Does anyone know how to paint a popcorn textured ceiling? Even something as light as brushing off cobwebs makes pieces of texture fall. Should as much as possible be removed before painting? I've never had this before I really don't know how to work with it.
So a really plush roller for this type of texture. Awesome! And the house was built in '98 so no worries about lead or asbestos. Thanks!
Some of that material may contain asbestos, so you might want to have a licensed contractor come in and test it and then remove it (whether or not it contains asbestos).
Please ONLY use a flat color on it, not a semi-gloss or gloss. The previous owners of our house painted the popcorn with semi-gloss, so we couldn;t just scrape it off normally...we had to basically mud over the HOLE thing.
It probably has to be sprayed... with a paint sprayer.
Or ask a local Home Depot.
I don't know if anyone else mentioned it or not but you can also scrape the popcorn off. I've not done it myself but they always show it on all the home improvement shows :) I've seen them take a lid to a large garbage can, spray the ceiling with water and then use the lid, upside down, to scrape the ceiling and catch the scraps. Apparently everyone hates popcorn ceilings these days (personally I don't think they're so bad), so if you're thinking about selling the house you might keep that in mind.
So we did this at my parents house. We used the vacuum hose to vacuum the ceiling first it helps such up the loose stuff. It will make a mess but it helps pull loose stuff down. The use a fluffy roller to paint with.
You have to have a special roller--very plush. But if some of the paint is coming off, I would have it tested for lead and/or asbestos. Even a new coat of paint will not stop falking. If it is really old, then it could have asbestos. If from just 20 yrs ago it could have lead and you definitlely want to take precautions. It does not cost a ton of money jsut to test and you might be able to just scrap off a sample and take in somewhere. If it has lead, you will need to take precautions in blocking off areas and making sure any dust is thorughly cleaned up when finished. This does not mean you cannot do it your self but does need extra care and a mask.
I just started to paint our popcorn ceiling last week, and I used an extra high pile roller (it may say for popcorn ceilings on it.) The only problem I had was the chunks of ceiling falling off from water damage! You can remove the popcorn, but I've heard it is a pain and very messy and time consuming. That's why I left ours as-is. Good luck!
I've heard it's very messy, but you can actually scrape all of the popcorn off and then paint.
If you can, you're better off removing the junk and re-texturing the ceiling. If you can't and have to paint, use a roller with ALOT of paint on it or even better, spray paint a new color on. Don't go over the spot or you'll remove the texture. Good luck.
I wouldn't start removing, unless that is what you intend to do. Use a large fuzzy roller...the big fuzzies.
We had a popcorn ceiling once; its hard to paint because gobs of the ceiling will just fall off. My husband went to Home Depot and they have a special roller brush that you can use on the popecorn ceilings. The second time he painted he had a professional do it and he spray painted them. N. P.
I used to paint professionally, and we painted popcorn ceilings every day. No, you don't have to remove the loose stuff. Yes, use a roller with the largest nap (that's what the fluffy ones are called). Also, be sure to use a drop cloth, as popcorn ceilings really drip a lot! Happy painting!
