Popcorn ceiling HELP

8 years ago

My husband and I recently hired a contractor to remove the popcorn from our ceiling. After day one, our contractor said that there's no way ceiling can be smooth and needs to be textured. We went to our place to see the space and it looked like there's still popcorn on the ceiling (just not as abundant as before). When asked why this was his response: the popcorn has dried hard to the Sheetrock due to the primer/paint preview owner used. Along with the thickness of the popcorn and waves of the ceiling all we can do is knock down the mud and sand. Otherwise by trying to remove all that are hardened on the ceiling, the Sheetrock will rupture and would be weak."

I don't know much about popcorn, but I thought it was easy but just laborious (please correct me if I am wrong).

Has anyone ever heard of this or have come across this problem. Any advice or guidance would be super helpful!

I attempted to ask our contractor questions but he got upset that I would question him.

Thanks in advance !

Featured Answer

PRO

GN Builders L.L.C

8 years ago

Tina sounds like he didn't realize that it would be more work then he bargained for. Tell him to mix vinegar and water (1 part vinegar / 10 parts water) and spray it on the ceiling and let it soak a bit. Vinegar will help to break down old paint and he will need a wide scraper and some "elbow grease". If he comes across a tough area, spray on it more and gently scrape again. After done, skim coat the entire ceiling.

Good luck

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Comments (13)

Melissa R
8 years ago
last modified: 8 years ago
yeah his reasoning sounds pretty lame to me. My hubs and I took off our own popcorn ceiling. Just sprayed with water, let sit, and, like GN Builders said...a scraper and lots of elbow grease! It sounds like your contractor THOUGHT it would be easy peasy job...when it's not...he wants to run like a whine baby

It won't be perfect after the popcorn is scraped off, he will need to do work to make it look smooth. Again I agree with GN Builders, a skim coat would do it
tina q thanked Melissa R
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charpell
8 years ago
We encountered something similar (without the attitude you encountered!) - what our contractor suggested as an alternative was to hang new thin drywall overtop of the old popcorn ceiling. I think it was 1/4” thick, but I could be wrong about that.
tina q thanked charpell
PRO
User
8 years ago
If the popcorn was painted it is a lot more difficult to remove and finish. The sheet rock may sustain a little damage and need to be patched.
tina q thanked User
Peter Roehrich
8 years ago
How old is the ceiling? Before the mid 1980s popcorn ceilings often contained asbestos. If your contractor hasn't tested for this, it's important to have your house tested by a qualified inspector.
tina q thanked Peter Roehrich
melinda1977
8 years ago
We have removed much popcorn from our ceilings.. some painted some not. The painted popcorn took a bit more effort, but it is definitely removable (without huge damage to the ceiling). We just had to knock off the tips of the popcorn before we misted with water and scraped. It is doable, so don't settle for anything less than your original vision.
tina q thanked melinda1977
robinc7
8 years ago
We had every ceiling in our house removed of the popcorn finish. Our house was 1980's ugly, purchased that way! We called several contractors for estimates which ranged from one end of the spectrum to the other.
We settled in the middle with the guy who guaranteed and sounded most knowledgeable. Couldn't be happier. Took longer than expected, made a heck of a mess, but they did a great job.
tina q thanked robinc7
tina q
Original Author
8 years ago
Thanks everyone for your helpful responses!!! It's given me hope! We had a talk with the contractor and he said that he will try again today but will not make any promises. He did mention that due to the stubbornness of the popcorn ceiling and the waves of the ceiling since it's an older condo, texturing the ceiling was recommended. I had my heart set on smooth (but don't want to ad another layer of dry wall). Thoughts?
melinda1977
8 years ago
Can you please explain what is meant by "waves of the ceiling"? I am picturing drywall that has not been properly attached, taped, and bedded,but I may be misunderstanding.
tatts
8 years ago
Could it be a concrete ceiling (since you mention it's a condo). High-rise?
tina q thanked tatts
Betty Des
8 years ago
I scraped ours off. Worst job ever because of the mess but it wasn’t hard to get off and ours had been painted. After scraping I went over ours with an electric sander....OH MY the dust!! The ceiling looks great now!
tina q thanked Betty Des
Melissa R
8 years ago
I'm thinking the "waves" are the seams. He can get rid of those by adding more joint compound and feathering it out. It's just more work. Better yet, take pictures of these "waves" and post. These pro's would be able to see
tina q thanked Melissa R
User
8 years ago
His getting upset to stop you from asking (him to do the job he agreed to do) is him bullying you. That's a crap tactic. It's just more work, which he did in fact agree to do.