Advice on fixing my uneven ceiling.

ive · Feb 22, 2022

Hi everybody.

my mother in law and wife want the ceiling of our home fixed. They would like it smooth. I think it’s plaster, house was built in 1955.

the ceiling itself isn’t lumpy, but when the light hit it it shows a lot of uneven parts

what’s the best way to achieve a smooth ceiling?

thank you so much.

K'ledgeBldr · Feb 22, 2022

First pic looks like **** joints that just aren't finished well. The second pic could be joints also, but could be framing.

I might consider that a "level 3" but...

It would take a lot to get to level 4

Here's a read for you- maybe this will help explain to the complainers-

https://www.usg.com/content/dam/USG_Marketing_Communications/canada/product_promotional_materials/finished_assets/cgc-construction-handbook-ch05-finishing-drywall-systems-can-en.pdf

Bert_ · Feb 22, 2022

First picture almost looks like it's been patched. Hallway isn't even noticable.

Those puck lights would bother me a lot more than anything else.

Worsedog · Feb 22, 2022

Skip trowel and call it good.

no704 · Feb 22, 2022

I had a really bad ceiling after a major remodel. A friend of mine was able to fix it. I’m sure it is not even close to flat but it looks like it is. This is an art and requires an artist to do it. Matching the mud and the shadows. Good luck.

jkuro · Feb 22, 2022

Don't use any type of gloss paint. Ceiling white hides the imperfections the best.

ive · Feb 22, 2022

Hi everybody.

I’m wondering if I can put drywall on top of that? The women want a smooth ceiling.

is this a silly idea or?

no704 · Feb 22, 2022

Not silly at all. Very common to overlay popcorn ceiling with 1/4” drywall. Lay some dobs of Slow dry mud between The new drywall and the existing surface around where the screws will go. Adjust till it looks good to the eye, don’t use levels, just a light source. It’s an art.

no704 · Feb 22, 2022

A very very light blue tint in the flat ceiling paint makes it feel more sky like and more comfortable.

Copymutt · Feb 22, 2022

This ”was” similar. Covered 1/4” and hand troweled.
Post again anytime Im laying on the couch looking at the ceiling.

yelchevelle · Feb 22, 2022

Pro tip from a painter friend ( not by my experience), but he says that if you want a flat ceiling with no shadowing of joints, you need to skim coat whole thing. He said you really need to find a good sheet rock guy. He was telling me this as I was trying to help another friend after his contractor flaked out. We didn’t skim coat because friend didn’t want to wait, and you can see some of the joints a little. I would skim it if it were mine

Edit to add, it’s really hard to get it flat, that’s why texture is so popular

wrenchguy · Feb 22, 2022

Your in trouble now, you need a bad back!

nadogail · Feb 22, 2022

Maybe the ladies who want a smooth seamless ceiling should attempt to fix it themselves. When they find out what is involved, they may decide that what they have is not so bad after all.

The Cobbler · Feb 22, 2022

are you sure the ceiling is plaster?maybe there was water damage that was (poorly) repaired ? hard to tell from the pics.
might be a candidate for new drywall . again with pics it's hard to tell .

rayra · Feb 22, 2022

jkuro said:
Don't use any type of gloss paint. Ceiling white hides the imperfections the best.

Yep, flatter paint is in order, for starters.
Hire a good drywall finisher to come skim coat. Worst case, hand a second skin and finish it, rather than spending mor etime and money trying to fix the original.
They make 1/4" thick drywall for this reason, among others.
It's NOT work to do in the winter.

/They've got too much idle time if they are sitting back in chairs looking at the ceiling.

FredWanaker · Feb 23, 2022

Hire a good drywall company to look it over. Aim the lamps a different way.

PoorUB · Feb 23, 2022

Smooth finish is a *****!

My family room, the walls are all smooth. When I did it twenty years ago we spent hours on mudding the joints and it came out pretty good. One spot had a trowel mark that never got sanded and the difference in surface texture from sanded to troweled showed. We got that fixed this time around. The trowel mark was smoother tan what finish sanding leaves and it showed through the paint. Even spot priming and painting will leave a different texture and the primed spots show through.
We replaced a window in our family room and ended up with quite a large patch around the window. I touched up all the dings, sanded and then primed the whole wall just to make sure the surface had the same texture on the whole wall. the whole wall,

My advice? Call a pro, or just put a light texture over it.

DIY is going to be a test of your patience!

You will need to trowel over all the seams. Many homeowners just toss some mud on the seam and call it good and you end up with this 12" wide "bump" of mud, which is what you have. I just did some repairs where we took out a couple windows. Where there are seams to tape over the patch is at least two feet wide.

I shine a bright work light parallel to the wall and look for shadows and run my hands over the work and let my fingers feel for imperfections.

I have gotten to the point that when I do my own drywall everything gets textured. Texture hides a lot of sins!

ace10 · Feb 23, 2022

1/4" dryall installed by a good crew.

duneslider · Feb 23, 2022

There is a reason most ceilings are textured and why there is such a thing as "ceiling" paint. It takes a lot of work to get flat walls and ceilings. Way cheaper to do a texture and flat paint.

You certainly could add a new layer of 1/4" drywall and do a nice job taping and it might look better. In my house we opted for a fairly full coverage skip troweled ceiling and then a fairly heavy sand and it is fairly smooth and you don't notice much texture but it is enough to hide most issues up there and then the fairly flat paint made it look pretty good.

PoorUB · Feb 23, 2022

I don't see the need to put up a second layer of drywall. It just adds to the work. Just sand the ceiling and refinish what is there. The ceiling looks to be in good condition, the finish work was just not done properly.

If you add a second layer of drywall what does that accomplish? You still need to do all the finish work to the new drywall and the existing ceiling is mostly done in that respect.

IMO, adding a layer of new drywall is a lot more work.

engineer2 · Feb 23, 2022

I would not texture it unless it is still popular where you live. Around here textured ceilings hurt a home's value when it comes time to sell. The buyers think: What are they hiding?, Is there water damage under that?, Will they agree to test for asbestos?, What will it cost to remove?

To fix:
Get a tripod work light to see the imperfections. If they are minor see below.
Skim it using a 12" taping knife and joint compound and/or finer topping compound.
Get one of those water bucket sanding dust extractors that work with your shop vac.
Sand, touch up, repeat until the entire inside of your house is coated with drywall dust.
Tell the wife: I told you we should have hired someone!

If you hire someone, they can probably get it done in about 3 visits, assuming you'll do the priming and painting.

Kenstone1 · Feb 23, 2022

ive said:
Hi everybody.

I’m wondering if I can put drywall on top of that? The women want a smooth ceiling.

is this a silly idea or?

Your questions suggest you have not done this before but are considering trying it, and no you don't need to cover it with new drywall.
An experienced drywall installer could retape/skim coat all the ceilings in your whole house in one day.
And return the next day to paint it!
Find one and get a quote.
jmo,
.

csp · Feb 23, 2022

If the surface is truly uneven that same unevenness will telegraph through 1/4" drywall unless it's installed with shims in low spots.

The Cobbler · Feb 23, 2022

curious why lots of people say re do it with 1/4" rather than 1/2"?

PoorUB · Feb 23, 2022

The Cobbler said:
curious why lots of people say re do it with 1/4" rather than 1/2"?

Weight, cost and it doesn't need to support anything. Trouble with 1/4" is there is potential for any unevenness of the old ceiling to show through.

There is zero reason to put a second layer of sheet rock on this ceiling.

acer66 · Feb 24, 2022

The Cobbler said:
curious why lots of people say re do it with 1/4" rather than 1/2"?

I rather use 1/2“ myself when going over former heavy textured ceilings or very uneven ceiling because it holds it shape better than 1/4” and cuts down on the mudding which is still something I need to master to put it lightly.

But I am no expert so 1/4” might work here for someone who knows what he/she is doing.

acer66 · Feb 24, 2022

engineer2 said:
To fix:
Get a tripod work light to see the imperfections. If they are minor see below.
Skim it using a 12" taping knife and joint compound and/or finer topping compound.
Get one of those water bucket sanding dust extractors that work with your shop vac.
Sand, touch up, repeat until the entire inside of your house is coated with drywall dust.
Tell the wife: I told you we should have hired someone!

Man, I do not know how many times I was proud of my mudding/painting job and then from a different angle or light it looked like ….

danfromsyr · Feb 24, 2022

nadogail said:
Maybe the ladies who want a smooth seamless ceiling should attempt to fix it themselves. When they find out what is involved, they may decide that what they have is not so bad after all.

yeah, this isn't necessarilly 'mans work' anyways..
me I'd paint it a different shade.. maybe even darken it up..

yeldogt · Feb 24, 2022

If it's been patched ..... you will need to fix/ecoat. It's not a big deal ....

The only time there is a need to cover w/ new drywall is if the ceiling is failing or there is a finish that can't be removed. There were some cement based treatments done in the 70's that are a nightmare to remove

niget2002 · Feb 24, 2022

Spray it with popcorn. Paint it flat white. Then tell the women to focus on their knitting and not the ceiling

/sarcasm

HalfTonTom · Feb 24, 2022

Time for a new wife (near-sighted) and mother-in-law...

Sumboodie · Feb 24, 2022

rayra said:
Yep, flatter paint is in order, for starters.
Hire a good drywall finisher to come skim coat. Worst case, hand a second skin and finish it, rather than spending mor etime and money trying to fix the original.
They make 1/4" thick drywall for this reason, among others.
It's NOT work to do in the winter.

/They've got too much idle time if they are sitting back in chairs looking at the ceiling.

It's a great winter project.

Do outdoor work when it's not -10* outside.

Advice on fixing my uneven ceiling.

Well-known member

Attachments

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Super Moderator

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Super Moderator

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member

Well-known member