Interior Painting
Walls, ceilings, trim, and doors, painted by the same crew that showed up to measure.
See detailsMadison & Dane County
Ceiling Painting & Popcorn Removal
Coffers, beams, stairwells, and smooth ceilings where the popcorn used to be.
Two coats of flat paint go on every ceiling, because a ceiling is the one surface in a room that window light rakes across all day, and it shows every lap mark and roller line a wall would hide. Coffered and beamed ceilings are cut by hand along every miter, in one color or two. Popcorn removal is quoted as all four steps, scraping, skimming smooth, priming, and painting, and any texture applied before roughly 1980 is tested for asbestos before a scraper touches it.
- Timeline
- Painting a ceiling that is already smooth is part of a room's interior schedule; a coffered ceiling adds time for every beam, more again in two colors. Popcorn removal takes two to three days a room, driven by skim-coat drying rather than labor, and a whole home is typically one to two weeks.
Coffered and beamed ceilings are the most detailed painting in a house. Every coffer is four inside corners, a crown, and a flat panel, and a two-tone coffer, dark beams with a lighter panel or the reverse, has a cut line running the full length of every beam. The ceilings in the photographs on this page are Dane County homes, in black, gray, and two-tone.
Tall ceilings are the ones that get skipped: two-story foyers, stairwells, and vaulted great rooms, where reaching the surface safely takes the right ladders or staging set up before anyone climbs. A flat ceiling in an ordinary room gets the same care, because side light from a window finds every roller line.
Popcorn removal starts with the part that is not negotiable. Acoustic texture manufactured before the early 1980s can contain asbestos, and scraping it dry releases fibers into the air of your home. We arrange the sample and the lab, and if it comes back positive we stop and refer you to a licensed abatement contractor. We do not remove asbestos-containing texture.
When it tests clean, the room is fully contained and the texture is misted and scraped wet, so it comes off in sheets instead of dust. Then comes the half most quotes leave out: under the popcorn is drywall that was never finished, so it is skimmed to a smooth Level 4 or Level 5, sanded, primed, and painted. A quote that only covers scraping is not cheaper. It is incomplete.
Scope
Every kind of ceilings work we take on.
Coffered and Beamed Ceilings
One color, or two-tone with dark beams and light panels. Cut by hand along every miter so the line between them stays straight.
Tall and Stairwell Ceilings
Two-story foyers, stairwells, and vaulted rooms: the ceilings that get skipped because they are hard to reach.
Ceiling Repaint
A flat, even ceiling with no lap marks or roller lines, judged the way side light from a window will judge it.
Popcorn Removal, Finished Smooth
Scraped wet, skimmed to Level 4 or Level 5, primed, and painted, sequenced room by room so you keep somewhere to sleep.
Asbestos Testing Coordination
We arrange the sample and the accredited lab on any pre-1980 texture, and we hand you the result in writing.
Water Stain Sealing
Old roof and plumbing stains sealed with a shellac-based blocker so they stay gone rather than ghosting back in a year.
How we work
Step by step, no surprises.
You will know what is happening in your house on every one of these days before the first one starts.
- 01
Look at it in its own light
We see the ceiling with the light it actually gets, because side light from a window is what exposes lap marks, old patches, and seams.
- 02
Test old texture first
Popcorn applied before roughly 1980 is sampled and sent to an accredited lab before anything else happens. A positive result stops the job and goes to a licensed abatement contractor.
- 03
Protect the room
Floors and furniture covered; for popcorn removal, the whole room sealed, doorways and HVAC returns included.
- 04
Repair, block, or skim
Cracks and patches filled, water stains sealed with a shellac-based blocker, and a scraped ceiling skimmed smooth and sanded flat.
- 05
Cut the lines
The wall-to-ceiling line, and on a coffered or beamed ceiling every miter and beam edge, cut by hand.
- 06
Two coats of flat
Flat, always. Any sheen on a ceiling amplifies every imperfection the morning light finds.
Our work
More ceilings photosCeilings projects.
Can you paint a coffered ceiling two colors?
Yes. A two-tone coffer, usually dark beams and a lighter panel or the reverse, is cut by hand along every beam so the line between the colors runs straight. It takes longer than one color because every beam has two edges to cut, and it is priced that way at the walkthrough.
What sheen should a ceiling be?
Flat, almost always. Any sheen on a ceiling catches the light from the windows and shows every roller line and patch. Flat hides more than any other finish, which is why every ceiling here gets two coats of it.
How much does popcorn ceiling removal cost in Madison?
It is quoted per room after we look at what is above the texture, and it always includes scraping, skim coating smooth, priming, and painting. Be careful comparing that to a scrape-only quote, which is a cheaper number for a different and unfinished job. Pre-1980 texture has to be tested for asbestos before a scraper touches it.
Does my popcorn ceiling have asbestos?
If the texture was applied before roughly 1980, it might, and the only way to know is a lab test. We arrange the sample and the accredited lab on any pre-1980 ceiling before anyone scrapes. If it comes back positive we stop and refer you to a licensed abatement contractor. We do not remove asbestos-containing material.
Why does the ceiling need skim coating after scraping?
Because the drywall under popcorn was never finished. The texture existed specifically so the installer could skip taping and sanding to a finish level. Scrape it off and you expose raw tape joints and fastener dimples, which is why a scrape-only job looks worse than what you started with.
Can I stay in the house during popcorn removal?
Yes. We contain and seal one room at a time, including the HVAC returns, and we sequence the work so you always have bedrooms available. It is a messy job that is kept inside a controlled box.
Is smooth or knockdown better?
Smooth is the current look and it is unforgiving, so it needs a Level 5 finish under any strong side light. A light knockdown hides imperfection, costs less, and still reads as modern. If your ceiling is old and slightly wavy, knockdown is often the smarter answer, and we will say so.