How to Change Your Cottage Cheese Ceiling to a Plain Ceiling

Protect the walls and floors in the room. Clear all furniture and accessories from your room and lay drop cloths down on the floor, such as a tarp or old sheets. Use painter's tape to secure plastic over the walls -- tape the plastic at the top of the wall just under the ceiling and again at the bottom of the baseboard, just above the floor.

Turn off the breaker for any ceiling fixtures, such as a ceiling fan or lighting fixture. If you cannot remove the fixture, cover it in plastic.

Mix water and dish soap at the ratio of 2 tablespoons of soap per 1 gallon of water. Spray the mixture over a 4 square foot portion of the ceiling using a pump sprayer or a garden sprayer. Wet the ceiling enough so that the popcorn texture softens, but do not completely saturate the ceiling or the drywall underneath may become damaged.

Wait 15 minutes for the ceiling texture to soften. Scrape the damp popcorn texture off using a wide bladed tool, such as a taping knife. Repeat the spray and scrape process over your entire ceiling until the texture has been completely removed.

Clean up the fallen texture and let the ceiling dry overnight if any moisture remains from your spraying.

Hammer any visible screws and nails below the surface of the drywall. Cover them by applying joint compound, with a putty knife. Check the ceiling for any cracks or dings that were created during the scraping process. Cover imperfections by applying joint compound with the putty knife, smoothing it out so that you can minimize the sanding required once the compound dries.

Sand the ceiling over any high spots, such as where you applied compound, using a long handled mesh sanding tool.

Cover the ceiling with a ceiling primer and latex paint using a long handle paint roller. Let the coat of primer dry over night before applying the paint.