Painting - popcorn ceiling

We just moved into a new (old) home. The main floor has popcorn ceilings that have never been repainted. How do I paint them without having them fall apart? Even better, is there a good way to get rid of them?
Susan

For older popcorn ceilings that have never been painted, I would recomend spraying them, I would spray a coat of kilz first to seal the texture then topcoat with a ceiling color of choice. The problem with popcorn ceiling, especially old ones, is that moisture can cause it to release from the ceiling, hence the kilz to seal it first. If you are not familiar with spray rigs then I would hire a painter to do it.

If you wanted to try it yourself you could get a 3/4 inch roller and a rolling pole, a 5 gallon bucket with a bucket screen to paint out of and apply kilz first to seal then paint. I recomend a 3/4 inch roller because with that big soft mushy roller you won't have to press very hard to apply the primer/paint, it will be messy however, be sure to cover the floor and your head good.

To remove the texture will be a messy job, get a garden sprayer(pump up kind) and spray the ceiling with water, let sit a few minutes and a 6 inch taping knife should remove it quite easily(if it has never been painted), being very careful at the mud joints (for drywall), let it dry and sand smooth with a 150 grit sandpaper, fix any imperfections, if it is badly damaged or needs retaping in spots, then you may want to get a pro to repair, then texture if desired, prime(regular drywall primer, if not stained) and paint.

Hope this helps,

Thank you. Sounds like I'm in for a lot of work any way I look at it.