popcorn is removed and the repairs have been made you will most likely need to sand the ceiling down to remove all reminisce of the popcorn. This procedure can be very laborious but is crucial to having a clean finish look
After the popcorn is removed and the repairs have been made you will most likely need to sand the ceiling down to remove all reminisce of the popcorn. This procedure can be very laborious but is crucial to having a clean finish look
If you have concrete ceilings than you will definitely need to apply a level of compound which can take 1- 3 day to completely dry and will also need to be sanded down. Once again the sanding is very laborious