
However, if your popcorn ceiling has been painted, this layer of paint on top of the drywall makes it impossible for the water to penetrate through and soften up the popcorn. This makes the scraping process much easier! Step 2: Determine if the Ceiling is PaintedĪside from testing for asbestos, there is one other detail you will want to consider before attempting the next steps in the popcorn removal process - that is whether or not your ceiling has been painted over.Ĭeilings that are not painted are a lot easier to manage because the drywall can take up moisture and soften up during the misting process. You can purchase a test kit from the hardware store to test it yourself.

To find out if your popcorn ceilings contain asbestos, you will want to hire an abatement professional. This step is important because attempting to scrape away popcorn texture that contains asbestos can cause the particles to escape into the air, making it easy for you and your family to breathe in the carcinogens. Your home may very likely contain asbestos if it was built between the 1950s and 1980s. The first thing you should do before starting this project is to determine whether your ceiling contains asbestos.

Preparing the Workspace Step 1: Test for Asbestos This compound dries hard like plaster, making it great for patching up big holes or anything that’s really major.
SKIM COAT POPCORN CEILING PLUS

The all-purpose mud is great for fixing up smaller patches because it dries fast, won’t shrink as much, and leaves a harder finish.
SKIM COAT POPCORN CEILING PRO
Pro Tip: A 32-Inch Drywall Skimming Blade is the best size to go with as it covers more surface area than a 24-Inch but is also a lot more manageable than using a 40-Inch! Drywall Shorty’s Tips on Mud Putty Knife (any size from 6” to 12” will do).

Tools for Removing Popcorn Ceiling Some Basic Drywall Tools
SKIM COAT POPCORN CEILING PROFESSIONAL
HEPA bags.Drywall Shorty) to teach you everything you need to know about preparing your workspace, choosing the right drywall tools, and removing popcorn texture from ceilings (plus some best practices for skim coating drywall for that professional look)! Read on to learn more. That was the death of our old Shop Vac (that we had had for ten years) and why we had to buy this new one*.which is awesome, we love it, but still. If you don't, you will start sanding and minutes later, your vacuum will start choking on the super fine particles of drywall dust AND start spewing them out into the room. Ha! 2) If you're going the sander + vacuum route (why wouldn't you?!), you will absolutely need to buy HEPA bags* for your vacuum to catch all of the dust. So then we went rogue and didn't cover anything. We started covering the floors when we first started sanding but realized it was completely unnecessary after there wasn't any dust on the plastic or even on our clothes. We bought it off Amazon after it was recommended to us and I would have paid twice what we did for it because it was that worth it. It attaches to a utility vacuum (like a Shop-Vac) and sucks up all of the dust you sand off. 1) If you don't want drywall dust EVERYWHERE, this vacuum sander* is a must-have. Two VERY important FYIs for this part of the process.
