Popcorn ceilings.... Remove or Repaint?

I am writing this blog to help you make a tough decision easy. What should you do with textured ceilings?
(AKA Popcorn ceilings) Remove? Or Repaint?

First- take a look at this photo..........  BEFORE.. you can see the stains and repairs....

Textured Ceiling skylight. This becomes a home for nothing you want to keep. Seriously, there were so many spider webs in this skylight I wasn't sure what was coming down when I scraped it, texture or spider webs.

Step 1 cover anything you do not want to get ceiling texture on
Step 2 put on a dust mask, spray your removal medium, either water or some mixture of water and tsp, or anything that will help break the bond from the sheetrock
Step 3 put on a dust mask, again.... quick sanding, remove dust and mud tape joints and nail holes
Step 4 dust mask please again!........ sand smooth with sanding pole or sanding pole attached to a vacuum, but never a sanding sponge... you could spend all day.... besides, it won't sand the ceiling flat. Only a pole sander works faster than anything else....

The removal process looks like this......  in a different part of the house..

 DURING........... texture removed, and tray being prepared for new tape joints......

Now for the AFTER photo of this skylight. With new glass! Looks like a new house. 

By the way-we did this entire house, removed ceiling texture throughout. What a terrible project this one was. They had several roof leaks which resulted in the texture being locked on to the drywall. We handled it the simplest way, but it was tough work.
This is the Great Room tray ceiling we stripped..... you can see the tape let go because it had 1 coat of mud on it. If you have a home that has a tray, do not be surprised if this happens. If you are planning to do this project yourself, I would leave the taping and finish work to a professional in the tray. This is very difficult and requires a lot of skill and patience. Worth every penny to pay a drywall specialist to do it. Even I pay them to do the tray ceilings! I do the flat parts because I really move pretty fast there. The angled tape joints you see here are brutal to work with.

This is what the tray looks like once we finish applying 1 coat of primer sealer and 1 coat of No VOC Glidden Lifemaster Flat paint.

Lastly, as a homeowner you decide when you buy a place, as to whether or not you want to do this. It is a lot less expensive to remove ceiling texture when the house is empty! So is painting! 

REMOVE: in an empty home...........

This project bid was on a 2000 SF ceiling space, which included re-taping the skylight, the tray, and 2 other areas of angled ceiling... The labor came to $3.00/square foot or $6000 labor. Materials were about $1,000.  $7000. Never worry again about the textured ceilings. In this area, smooth ceilings is an upgrade for your health and makes your home more attractive when listing your property. I expect your health will improve once your ceiling texture is removed.

REPAINT:

 Not including walls- the price for these ceilings to repaint after masking everything and the walls $1250 plus materials of $750. With the caveat that some texture may fall down during the process, which we do not know  until it happens. Also, you will still have texture ceilings and still have to deal with how little the light reflects off the texture.

This project compliments of Chip Collins of Collins Group Realty. If he didn't call me to repaint this home for his client before being listed, I never would have called my client to come and see it; and eventually buy it; and hire us to do this work and a few other projects. Thanks Chip! 

REMOVE?  or REPAINT?

You be the judge! Removing your ceiling texture will definitely get rid of years of cooking, dirt, and who knows what else?!

Don't forget to share this blog with anyone you know. If they are selling their home or buying a home and the texture looks pretty bad, this is the best option.......  Most bang or the buck in a house is removing texture and painting! Biggest impact!

Call me for more information about removing ceiling texture... Dave Cook, 843-298-3412. 

or  email me! at lcfhhi@gmail.com. 

You can also visit my website at Lowcountry Finishes Painting and Carpentry

Next Post..... 

Crown... It isn't just for Kings and Queens!  Will it cost me a fortune to have it installed and painted?