A popcorn ceiling is one of those remnants of the 1970s that none of us are particularly fond of remembering. In a fit of morbid stupidity, consumers everywhere rushed to a ceiling style that was not only completely free of any natural aesthetic qualities, but often pumped full of dangerous asbestos and quite acoustically annoying. If you’ve got a popcorn ceiling in your home, it’s VERY important that you have it checked over. While the chances of asbestos being in the ceiling itself are very low, they’re still occasionally present. Even so, as a design work, popcorn ceiling is one of the worst design styles from a decade that wasn’t exactly renowned for beautiful homes.

The first reason for removing a popcorn ceiling is 100% aesthetic. Popcorn ceilings, while mediocre looking even when brand new, take on a nasty yellow-grey tinge when left on its own for too long. With its bizarre texture and surface style proving difficult to clean, it’s not a material type that lends itself to keeping clean and presentable.

In additon, if you’ve ever tried to paint over a ceiling like this, you’ll most likely end up with “chunks” of the material falling off all over the place.  If you’re lucky the chunks won’t be wet with new paint,  if you’re not lucky, you’ll get nice globs of ceiling material that are full of dripping wet paint.   Make sure you cover everything with a tarp or drop cloth if you try to paint a popcorn ceiling.   Your best bet if you want a pure white ceiling without the annoyance of constant micro-shadows, chunks of “stuff” all over the place and cleaning difficulties, it’s best to get rid of popcorn ceiling while you can.

Need a second reason? How about the complete lack of any natural characteristics or style. Popcorn ceiling removal is about bringing back the natural characteristics of your home, and promoting a design ethos that its ugly look just can’t keep up with. If you want to retain the charms of a natural looking hallway, bedroom or living room, remove that popcorn ceiling and put up a more natural coat of paint. If that’s too much work, painting the ceiling in a more natural hue is always an option.

The third reason to remove popcorn ceiling and the most important for you family’s saftey is that it occasionally contains asbestos. While the vast majority of popcorn ceilings installed in the 1970s were asbestos-free, it’s still a wise move to err on the side of caution. If you’re uncertain about the composition of your ceiling, check with someone skilled in this type of ceiling removal and make sure that it’s safe to change or remove. Remember, the chances of asbestos being present in your popcorn ceiling are VERY low, but it’s always best to play these situations the safe way and make sure.

Before you buy any special scraping tools or painting tools, make sure to wear proper ventilation masks just in case you happen to breathe the material.  Please don’t take this lightly as once asbestos material gets into your body, its sticks around.

So in summary, besides the concerns for the potential asbestos, the design reasons alone are enough to promote a quick removal of any popcorn ceiling left in your home.