Belle

You may need to remove the texturing. Paint also protects the surface. With no maintenance done for so long the surface is shot. Spray water on the texture and scrape it all off. Skim coat with drywall compound so you cover all the digs and scratches on the surface. Sand smooth. Prime with a PVA primer. Paint with two top coats of a quality paint.

OK. Ignorance here. What maintenance do ceilings need? Just regular painting? For the next time we build (never again).

Clean as needed. Paint every 3- 5 years.

Ceiling maintenance

OK. Guess I'm stuck. I cleaned it every once in a while, but, like I said, this is our only painting. I'm disabled, and I have to drag my boys, kicking and screaming (ok,not quite, now that they are older), into helping. I can only do the low parts. Thanks for your help.

Use a quality paint so you do not have to do this again. If only one small area has fallen apart, then try to patch to match with drywall compound. Then use a 1/2" nap roller and prime with latex and paint with a Benjamin Moore ceiling paint.

OK, you are giving me some hope here..... Prime with WHAT KIND of latex, as in brand. We had bought Dutch Boy ceiling paint to do the job. Is Benjamin Moore that much better?

Their premium lines are.