Popcorn Ceiling Removal

Popcorn Ceiling Removal in DC, Maryland & Virginia

Popcorn Ceiling Removal in DC, Maryland and Northern Virginia

Popcorn ceilings went up in most American homes built between the 1950s and the early 1980s, and almost nobody wants them now. Taking one down is straightforward work. The part that matters, and the part most quotes skip, is what the ceiling is made of before anyone starts scraping.

Test before you scrape a pre-1980s ceiling

Acoustic ceiling texture from that era can contain asbestos. Not all of it does, and you cannot tell by looking. The only way to know is to have a sample analysed by a lab, which is inexpensive and takes a few days.

If the test comes back positive, removal becomes regulated abatement work with containment and disposal requirements, and it is not drywall work. We do not perform asbestos abatement. We will tell you what the test says and help you find a contractor who does that work, and we will come back afterwards for the refinishing.

If it comes back negative, or the house is new enough that the question does not arise, we scrape.

The one thing to avoid is scraping first and asking later. Dry scraping an asbestos containing ceiling puts fibres into the air throughout the house, and cleaning that up costs many times what the test would have.

Scraping, or covering it over

Scraping is the usual answer. The texture is wetted, softened, and taken off with a wide blade, then the ceiling underneath is skimmed and finished.

Covering the ceiling with new board over the old is the alternative, and it makes sense in two situations. The existing ceiling is in poor condition and would need extensive repair after scraping anyway. Or the texture tests positive and encapsulating it is preferable to abatement. Covering adds thickness, which matters around crown moulding and at the top of door casings, so it is a decision to make deliberately rather than a shortcut.

What the work involves

Everything comes out of the room or gets covered, floor included. Scraped popcorn is wet, heavy and sticks to whatever it lands on. We seal the room off rather than sheeting a few items and hoping.

After scraping, the ceiling underneath is rarely ready to paint. There will be old joint lines, fastener heads and gouges from the scraping itself. It gets a skim coat, sanded, and then primed. That skim is the difference between a smooth ceiling and a ceiling that clearly used to have popcorn on it.

Then you choose the finish. Smooth is the common request. Knockdown or orange peel are options if the rest of the house carries a texture and you want the ceiling to match.

How long it takes

A single room is usually three to four days, most of which is drying time between skim coats rather than active work. A whole floor of a house takes proportionally longer, and it is worth planning to be out of those rooms rather than working around us.

What changes the price

Ceiling height, room size, and the condition of the ceiling under the texture are the three things that move a quote. Water stains and old repairs above the popcorn mean more skimming after the scrape. A lab test is a small separate cost and worth every penny on an older house.