Save the popcorn for movie night

Right around the time of the disco ball and the leisure suit, another fad that swept North America was the use of acoustic texture sprayed on the ceilings of homes, which came to be known much more commonly as “popcorn” or “cottage cheese” ceilings.

There were a couple of reasons for its popularity at the time. It was a quick and money-saving process compared to other ways of finishing a ceiling.

Builders didn’t need to be as careful with the final topping coat of the drywall, they didn’t need to apply texture, and they didn’t need to paint the ceiling afterward; the acoustic texture coat did it all.

As the name implies, the material did have some mild sound-deadening qualities. And, at the time, it was considered a desirable decorative look, and many decorators actually specified it.

Popcorn ceilings have long disappeared from popularity, and those who own or buy a house that have them are more often than not wondering what to do to get rid of them. Luckily, it’s not a difficult job, just messy and somewhat labor intensive.

If you’re ready to roll up your sleeves, let’s take a look at how it’s done.

A word of warning first

Some of the products used for acoustic ceiling texture contained asbestos until it was banned in 1978, and existing product stock was still being used into the early ’80s. Depending on when your home was built, your popcorn ceiling could contain small amounts of asbestos, so before removing it, you should have it tested.

For more information about asbestos in popcorn ceilings and how to deal with testing and abatement, go to the Environmental Protection Agency website at www.epa.gov/ asbestos/.

Removing ‘popcorn’

Again, this is a messy job, so being prepared for that from the beginning will make your life a whole lot easier.

First, remove everything from the room. Completely cover all the floors with plastic sheeting.

Next, hang painter’s plastic (this is the thin stuff) on the walls, held in place with blue painter’s masking tape at the corner where the wall meets the ceiling. Allow the plastic to drape down over the plastic on the floor.

Begin the actual removal at one corner of the room. Using a spray bottle or a clean garden sprayer, spray clean water on about a 12-by12-inch area of the popcorn. You want to dampen it, but not soak it. While the material is still damp, use a 6-inch or larger drywall knife and scrape off the loosened material.

Repeat the process across the entire ceiling, dampening and scraping. You’ll quickly get a feel for how much water to use, and how much scraping pressure to apply. Do a thorough job of getting all the old material off, and at the same time try not to gouge into the underlying drywall with your scraper.

When you’re done scraping, remove all the plastic and scrapedup material. It’s tempting to leave all the plastic in place for the next steps, but believe me, you’ll just end up tracking gunk everywhere. If the popcorn contains asbestos, you’ll need to dispose of the plastic and scraped material in accordance with the laws and restrictions in your area.

Preparing for the new

Once everything is scraped off and the ceiling is dry, examine the drywall. Some builders left the ceiling underneath relatively smooth and finished, others not so much. You’ll need to use joint compound and a wide taping knife to smooth any tape seams or damaged areas that need repairs. Sand the joint compound and repeat the application as needed until you’re satisfied that you have a smooth ceiling.

Next, apply a drywall primer to seal everything. This will help ensure the success of any subsequent steps.

You now have a blank canvas up there on your ceiling. Since it’s already primed, if you like the smooth look you can now apply a finish coat of paint directly over the drywall, and you’re done.

The other option is to apply new texture. If you want to do it yourself, this can be done either by hand or by using a drywall texture hopper gun and an air compressor (you can rent this equipment), or you can hire a drywall contractor to apply the texture for you.

Once the new texture has dried, apply another coat of primer to ensure even absorption of the paint, and then apply a finish coat of paint.

Have a home repair or remodeling question for Paul? He can be reached by email at improvingyourhome@ykwc.net.