Painting popcorn ceiling

[Bob]

Is there a special roller for painting this type of ceiling? Spraying it would cause too much of a mess in my house. Thanks for your help.

[Mikepier]

I just use a thick nap roller, 3/4" or 1" and really work the roller in. It worked fine.

[Noozer]

You really don't want a popcorn ceiling.

If you SERIOUSLY want one, you'd be serious enough to pull the furniture out of the room and drop a tarp, etc. and spray.

I hate the popcorn in my home and dread the day I start taking it down.

[Greg O]

I think he has one already, and wants to paint it! Greg

[Doobielicious]

Isn't popcorn ceiling Stucco or compound mud? If so why do people say it's so bad for you (Asbestos) if you scrape it?

[Noozer]

Oh... YUCK. I can't even see spraying working very well. That stuff flakes off if you look at it the wrong way!

I assumed he wanted to spray on the popcorn, not spray paint onto existing popcorn.

[SJF]

My experience, one time --

Original white popcorn got dirty from failed furnace. Moved furniture, laid plastic to protect carpet, used long piled roller and cheapest white latex I could find. The stuff soaks it up and coverage is very poor so be prepared to buy more when you are able to determine the coverage rate.

Little nibs of the popcorn keep falling off and it gets messy below -- wear glasses and cap. Also, watch your shoes or you'll track paint drips into uncovered floor areas. Have damp rag handy to wipe splatters from walls when you're painting near them.

If you're into covering a dark ceiling with a light color, this cheap paint trick may not work as well and some kind of sealant may be required. That's outside my experience.

For what it's worth, the popcorn in my house (built 1963) seemed to be made from wheat(?) flour and filler, very absorbent.

[Travis Jordan]

There are 'deep nap' rollers made especially for painting very rough surfaces. However, my experience is that most (unpainted) popcorn ceilings will degrade quickly when they are wet - the popcorn sticks to the roller making quite a mess.

I used a Wagner airless sprayer to do mine (two coats at 90 degree angles to each other) and it turned out great. Frankly, I'd spray it again in lieu of rolling, even though rolling is probably very practical with the previous layer of paint on it.

[Ross Mac]

I would cover the place with plastic and scrape it all off, refinsh with whatever matches the walls and paint. Those old acoustic/popcorn ceilings are useless....but if you really want it....spray it...that way you won't knock off the "popcorn".........best of luck in your project....Ross

[Charlie Bress]

There is a special roller that has slots running around it. The slots are about 1/8" apart.

Charlie

[Edwin Pawlowski]

No, it is not a texture applied, it is a gunk that is sprayed on. Horrid stuff, IMO.

In some older homes it may contain small amounts of asbestos. In newer (1978 or newer) it does not. I tried painting it, hated it, and then took it all down, one room at a time. Kind of messy, but once done we have nice flat white ceilings that look much cleaner.

[Edwin Pawlowski]

Maybe he does not realize how easy it is to take down. Wet it, scrape, sponge. Yes, a little messy, but worth it in the long run.

[Art]

There are special rollers for this. And if you miss a spot do not go backwards. Let it dry and then touch up. Repeating an area may remove the popcorn if still wet. Also some popcorn is so poor that it is unpaintable so start in a closet so you can give up if necessary without ruining the whole ceiling.

[Mad Mac]

I'd also caution that it's a helluva lot harder to get off when painted...if you're thinking of removing it, now's the time.

[Liz]

Whenever I see a topic re popcorn ceilings I want to gag. In 1997 my son and his wife-to-be bought a 40-year-old split level home in the Philly 'burbs. My DIL, having grown up in a section of Philly where popcorn ceilings are the standard, actually paid someone to have that crap sprayed in all three bedrooms. Fortunately, my son put his foot down when she wanted to do the whole house. At least she didn't have the sparkles sprayed on with the popcorn gunk like her mother's house!

Liz

[George E. Cawthon]

Doesn't work worth a damn if not previously painted.

[Bob]

This stuff is on the ceilings in all rooms. I believe the house was built in the 70's and is located in Pembroke Pines, Florida near Fort Lauderdale. The pop corn stuff is real heavy thick stuff and it doesn't appear to be lose or flaky. Some of the homes up North look like they have bits of styro foam in it that comes off easy. These ceilings aren't like that. Thanks again for your help.

[Noozer]

If the popcorn is that rugged, you could get away with a thick, soft roller...

You'll probably end up with a "stucco-like" ceiling afterwards...

Hrm... Paint it black and then hit it with white using a really hard roller and you'll have a night sky.

: )

[DanG]

Some brands of the material are made from ground up corn cobs. I've not heard of the material containing asbestos. I would really doubt it on anything newer than 1975.

If you are going to leave it, I would shoot a fresh coat of popcorn on top of the old rather than try to paint it. You will get a clean bright fresh surface as long as you seal any stains with Kilz or other sealer.

(top posted for your convenience) ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Keep the whole world singing . . . . DanG (remove the sevens) [e-mail]

[curmudgeon]

Very difficult to paint ...even with a 3/4 inch roller. If it gets wet/saturated, it will fall off the ceiling. You run the very real risk of ruining the ceiling and having to take it all down...How? By wetting it, of course. Spray is the only sure way to paint the stuff.