How do I paint a ceiling?

Often times homeowners want to paint their ceilings to freshen them up. What looks like a simple project can turn into a daunting task of picking the right paint, having the right tools, keeping the paint just on the ceiling not your belongings, and having it look right. Here is a pro's take on doing it right with the least resistance. It takes some practice but you can do it.

1. Buy enough ceiling paint and buy the good stuff. To figure out how much paint you will need measure the area of your room. Grab a measuring tape and take the length and width measurement and multiple it. You now have your square footage and how much paint you will need. So if you have a large living room for instance that is 20 x 20 you have 400 square feet. Most ceiling paints have a coverage rate of 300-400 square feet leaning more towards 300 in my experience. Error on the side of too much and buy an extra gallon, you can always return it and it will save you a trip. Different paints apply thicker or thinner. In this case 1 gallon may cover this area but is it worth having to run back to the store mid-stream? Next, buy a high quality ceiling paint. The more you spend the less time you will have to put in applying a second coat or getting less than desirable coverage from an inferior product on one coat. A gallon of the good stuff at your local paint retailer or big box is $20-$30 and will save you a huge headache with the bargain store junk that covers like water.

2. Depending on the type of ceiling you have you want to choose the right roller nap or cover. For a smooth ceiling or orange peal-light texture a 3/8's inch nap will do the trick.  Spend $5-$8 and buy a good one that will not shed on your ceiling leaving behind little hairs and compromising all your hard work. If you have a heavily textured ceiling like popcorn that is very rough buy a 1/2 inch nap. This size will give you a little more ump to get the paint on there without killing yourself and damaging the ceiling. Typically with a popcorn ceiling you will need to apply more paint because they suck it up. So you may need two coats. You are also going to need a 2 inch angle sash or straight brush to cut the room in, a roller pan, extension pole, drop clothes, plastic, tape, ladder, rag, cut can, roller nap, roller cage.

3. Here is one way that works for me. To protect your belongings such as furniture and pictures remove or center the furniture in the middle of the room and cover with plastic. Take down pictures and drapes leaving the nails-hardware to hang them back up. Lay down drop cloths. If you cannot cut a straight line to save your life put tape around the room where the ceiling meets the wall. It takes a little time to do this but will save you hours of cleaning brush marks on your wall and getting a perfectly straight line. When you put the tape down make sure you seal it by running your finger across the top edge. This will give you the straight line that is sealed. Now grab your stirred or shaken paint and pour about an inch of it into your cut can and dip the brush in it getting it saturated a bunch of times. You are now ready to cut in the ceiling. Grab your ladder and go to a corner and apply paint all around the perimeter of the ceiling in a 2 inch wide span. Once you are done cutting in grab your roller and extension pole and saturate the nap. Really roll it in and out of the paint for a minute and get the paint in there. You want paint on there so get in it there good. Start on one side and roll out the length of that wall the width of your roller, this will help keep your walls clean when doing the rest. It's not a race so go slow to prevent splattering the paint everywhere on the wall. The slower the better. If it does splatter keep a wet rag handy and immediately wipe it off. Extend this line of paint a few feet on each side wall for the same pattern, like the letter u. Load up the paint as soon as it runs out again and start on one side of your u shape and put it on in a v pattern back rolling over it. Repeat this across the entire room. Sometimes low light can help you see better because you can see the wet edge you just left on the last pass so turn off the lights or you can buy pink paint that turns white as it dries to help. Work in 3-4 foot rows across the room till you get to the other side. Remove the tape immediately so it does not dry pulling the paint of in the process. If you do happen to forget to take the tape off score it with a utility knife to break the bond.  You're done. Clean up and move your furniture back. When it comes to making it look right here's a pro tip. When you are rolling if you are seeing lines all over the area you just rolled once the paint is on the ceiling gently go back over the area smoothing out the lines- back roll with each pass to create a consistent look. The key is using the empty roller from the paint you just applied, don't redip it you want a dry roller so to speak. This takes a little practice but ceiling paint is very forgiving because it is flat-sheen so practice practice practice. 

Call or visit the website below for help on your next project or a fast free quote. I will return your phone call or email as soon as I get it to discuss your needs. 

Donigan Painting EPA RRP Certified

Bill Donigan

224 Ross Park

Syracuse, New York 13208

315-313-3254

www.doniganpainting.com