Textured Ceiling Removal: Best Left to the Experts

Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of entrance at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of kitchen at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of kitchen at Windward Dr.

Many companies offer various types of textured ceiling removal.  A drywaller might tell you he can cover your texture with new drywall. A guy with a handyman service may tell you he can easily scrape off the popcorn. You may even have a neighbour who swears his sister-in-law’s brother’s cousin used some ‘magical’ product to remove his popcorn ceilings and he can probably ‘score’ some for you too. He might then ask if you have anything to munch on.

 

The problem with these solutions is that they are half solutions at best. None of these people are experts in ceilings or textured ceiling removal.

Covering your texture with drywall is unnecessary and leaves your ceilings at least 1/2″ lower. Not to mention you’d have to remove any crown moulding to install the drywall on top of the ceiling texture.

Scraping off popcorn ceilings is not easy and is very messy. Hopefully this handyman is aware of the possibility of asbestos in ceiling texture. Even if you did go the route of having it scraped off, your ceilings are going to look pretty awful.  That’s because under the texture, they’re not finished. That’s the beauty of ceiling texture for builders. The texture covers many ceiling flaws. Once the texture is gone, the flaws will become apparent.

 

Fees, Surcharges and Hidden Costs

The other problem with dealing with unqualified people, is that the price they give you may not turn out to be the final price. Sometimes it’s an innocent mistake–ceilings are difficult to work on and they didn’t realize how much work it would be, so they have to charge more. Even if it’s innocent, it’s still not fair to you.

Other times it can be less innocent, with verbal quotes that are very low just to get you to hire them.  Sometimes they won’t even come out to have a look at the ceilings. If they won’t come out to look at your ceilings, that’s a red flag. At RemoveCeilingTexture.com, we won’t give you a firm quote until we see the ceilings. And once we do give you a firm quote, it’s in writing and we won’t charge unexpected fees on top of it.

Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of entrance at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of entrance at Windward Dr.

 

Textured Ceiling Removal in Coquitlam

Textured Ceiling Removal:  Before and after of dining room at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of dining room at Windward Dr.

We were contacted by homeowners on Windward Drive in Coquitlam who wanted textured ceiling removal. We came out to look at the ceilings and take some measurements. We then sent them a written quote, through email. They contacted us to say that someone else had given them a verbal price over the phone that was quite a bit lower, and they offered to paint the ceilings too, for only $100 more. This seemed fairly suspicious to us. The contractors had not viewed their ceilings and yet they promised a very low price. And $100 would barely cover the cost of the paint, let alone the labour to apply it. We told them to be wary of this, and get it in writing.

We didn’t hear back from them for a while. When we did, they told us that it turned out that the low price the other company offered did not include everything, and the actual price was going to be similar to the price we quoted. The homeowners decided to go with us because we had been forthright about the price, we were professional, and we are ceiling experts.

Textured Ceiling Removal:  Before and after of bedroom at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of bedroom at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal:  Before and after of kitchen at Windward Dr.
Textured Ceiling Removal: Before and after of kitchen at Windward Dr.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

If you’d like smooth ceilings and want to know more about having the texture removed, contact us today for a FREE quote. Call us at 604-420-7578 or contact us by email.

 

Interested in textured ceiling removal? Click here to contact RCT today for a FREE quote!
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The Lowdown on Textured Ceilings

This condo at 518 Moberly Rd in Vancouver had the textured ceilings removed
This condo at 518 Moberly Rd in Vancouver had the textured ceilings removed
This condo at 518 Moberly Rd in Vancouver had the textured ceilings removed

If your home was built from about 1950 onwards, there’s a good chance you have textured ceilings, also known as popcorn ceilings or stippled ceilings. It’s even being used today in the countless highrises sprouting from the earth like fungi. You might think, wouldn’t they be able to sell the units for more money if the ceilings were smooth and actually looked finished? Yes, they most likely would, but the problem is that old adage: time is money. Textured ceilings are quick and cheap and they need to sell the units as quickly as possible. This keeps us at RemoveCeilingTexture.com quite busy.

 

The Nitty Gritty of Textured Ceilings

So let’s break it down. What are the arguments for and against textured ceilings?

 

“Textured ceilings are quick and cheap to build.”

This argument really only works for the developer. But this is about you, the homeowner.

Ceilings transformed from textured to smooth at a condo at 1230 Haro Street in Vancouver
Ceilings transformed from textured to smooth at a condo at 1230 Haro Street in Vancouver

You’re likely not pocketing the savings the developers made by spraying the

texture. Do you know what else is quick and cheap? Leaving the concrete floors unfinished and not painting the walls. How many developers do that? For some reason textured ceilings have become almost an industry standard and people put up with it.

 

“Textured ceilings mute sound.”

If you live in a modern condo building, the texture is not making a difference in sound transmission. Generally, you shouldn’t be able to hear your neighbours walking around.

Living room of Vancouver condo now has smooth ceilings - 1230 Haro St, Vancouver
Living room of Vancouver condo now has smooth ceilings – 1230 Haro St, Vancouver

However, if your upstairs neighbour insists on channeling her inner Victoria Beckham by walking in heels at all hours, textured ceilings will not make one iota of difference. You’re going to hear that clickety-clack whether or not you have textured ceilings. Likewise, the creaks and groans of an older home are going to come through regardless of the texture on your ceilings. The sound may not even be coming through the ceilings. If walls are missing insulation, sound will travel through. Unless you have a seriously sound proofed room that can silence a nine-year old boy and his drum set, you’re going to get some sound transfer.

The other sound issue people talk about is echo within a room.

Removal of textured ceilings in the dining room of a Vancouver Condo - 1230 Haro St.
Removal of textured ceilings in the dining room of a Vancouver Condo – 1230 Haro St.

Echoes occur when sound waves bounce off of hard surfaces such as walls and ceilings, multiple times. It’s true, if you have an empty room with no furniture, textured ceilings will slightly dampen echoes. But once you add softer components such as sofas, chairs, beds, carpets, rugs, etc., the sound waves will be absorbed by these softer items and won’t create an echo. So your textured ceilings are not helping.

 

“Textured ceilings don’t bother me.”

Are you sure about that? They may not bother you visually, but what they harbour could be affecting your health. Asthma, allergies and other respiratory problems can be aggravated by the dust and allergens that are present in every home. In most homes you vacuum, you dust…problem solved, right? Not so fast. The dust gets stuck in the nooks and crannies of textured ceilings. It can then fall back down at its leisure, making your symptoms worse.

Smooth ceilings appear higher - Vancouver condo at 1331 Homer St.
Smooth ceilings appear higher – Vancouver condo at 1331 Homer St.
Resurfaced concrete ceilings at a Vancouver condo - Bedroom at 1331 Homer St.
Resurfaced concrete ceilings at a Vancouver condo – Bedroom at 1331 Homer St.

Smoothing Out the Nitty Gritty

The good news is that you’re not stuck with textured ceilings. From penthouse condos to heritage homes and everything in between, we can provide smooth ceilings for pretty much every type of dwelling (we’ve yet to do a hobbit-hole, though).

At RemoveCeilingTexture.com, our name only tells part of the story. Removing the ceiling texture is only the first step to smooth ceilings. Once the texture is gone, you’ll often see inconsistencies in the ceilings. If you were to paint at this stage, they wouldn’t look very good. The next, crucial step is where our expertise really shines:  resurfacing the ceilings. Our process will leave you with flawless, smooth ceilings that look fantastic.

Contact us today for a FREE QUOTE for getting rid of your textured ceilings. Send us an email, or call us at 604-420-7578.

Close-up view of corner after ceiling texture removal at a condo at 1331 Homer St, Vancouver
Close-up view of corner after ceiling texture removal at a condo at 1331 Homer St, Vancouver
Living room with smooth ceilings - condo at 1331 Homer St, Vancouver
Living room with smooth ceilings – condo at 1331 Homer St, Vancouver

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tired of your textured ceilings? Contact us today for a FREE quote!