Painting Ceilings

Painting is always done from the highest point downwards, so painting ceilings are the first areas to be tackled.

If possible, do all your painting in daylight hours. Artificial light is less easy to work by and can lead to small areas being missed. This is especially true when you paint ceilings.

In preparation of painting the ceiling, go around the whole room and repair any cracks, holes, or peeling paint as described in my section for Interior Painting Preparation

When painting ceilings, you have a couple of options... rolling or spraying.

Rolling the Ceiling

Start by cutting in the ceiling with a 2 ½ - 3 inch brush. If the walls will be painted next, you won't have to worry about getting ceiling paint on them. If not, then you may wish to use a light adhesive painter's tape to mask the top of the walls. Remember to run a putty knife against the tape to make a good seal against the wall surface.

The whole ceiling should be painted in bands across the room (width) no wider than you can easily reach without stretching on your step ladder, platform or extension pole. This generally means that at any one time you will probably be painting a band no wider than 3 feet and less than 6 feet long. An extension to the roller handle will allow you to paint the ceiling without the need of step ladders.

You start at the edges first and then work into the main body of the room. Linking one section to another is seldom difficult with latex paint and is simply a matter of blending the paint from the new section back into the previous one. One product that I love to use is a ceiling paint that has a tint of pink or blue coloring and will disappear when it dries, leaving a nice flat white finish. This allows you to ensure that you haven't missed any spots, especially when painting white on white.

Spraying the Ceiling

Another method of painting ceilings is the use of a spray gun. Any surface that you do not want coated must be masked before you begin to paint the ceiling. Although an airless sprayer can be controlled more readily than an air compression sprayer, they both create a mist of paint that can drift onto any nearby surface.

You should also protect yourself with goggles, hat, mask, and cover-alls.

See my page on Spray Painting for specific techniques and tips.

Basically, you would spray paint ceilings using the same technique as done with walls or exterior siding, etc. The most important thing to remember is in the preparation. Make sure that you have everything covered properly and you have tested the viscosity of the paint as well as performing a spray test.

The rest will come with practice. With the proper equipment and some practice, you will see professional results that you wouldn't think you could do yourself when painting ceilings.

How to Paint a Slanted Ceiling

Painting ceilings that are slanted is a chore, but it may not be as difficult as you might think. Of course, it is always a challenge to paint any ceiling, but once you figure out what colors you are using and how to design your paint color scheme, painting slanted ceilings is just like painting the walls. There are a few things to think about before you start, specifically what colors you want to use for your walls and ceiling, and whether or not you want to distinguish between the ceiling and the wall. If you do want to distinguish the ceiling from the wall, you need to know where that line should lie on the wall.

. There are several options for your color scheme: you can choose the same color for the walls and the ceiling; you can choose two colors, one for the ceiling and one for the walls; or, you can choose three colors, one for the slanted ceiling wall, one for the other three walls in the room, and one for the ceiling itself.

The benefit of choosing three colors is that you can draw attention to the slanted ceiling, which is generally a very interesting architectural aspect in a room. Some people choose a lighter color for this wall and then a darker color for the other remaining walls and white or a coordinating color for painting the slanted ceilings. Other people choose to put the darker color on the wall with the slant, and then use the light color on the other walls. When more than one color is used on the walls, the ceiling is usually white.

Now you need to decide how to distinguish where to start painting slanted ceilings compared to where you paint the wall. This requires the use of a laser level. Place the level at the height you want the ceiling color to begin. A good tip is to make the ceiling color line even with that of the other walls in the room. Now use masking tape to mark where the wall and ceiling colors will change, and starting painting ceilings!

How to Paint a Popcorn Ceiling

One of the best methods of painting ceilings that are textured like a popcorn or acoustic ceiling is to use an airless sprayer.

You should also apply an appropriate primer if you have any stains (water or nicotine for example).

A trick I learned is to use good latex exterior flat paint as the finish. It sticks extremely well and covers better than interior paints. For spraying a little thinning is necessary, ½ gallon of water per five gallons of paint. The water will help the paint soak in.

Apply in two coats using a 515 spray tip. A spray extension pole connected to your gun will make the work a lot easier. These are available in lengths from 16 inches to six feet. Spray the paint in alternating directions, one coat north to south and one coat east to west. Allow 4 hours between coats.

If you decide on rolling the ceiling, the ideal roller to use is called a “split-foam” roller. As you roll over the texture, the roller will spread around and get into all the crevices and indentations. Apply two coats to ensure proper coverage.

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