Sooner than You Begin
Sooner than you type out a deep cleaning of your popcorn ceiling, be steered: Popcorn ceilings put in sooner than the Nineteen Eighties may comprise asbestos, which is dangerous if inhaled. To cease any likelihood of lung-scarring illnesses and even lung most cancers, you’ll want to first check out for asbestos.
Straightforward strategies to Clear a Popcorn Ceiling
Step 1: Cowl the furnishings and flooring.
Accumulate all devices and provides in an merely accessible place. Cowl your furnishings and flooring with large plastic tarps to cease mud, cobwebs, or liquid cleanser from dirtying (or damaging) furnishings and flooring beneath as you are employed. Defend your lungs from mud by carrying a defending masks, and defend your eyes with goggles.
Step 2: Take away all mud from the popcorn ceiling using a vacuum, broom, or duct tape.
Choose whichever method for mud eradicating matches you most interesting. For any of the subsequent, you’ll first decide whether or not or not you want to work with two ft on the underside using an extendable software program to scrub the ceiling or climb a step ladder to scrub small segments up shut. Must you use a step ladder, be careful to not overextend your differ, which could end in instability and lack of stability. As an alternative, clear numerous sq. ft sooner than climbing down, shifting your ladder, and cleaning the next patch.
- (1) Vacuum: Suck up flooring mud and cobwebs using your vacuum’s attachments. Choose the widest brush attachment, one with out laborious plastic parts that may chip or harm your paint. In case your vacuum has a protracted cope with, you presumably can keep on the underside and work. Must you use a step ladder, climb up and down alongside along with your machine in tow fastidiously.
- (2) Broom: Flip a long-handled broom spherical so that its in depth, soft-bristled brush faces the ceiling. Sweep the comb over the ceiling, allowing the mud to fall onto the tarps.
- (3) Duct tape: Join duct tape to a paint roller, or use a sticky lint roller. Climb your step ladder and gently roller the ceiling. Plenty of the mud must persist along with your implement. Substitute duct tape or renew lint paper when mud not adheres.
Uncover trusted native execs for any dwelling enterprise
+
Step 3: Examine a cleaner on a hidden part of the ceiling sooner than attacking stains.
Sooner than you attempt to fade or take away stains attributable to water, smoke, or grease, check out a small, inconspicuous area of the ceiling to be sure to’ve picked an environment friendly cleaning decision that gained’t harm the ceiling. The vitality of the reply you choose will rely on the set off, age, and severity of the stains.
- Grease stains: In a kitchen, you’re extra prone to spot some discoloration due to the amount of cooking grease that can get airborne all through meal prep. To remedy, mix a light-weight decision of warmth water and liquid dish cleansing cleaning soap in a giant spray bottle, one factor you presumably can cope with merely in your step ladder. Spray decision onto the stain, and evenly dab the world with a rag or sponge. Let dry for numerous hours.
- Water, mildew, and smoke stains: Mix water with bleach in a twig bottle and apply to the ceiling. Frivolously mist the world to cease additional water harm. Start with one half bleach to 5 parts water. Sit up for numerous hours. If the stain isn’t lifting, add further bleach and evenly mist the world as soon as extra. Let the check out area dry in a single day to search out out if the reply is working.
Tried-and-True Suggestion
“Be careful to not scrub at your [popcorn] ceiling whereas it is moist and even very damp with water or cleaning product. Scrubbing at a moist popcorn ceiling will result in clumps of the plaster disintegrating and primarily scraping off.
Till you plan to type out an entire popcorn ceiling eradicating, you’ll want to heed the advice to let the cleaning decision sit on the ceiling sooner than starting to clear. I would moreover advise in opposition to using steel wool or steel brushes—they’re too harsh, and might create further of a mess. Must you’re uncertain, try scrubbing at an not noticeable spot like a closet ceiling first to see the best way it goes.”
—Amber Guetebier, Contributing Creator
Step 4: Proceed with the cleaner of choice to deep-clean any notably dingy areas in your popcorn ceiling.
Mist the rest of the ceiling area with the appropriate cleaner, each the liquid dish cleansing cleaning soap decision or the bleach decision, that has been determined as posing no harm to your ceiling. (It is advisable nonetheless be carrying defending gear, along with goggles and face masks, when working with these cleaners.) Must you’re using a step ladder, consider to work solely inside a restricted differ, climbing down and shifting your ladder recurrently.
Let the ceiling dry in a single day with any residence home windows open and circulating followers on to take care of room ventilated.
Step 5: Repaint or take away popcorn ceiling do you have to’re not happy with the best way it appears to be when it’s clear.
If some stains linger, albeit pale, take into consideration repainting your popcorn ceiling. Now that you’ve eradicated flooring mud, your ceiling is prepared for a model new paint job! Or, do you have to keep unhappy with the appears of what’s overhead, it may be time to take away the popcorn ceiling altogether.