[ttwin]

I just finished removing all my wallpaper and decided that I want the popcorn ceiling removed as well. When I went to a home improvement store to get a scraper and the guy tells me it maybe more trouble than its worth. He starts telling me about the mess it makes, sanding the ceiling, the equipment needed and that the ceiling may not come smooth completely. This is so not why I went that store to get talked out of a project! I don't mind hard work and elbow grease I just need a little advice from some ppl who have removed texture before and hear about their experience. I have the scrapper, tape, eye protection, plastics tarp, mask, water pump and floor covering. I plan on just paint the ceiling once the texture is gone.

Sent from my iPhone

 

[joecaption]

It will be one of the most worth while improvements you can make.
Not quite as simple as just scrapping it off and painting.
Once it's off most often you'll find where they only did one coat of mud and tape so It's just a matter of doing what ever it takes to get the seams flat.
No amount of paint will fix flaws!

 

[ttwin]

It will be one of the most worth while improvements you can make.
Not quite as simple as just scrapping it off and painting.
Once it's off most often you'll find where they only did one coat of mud and tape so It's just a matter of doing what ever it takes to get the seams flat.
No amount of paint will fix flaws!

What does getting the seams flat entail? Sanding?

 

[joecaption]

Nope, going over it with an 8" wide drywall knife with thined drywall compound.
Apply one thin coat, let it dry, wipe over it with the knife to knock off the high spots, brush with a broom to get the dust off. Go over it again, let it dry.
Now sand the whole ceiling with a sanding pad on a sand pole with screen cloth.
There sold in the drywall area in any box store.
If you can feel a flaw it will show when primed.
Once sanded wipe it down to get the dust off, prime and two coats of ceiling paint.

 

[ToolSeeker]

I just finished removing all my wallpaper and decided that I want the popcorn ceiling removed as well. When I went to a home improvement store to get a scraper and the guy tells me it maybe more trouble than its worth. He starts telling me about the mess it makes, sanding the ceiling, the equipment needed and that the ceiling may not come smooth completely. This is so not why I went that store to get talked out of a project! I don't mind hard work and elbow grease I just need a little advice from some ppl who have removed texture before and hear about their experience. I have the scrapper, tape, eye protection, plastics tarp, mask, water pump and floor covering. I plan on just paint the ceiling once the texture is gone.

Sent from my iPhone

OK first remove anything you can from the room. The one thing the guy was right about is it's messy. Anything that can't be removed needs covered including the floor. Get a pump up vegetable sprayer (a spray bottle just isn"t big enough) fill with water, add about a cup of fabric softener and spray the ceiling, just wet not dripping. Let set about 10 minutes then do it again. Then with a 6" drywall taping knife, nothing bigger, start scrapping. Should come off easy, hold the knife at a pretty good angle so you don't tear the paper on the drywall. Let dry, skim coat any gouges or rough places with ultra light mud, sand. Prime with Gardz sealer, may need to touch up and spot sand again, if so prime again, paint. One thing to mention if you have a ceiling light take it down put wire nuts on the wires and cover with tape. Remember water and sparky don't play well together. In fact just throw the breaker.

 

[ttwin]

Nope, going over it with an 8" wide drywall knife with thined drywall compound.
Apply one thin coat, let it dry, wipe over it with the knife to knock off the high spots, brush with a broom to get the dust off. Go over it again, let it dry.
Now sand the whole ceiling with a sanding pad on a sand pole with screen cloth.
There sold in the drywall area in any box store.
If you can feel a flaw it will show when primed.
Once sanded wipe it down to get the dust off, prime and two coats of ceiling paint.

That actually does sound bad. I'm in no rush I just want to do it right.

 

[ttwin]

OK first remove anything you can from the room. The one thing the guy was right about is it's messy. Anything that can't be removed needs covered including the floor. Get a pump up vegetable sprayer (a spray bottle just isn"t big enough) fill with water, add about a cup of fabric softener and spray the ceiling, just wet not dripping. Let set about 10 minutes then do it again. Then with a 6" drywall taping knife, nothing bigger, start scrapping. Should come off easy, hold the knife at a pretty good angle so you don't tear the paper on the drywall. Let dry, skim coat any gouges or rough places with ultra light mud, sand. Prime with Gardz sealer, may need to touch up and spot sand again, if so prime again, paint. One thing to mention if you have a ceiling light take it down put wire nuts on the wires and cover with tape. Remember water and sparky don't play well together. In fact just throw the breaker.

It's a small 12 x 10 bathroom so that's not bad

 

[ttwin]

Nope, going over it with an 8" wide drywall knife with thined drywall compound.
Apply one thin coat, let it dry, wipe over it with the knife to knock off the high spots, brush with a broom to get the dust off. Go over it again, let it dry.
Now sand the whole ceiling with a sanding pad on a sand pole with screen cloth.
There sold in the drywall area in any box store.
If you can feel a flaw it will show when primed.
Once sanded wipe it down to get the dust off, prime and two coats of ceiling paint.

I meant that doesn't sound bad. Just takes time & patience.

 

[joecaption]

Rule #1 in DIY repairs never take advice from a box store!
If they knew how to do it they would be.

 

[bigchaz]

OK first remove anything you can from the room. The one thing the guy was right about is it's messy. Anything that can't be removed needs covered including the floor. Get a pump up vegetable sprayer (a spray bottle just isn"t big enough) fill with water, add about a cup of fabric softener and spray the ceiling, just wet not dripping. Let set about 10 minutes then do it again. Then with a 6" drywall taping knife, nothing bigger, start scrapping. Should come off easy, hold the knife at a pretty good angle so you don't tear the paper on the drywall. Let dry, skim coat any gouges or rough places with ultra light mud, sand. Prime with Gardz sealer, may need to touch up and spot sand again, if so prime again, paint. One thing to mention if you have a ceiling light take it down put wire nuts on the wires and cover with tape. Remember water and sparky don't play well together. In fact just throw the breaker.

This is the procedure I used in my bathroom and it worked great. You can tell by trying a small area if it will come off easy. In my case the popcorn was never painted which helps and the ceiling underneath was not prepped well so the popcorn fell off easy

 

[rchorse]

Depending on the age of the ceiling, you may want to get it tested for asbestos before removing it. Popcorn ceilings installed before about 1980 often have asbestos. Our house was built in 1976, and I thought there was no way it had asbestos, but when we had it tested it did. I'm glad I didn't just go nuts removing it without testing it. My kids would have probably been eating the stuff.

 

[ttwin]

Depending on the age of the ceiling, you may want to get it tested for asbestos before removing it. Popcorn ceilings installed before about 1980 often have asbestos. Our house was built in 1976, and I thought there was no way it had asbestos, but when we had it tested it did. I'm glad I didn't just go nuts removing it without testing it. My kids would have probably been eating the stuff.

It was built in 89 so I think I'm good there

 

[ddawg16]

#2 rule in DIY....it's going to be a mess.....

But that's ok....the end result is worth it....

We scraped off the pop corn in our living room...it was put up to hide the 1/4" cracks....we then put up 1/4" sheets of drywall and then covered that with ceiling paper (my wife is English...it's an English thing).

In retrospect, I wish I had just taped and patched the cracks and let the ceiling paper cover up any inperfections.

I suspect that in about 5 years after ALL the other projects are done, I'll rip down the 1/4" drywall, patch the cracks and put up more ceiling paper.

 

[KenWT]

It's worth having it tested for asbestos as you never know. Asbestos was banned from this kind of ceiling treatment in the late 70's but the ban didn't include existing materials and these were still used through the 80's.
Then all you need is a spray bottle of water and a ton of patience

 

[ToolSeeker]

Just my opinion but I wouldn't go to the trouble or expense of having it tested. You are going to wet it down twice there will be no dust. When you are finished it will be wrapped in plastic. I am not telling you not to do it I"m just saying what I would do.

 

[ddawg16]

It was built in 89 so I think I'm good there

Yea....your good....the stuff was banned in 1977...

Here is a good link regarding asbestos.

http://www.ehso.com/cssasbestos/asbestosfoundwhere.htm

 

[ttwin]

Yea....your good....the stuff was banned in 1977...

Here is a good link regarding asbestos.

http://www.ehso.com/cssasbestos/asbestosfoundwhere.htm

Thanks

 

[tjansen]

Hi, just wanted to second the vote for going for it!!

I just got done removing almost 1200 sq feet of the stuff, (1 bedroom, hallway, living room, dining room, 12 foot ceilings) and it's so rewarding seeing the stuff gone finally.

My ceilings had been painted so it was a bit more difficult but I had read that using a little vinegar in the water helps.

Another thing I did differently was to do a skip trowel type texture on the ceilings. This way once I was done scraping and cleaning any left over dust I textured and fixed any issues at the same time.

It's inevitable that you will scratch the drywall or expose some low spots that will need repair.

And the stuff is messy, be prepared that the dust goes everywhere so seal off everything as much as possible.

 

[ttwin]

Hi, just wanted to second the vote for going for it!!

I just got done removing almost 1200 sq feet of the stuff, (1 bedroom, hallway, living room, dining room, 12 foot ceilings) and it's so rewarding seeing the stuff gone finally.

My ceilings had been painted so it was a bit more difficult but I had read that using a little vinegar in the water helps.

Another thing I did differently was to do a skip trowel type texture on the ceilings. This way once I was done scraping and cleaning any left over dust I textured and fixed any issues at the same time.

It's inevitable that you will scratch the drywall or expose some low spots that will need repair.

And the stuff is messy, be prepared that the dust goes everywhere so seal off everything as much as possible.

Thanks for the advice. I have roughly the same amount of sq footage to remove but I'm only tackling the bathroom at the moment. I finished removing the wallpaper so once the texture is removed I plan to fix any tears I made on the wall & ceiling, level the ceiling if needed, then prime the wall and the ceiling with a primer at the same time then paint both. I have a second bath to use while this one gets over hauled. I have a question though. I'm going to level the ceiling if need but I've seen ppl use a damp sponge to decrease the amount of dust. Has anyone tried this method?

 

[PoleCat]

I did battle with popcorn ceilings for three years at a large retirement community I worked for. In the end I discovered it was easy enough to remove. Unfortunately this was only after trying my best for a year to repair/refurbish the stuff. I am sure there is a special place in hell for the folks that came up with this finish.