I'm not a big fan of knockdown I would go smooth but the bigger issue is the removal of the popcorn chances are good that their is asbestos in the texture make sure you have it tested or have a remediation company remove it

What exactly is "knockdown" I am unfamiliar with the term, is it the same as textured?

Maybe this will show up good enough to see.

I think it looks similar to what we call textured- considering you are having popcorn removed from a 70's house your ceiling may not be perfect, a light texture would hide any imperfections. I am not so fussed as to spend the extra $1200 when I bet there is other uses for it, but what are the ceilings in the kitchen and bath? I would match these for a cohesive look. I lived 13 years with popcorn ceilings in a 70's ranch, nicely painted and with my primitive style decor you didn't really notice them unless you went around staring up in the air.

HI -- Hating popcorn / textured ceilings seems to be the latest thing . If the textured ceilings are in good shape , I don't think they are such a big deal . Comes down to preference . If your going to change the ceilings , then go smooth -- it is better for the future of the house . A knock down finish is just texture with the surface smoothed slightly . That seems more like a hotel or commercial look. If you want to go ahead , then save yourself the grief and pay an expert to do it . They take steps to make sure of any asbestos and so on. If you get an expert to do it , then that insures the end result is smooth and no imperfections showing .

Smooth- smooth-smooth

Amy, kitchen is drop down ceiling, and bath is smooth. When we redo kitchen, we will likely raise ceiling, smooth coat with recessed lighting. I think what we may do is smooth in common rooms (family, living, dining) and get knockdown in the bedrooms. It will save us a little $, but get the smooth ceilings where we really want them. I am not against knockdown, and kind of like it, but seems like everyone has it and like the look of smooth, as well as it being a little different.

Lefty, my parents have still popcorn ceiling in house I grew up in, and it's always been fine to me. Problem is when I first walked into our new house, I loved all the light from the 4 sliding glass doors, and quickly noticed how the glitter in the popcorn ceiling caught the light... Maybe if the ceilings didn't shine I would be ok with them, but 70s ceiling with built in disco ball is just a little to much for me...

HI -- There use to be glitter on our ceiling also but it was painted and the glitter is gone now but this now makes getting the stipple off an imposable chore . We are in the process of just putting drywall over for a smooth look , doing a room at a time . I wish we had not painted all the ceilings , then we could have scraped all the stipple off to get the smooth look . The biggest areas are still to be done .

Smooth is most desirable.

I also have popcorn ceilings in my So FL 70's ranch. I would be fine with it gets really dirty around all the ceiling fans. I have to vacuum it and it still looks gross. I think it's just dustier here in FL. I think any texture would be tougher to keep clean or paint as needed.

Popcorn removal is messy! Do it before you move in and go with a smooth surface. Even "knockdown" looks dated. When we removed our popcorn ceilings, the drywall was not finished well at all, so we ended up putting up a light texture to minimize the uneven surface. I actually liked the popcorn ceilings, but the spider webs and the dust were impossible to remove.

Removing popcorn is not just very messy, but in older homes there is also a danger of exposing yourself to asbestos.. Anything oil based also carries the danger of exposure to VOCs, and oil-based finishes also harm the environment more than water based ones.

There is a better solution. We're talking no mess, no dust, no toxic vapours (in fact, no vapours at all), with a finish as smooth as a mirror and unlimited design options. It's called stretch ceiling. A fully recyclable membrane is stretched across the ceiling, either over an existing ceiling, or in a new build, instead of installing drywall and covering it with popcorn. Tracks, or profiles, screwed into the walls or existing ceiling around the edges hold the membrane in place. These profiles and the membrane take up less than one inch of room height.

If you later desire a change, a new membrane can be inserted into the same tracks, or the tracks can be unscrewed and the screw holes easily filled with a little bit of filler. You will not need to do this as maintenance, however. The system lasts a lifetime.

We take care of installation for you, and installation is included in the price that we quote.

We carry over 280 colours, in high gloss, matte, satin, and fine canvas-textured finishes.

Here are a few examples, please feel free to visit our profile for more, and add them to your ideabooks!

Call us for a quote, we do not charge for a site measure/quote in areas that are near our offices. If you are further away, you can still get a free quote by supplying us with your measurement information. We have a network of authorized dealers across North America and beyond.