Cabinets & Prep in Naperville, IL
Popcorn ceiling removal in Naperville, with the ceiling left smooth and painted
Dated, dusty popcorn ceilings, or water stains in the texture? We take them down to a smooth, painted ceiling, with the room sealed off so the dust stays put.
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Answering 24/7Naperville service office
Updated September 2026
This job
Popcorn Ceiling Removal
Cabinets & Prep · answering 24/7
Quick answer
Popcorn ceiling removal in Naperville, IL means sealing the room, wetting and scraping the texture, skim-coating the drywall smooth, then priming and painting. Ceilings applied before the 1980s can contain asbestos, so older texture is sampled and lab tested before anyone scrapes.
The job
Most of the work is protection and finishing
Popcorn texture collects dust and cobwebs, shows every water stain and makes a room feel older than it is. Removing it is messy, so walls, floors and fixtures go under plastic and the room is sealed from the rest of the house.
Once the texture is off, the drywall underneath is rarely perfect, so a skim coat fills tape lines and gouges before the ceiling is sanded, primed and painted.
What moves the price
What moves the price of popcorn ceiling removal
Removal is priced by ceiling area and by what happens after the texture comes off.
- 01Ceiling area
Square footage of each ceiling sets labor and material.
- 02Painted or unpainted
Painted popcorn does not soften with water and takes longer.
- 03Asbestos result
A positive test changes the method and who can do the removal.
- 04Finish level
A full skim coat costs more than spot patching and looks far better.
- 05Ceiling height
Vaulted and two-story ceilings need scaffold.
- 06Occupied rooms
Furniture, fixtures and flooring to protect add set-up time.
What this job covers
A
Scrape and skim-coat
This is the standard removal. The texture is misted with water to soften it, scraped off with wide blades and bagged as it falls. The ceiling then shows every tape joint and scrape mark, so we apply one or two skim coats of joint compound over the whole surface, sand it smooth under a work light and prime it before two coats of flat ceiling paint. Popcorn that has been painted does not soften with water, so it takes noticeably longer to remove.
B
Skim over instead of scrape
Where the texture is well bonded or has been painted several times, skimming over it can be cleaner than scraping. We knock down the high points, seal the texture with a primer so it will not soften, then apply joint compound in several thin coats until the ceiling is flat. This avoids most of the wet mess and suits ceilings where scraping would tear the drywall paper. It is also one option when testing finds asbestos and the texture is left sealed in place.
C
Knockdown and orange-peel texture
Not everyone wants a perfectly flat ceiling. Knockdown and orange-peel textures hide small flaws and suit rooms with raking light from big windows. After removal we can spray a light texture and flatten it with a knockdown knife, or leave a fine orange-peel spray, then prime and paint it with two coats. It is also the usual way to match a ceiling next to one that already has texture, so the two rooms read the same once the job is finished.
What is included
What a popcorn removal job should include
- An asbestos sample and lab test on older ceilings
- Walls, floors and fixtures covered in plastic
- The room sealed off from the rest of the house
- Texture wetted, scraped and bagged
- A skim coat over tape joints and gouges
- Sanding under a work light
- Primer and two coats of flat ceiling paint
- Full cleanup and plastic removal
Around Naperville
Naperville grew fast from the 1950s on, and ranch homes on streets like Elmwood Drive and 13th Avenue, with median build years between 1954 and 1960, date from the decades when sprayed ceiling texture was common. Ceilings of that age are the ones we sample for asbestos before scraping. They often hide older patches and cracks as well, so we plan on a full skim coat rather than a quick scrape and paint.
How the job runs
How a popcorn removal job runs
- Step 1
Walk-through and test
We measure, sample older texture for testing and agree on the finish.
- Step 2
Seal and protect
The room is emptied or covered, wrapped in plastic and sealed off.
- Step 3
Remove
The texture is wetted, scraped and bagged as it comes down.
- Step 4
Skim and sand
Joint compound goes over the whole ceiling and is sanded smooth.
- Step 5
Prime and paint
Primer, then two coats of flat ceiling paint.
- Step 6
Clean up
Plastic comes down, everything is vacuumed and we walk the room with you.
Compare the options
Scraping it yourself, or having us do it
Popcorn removal looks simple on video. The mess and the finishing are the hard parts.
| Item | Doing it yourself | Having us do it |
|---|---|---|
| Asbestos | Scraping untested older texture can release fibers | Sampled and lab tested before any scraping |
| Mess | Wet texture falls on everything in the room | Room sealed and wrapped, debris bagged as it falls |
| The ceiling underneath | Tape lines and gouges show once the texture is gone | Skim-coated and sanded flat before paint |
| Overhead work | Hours on a ladder with arms raised | Scaffold or planks set to ceiling height |
Only a lab test can tell. Ceilings applied before the 1980s are the ones to test, and we sample before scraping.
A typical room is two to four days, including drying time between skim coats and the final paint.
Yes, but paint stops water softening it, so it is slower. Skimming over it can be the better option.
With a full skim coat and sanding, yes. Spot patching alone leaves visible joints.
The work is, but the room is sealed off and debris is bagged, so the rest of the house stays clean.
Often booked together
Other jobs that usually come up alongside this one
Answering now
Book a popcorn ceiling walk-through in Naperville
Call any hour. We look at the ceilings, sample older texture and send a written estimate with the finish spelled out.
