How to Remove Painted Popcorn

Test the popcorn ceiling for asbestos--if it was installed prior to 1980, it may be hazardous or illegal to remove. Have it checked by a laboratory. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is a good place to get local information. If it contains high levels of asbestos, proceed according to the laws in your state.

Remove everything possible from the room. Tape plastic sheeting to the baseboards and across the floor to protect it. Tape over electrical outlets and vents. Remove ceiling lights if possible, or drop the canopy and wrap the fixture in plastic. Protect walls with tape and plastic.

Soak a small area of the ceiling by spraying it with hot water mixed with trisodium phosphate (TSP). TSP softens paint when mixed with up to 1 cup of TSP per gallon of hot water--check label for specific directions because there are different formulas of TSP. If there isn't a heavy coating of paint on the popcorn ceiling, this may soften it enough to be easily scraped off.

Use a gel paint remover on the popcorn if soaking and scraping it doesn't work. Too many coats of paint will prevent the water from penetrating to the acoustic popcorn material, and paint remover will penetrate both paint and popcorn.

Soak the underlying layer of popcorn with water once the painted surface is removed. Wet it liberally and wait 10 to 20 minutes for it to soften the material. The water should now penetrate the popcorn quite easily, allowing you to scrape it off.

Scrape the bulk of the popcorn off using a floor scraper, which has a heavy blade attached to a pole, allowing you to work without a ladder. Stand back and push the blade away from you along the ceiling.

Lay more layers of plastic over the messy floor if there's a considerable amount of sludge coming off the ceiling. This will keep your feet cleaner and prevent you from tracking sludge everywhere. When you're finished, roll the entire lot of plastic and sludge into a ball and put it in trash bags.

Finish scraping the last bits of the popcorn with a smaller paint scraper. This allows you to get into the corners, and remove the final shreds, with greater precision.