Painting a popcorn ceiling?

[Sadie Tyler]

We live in Colorado and have a popcorn ceiling. Could this have asbestos in it? Any suggestions on where to send a sample to have it tested for asbestos? What is the best way to remove it so we can paint the ceiling and have a smooth finish? Thanks

[SafetyN8]

We see asbestos in 3 main areas; furnace ductwork, popcorn ceilings and linoleum type (not actual linoleum) flooring. The ductwork is usually a metal tube that has a paper-like coating meant to provide some measure of insulation. The problem comes when you want to modify or upgrade your heating system (same thing applies to boiler type heating plants). When you mess with the duct, the coating crumbles. This is called ‘friable’ asbestos. The particles can become quite small, and if inhaled can cause mesothelioma. This is the disease afflicting shipyard workers and the like. So, back to our story…The homeowner gets a price from the furnace company to remove the ductwork, and once they get up off the floor, they figure…heck, I can do that for almost nothing…What usually happens is they make a big mess out of it, and it gets left for the next homeowner to discover, or not. You see, the particles are small and very hard to notice if you aren’t looking for them. The flip side is that it is almost impossible for a homeowner to effectively mitigate the problem. To the point that if it gets tested by a pro, they will almost certainly find asbestos particles and red flag the house, initiating a cleanup and legal dispute.

So the best answer in most cases is to leave it where it is if possible. If the material is contained, it really poses no problem. So there are paint-like products meant to seal it in place among other strategies.

For popcorn ceilings…depending on the year installed (usually before ’72) there may be a percentage of asbestos. We’ve had quite a few folks tackle this one. Same basic problems as noted above, but it is possible to do a fairly good job if you’re careful. The idea is to put down plastic (6 to 10mil thick) on the floor, reaching a foot or 2 up the wall and taped off. Then hang plastic on the walls (right up next to the ceiling), again taped off, so that it overlaps the ‘tub’ you have made on the floor. You put on the Tyvek suit, P100 rated respirator, gloves etc. and use a pump sprayer to moisten the ceiling. Put a detergent liquid in the water to reduce the surface tension. Then scrape off the popcorn with a pole scraper, all the while spraying. Once you are done, bag the stuff up in marked bags and take to a registered haz waste facility (big bucks)