Cover Your Popcorn Ceiling with a Stomp Texture
A popcorn ceiling is a throwback ceiling texture from the 70’s to late 80’s when spray textures where all the rage. Tiny spheres of glitter where often injected into joint compound and shot out onto ceilings for that super 70’s disco ball look-all over the country. Often, these spheres where made from perlite and vermiculite, making them toxic to inhale if you try to remove them using scrapers and sandpaper. Avoid the deadly toxins, the cumbersome ventilators and huge mess that comes with the removal of a popcorn ceiling. Use a stomp drywall texture to complete the job in half the time with near zero mess using this guide.
Prep the Area
Remove all of the furniture and cover all appliances. Use painter’s plastic and blue tape to cover your walls and cabinets. Cover all floors completely with a drop cloth. In essence, anything you don’t want getting dirty, cover up. This is often the toughest part of the job, but well worth it if you cover each wall to the edge of the ceiling using blue painters tape and plastic.
Prep the Tools and Materials
Getting the tools and materials together is a snap. You’ll need a long pole and a stomp drywall brush. These can be found at any home improvement store and cost less than $10. In a five gallon bucket, add joint compound a third of the way to the top. Add an inch of water to the top and mix with a ½” drill and a paddle bit. When you have the consistency of ketchup, pour a bit into a paint roller tray. Now place the bristles of the stomp brush in the wet mud and mush it around until the bristles are all completely coated.
Making a Swirling Pattern
The next steps are simple. To make a swirling circular flower pattern, start in one corner and make a small stomp and spin. Replace the stomp brush into the paint tray and reload with joint compound. Do this one time per swirl for a thicker, heavier accent. In some cases, popcorn pieces will come loose in the stomp brush. Remove them from the joint compound and ceiling swirls before the mud becomes hard. You may have to stomp this pattern several times to completely cover the old popcorn ceiling.
Making a Fireworks Burst Pattern
To get a more unique sunburst pattern, place the stomp brush to the ceiling and instead of swirling it, push it up and down like a plunger. This creates a bursting pattern that resembles a fireworks burst. You will definitely need to load the stomp brush heavily with joint compound to completely cover the old popcorn ceiling using this method.
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