How can I paint my ceiling to hide imperfections and should I choose a color to help disguise flaws, or stick with white? Also, any tips for removing paint from tiles?
Asked by Agripina Bobir 
7 months ago
Last Updated: June 3, 2024
So, like, around 5 years back, there was this huge leak from the floor above my place. The landlord brought in this dude who basically ripped apart the ceiling in my shower, fixed up the pipes, then patched it all back together and painted over it. But now, I’m finally ready to tackle this eyesore.
Any tips on painting the whole ceiling so it looks smooth and flawless? And is there a trick to getting rid of that paint that’s smudged on the tiles? Should I stick with the same color for the ceiling, or switch it up with white to hide the imperfections better? I’m a total newbie at this, so any advice would be super appreciated. Thanks a bunch!
Just give the ceiling a light sanding to smooth out any rough spots, then use a 12″ knife to apply a coat of drywall mud. Sand it down again as needed until the surface is completely smooth. Finish off with a coat of primer and paint.
I don’t have any thoughts on the ceiling, not my area of expertise. But with a plastic knife or scrubby, that tile and paint will be history!
Matching the texture of the ceiling can be tricky, but there are products like orange peel or popcorn that could help. Alternatively, you can follow ‘s advice on skim coating. Just be prepared for a messy and time-consuming process of waiting for the mud to dry and sanding multiple times.
Oh no, it seems like the rest of the ceiling is not actually textured, huh? It’s like the person who did the patching added some random texture with a brush, but I think the rest of the ceiling just has a slight texture because it was painted with a roller
Wow, that’s interesting… I’ve heard that painting with a roller usually doesn’t create much texture (we just finished painting almost every room in our house). It’s said that flatter paint can help conceal imperfections. Maybe you could experiment with some drywall mud to blend everything together. Check out some YouTube tutorials, working with drywall seems to be more of an art than a science from what I’ve seen.
Oh, I see what you mean about the ceiling being mostly flat! But there’s a mix of flat and textured near the patch, right?
I remember reading somewhere that using a roller or a brush for painting can give different finishes. I thought using a roller tends to make the paint look textured and shinier. Now I’m not so sure!
I will say though, nothing in my apartment (walls or ceilings) has that super smooth printer paper look.
I’m starting to wonder if my ceilings were intentionally textured! I always assumed the little bit of texture came from many layers of “the landlord special” paint jobs. I’ll need to look into this further, thanks.
Oh man, that looks like it was done in a rush. I suggest smoothing out those clumps with sandpaper, getting some spray texture, and applying it to the flat areas. Be sure to blend the old and new textures. Once it’s dry, prime and paint over it. I think painting the entire ceiling in white would be a good idea.
What’s the reason for choosing white? I only have a little bit of the original paint left, so changing to a white ceiling could be a good idea. However, all the other ceilings in the apartment are not white.
Oh if you already know the color, then definitely go with that one.
Alright, I originally thought that white might hide imperfections better, but it seems like the color choice doesn’t make a difference. Thanks for letting me know, I appreciate it.
To achieve a flat ceiling, you could try skim coating, sanding, and then repeating the process until it’s smooth.
If you’re renting, I wouldn’t recommend making any changes.
You can use a razor blade to easily remove the paint from the tiles.