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New ceiling paint separation

3K views 15 replies 6 participants last post by  chrisn 
#1 ·
About 2 months ago I removed the textured ceiling from my living room and painted the drywall ceiling. The ceiling was cleaned, mud feathered, cleaned, and primed before painting. Last week I noticed a crack in the paint next to the crown molding. Investigating I found the paint was separating from the ceiling drywall. Continuing to see how much separation I had I used a scraper and the paint just peeled off AND there is no evidence of the ceiling drywall EVER being primed. (It was not primed prior to blown texture original installation.) The primer bonded to the paint but not the drywall. I now have peeled off a spot about 12 sq ft with no evidence of primer. I know the paint will continue to separate and possibly come down in the entire room, so fixing now is a must.

I spent a great deal of time on this ceiling getting it to look right and thought I took all the correct preparation steps. I do not want to go through this again. So_O.o.o.o.o., I need some opinion as to what went wrong.

Old surface---unprimed blown texture (removed)
Primer used----Valspar drywall primer
Top-coat----Zinsser ceiling-primer paint
Surface prep---removed texture, repaired ceiling, sanded, and wiped down

I have experienced a similar condition when I removed the texture from a bathroom ceiling when the paint cracked and started to peel.

Question: Is there anything in blown textured ceiling (popcorn) that could prevent primer from adhering to it the drywall? Also, how do I ensure the repair of the current condition will prevent re-occurrence?

Any recommendations appreciated.

John
 
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#3 ·
The mud in popcorn texture has no strength- turns to powder very easily.
Best to sand off before priming, then use a good penetrating primer to seal.
It will keep a so so primer from adhering.
 
#4 ·
Have a drywall guy come in and put up new drywall right over the existing, tape, and mud and properly prime it, and be done with it. Something has impregnated the face of the old drywall. If the texture was silicone based, you will never get anything to stick to it. No sense fighting it, IMO.
 
#7 ·
John, if you can live with it, I would let the ceiling age another month or so to see if anything else fails. It may not. Before you go trying to strip paint that won't fail it's worth a shot. I would then follow BJ's advice and sand the area, then wipe it with clear rinse, prime it with Gardz or 123 then finish. The few times I've removed texture/popcorn, I treated it like a wallpaper removal. Soaked it, scraped it off, and rinsed it thoroughly. Then I sanded it and dusted it off prior to priming. I used Zinsser Cover Stain on mine.
 
#9 ·
Thanks for the replies. I have cleaned the area I peeled off and primed it with a bonding primer. I could have kept going with the peel job but believe I should be a little patient with the situation and I am going to let the new primed area set for awhile to see what will happen. I am still puzzled as to why there is no evidence of primer application to the drywall. There was either something in the texture or the primer was inferior. It could be either yet I tend to feel the former is the case but I should have at least seen evidence of the original primer application as the ceiling soaked up nearly 2 gallons of primer. No Kidding! I am between a rock and a hard place for now but will wait and see. I did speak with the paint company and they haven't a clue except it certainly isn't the paint. DAH!!!! As a side note I have had a problem with a bath ceiling I removed the texture and repainted, but this ceiling cracked. Different primer, but similar results. So I wonder.

I have read somewhere that if you always use bonding primer your problems go away.

Why I agreed to my wife's suggestion of painting the ceiling and not re-blowing I do not know. Again, thanks for the replies.

John
 
#10 ·
Thanks for the replies. I have cleaned the area I peeled off and primed it with a bonding primer. I could have kept going with the peel job but believe I should be a little patient with the situation and I am going to let the new primed area set for awhile to see what will happen. I am still puzzled as to why there is no evidence of primer application to the drywall. There was either something in the texture or the primer was inferior. It could be either yet I tend to feel the former is the case but I should have at least seen evidence of the original primer application as the ceiling soaked up nearly 2 gallons of primer. No Kidding! I am between a rock and a hard place for now but will wait and see. I did speak with the paint company and they haven't a clue except it certainly isn't the paint. DAH!!!! As a side note I have had a problem with a bath ceiling I removed the texture and repainted, but this ceiling cracked. Different primer, but similar results. So I wonder.

I have read somewhere that if you always use bonding primer your problems go away.

Why I agreed to my wife's suggestion of painting the ceiling and not re-blowing I do not know. Again, thanks for the replies.

John

They might not go away but if you ditch the Valspar crap the chances are much better
 
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