# Ceiling Help please?



## UnDeRtOw00 (Feb 20, 2009)

Hello everyone. First post and already asking for help. lol
I've been painting for 15 years professionally and am still trying to solve the mystery behind the perfect ceiling. I've been doing alot of new homes with large long vaulted ceilings with huge windows at both ends of the room. The ceilings look good but standing at either end of the room with the glare from the windows i can see some imperfections. I just can't seem to figure out how to make them look great from all angles/lighting. i've tried many different rollers/techniques, keeping it wet and rolling clean from one side to the other with no stopping. I know im not the only one with this problem. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!! Thanks.


----------



## WisePainter (Dec 27, 2008)

I have been painting for 10 years professionally and have never had that problem with vaulted ceilings.

yay me.

I _*know*_ Wolfgang can help you with your dilemma...


----------



## johnpaint (Sep 20, 2008)

We were just talking about this the other day, you might want to do A search on ceilings.There are so many different things that go into a good job, from making sure it has been primed good, to using a thick enough nap to keep a wet edge,to additives that help keep the paint from drying too fast,using the right sheen and on and on.


----------



## UnDeRtOw00 (Feb 20, 2009)

WisePainter said:


> I have been painting for 10 years professionally and have never had that problem with vaulted ceilings.
> 
> yay me.
> 
> I _*know*_ Wolfgang can help you with your dilemma...


 
Thanks... I'll wait for wolfgang.


----------



## Workaholic (Apr 17, 2007)

UnDeRtOw00 said:


> Thanks... I'll wait for wolfgang.


:laughing: right back at ya Wise.
So are we talking about new drywall? How many coats are you applying?


----------



## chrisn (Jul 15, 2007)

I would think the first step would be a good drywall finishing job, you can blame it all on them. We as painters are not miracle workers and can only hide or repair so much.:yes:


----------



## slapiton (Jul 28, 2007)

If your not using flat paint you are going to see the imperfections because of the light. I don't care how many coats you put on the ceiling.


----------



## APC (Sep 25, 2007)

I use alot of Sherwin Williams CHB. Its a cheap dead flat for ceilings. Looks good. I have found if the customer doesnt want white ceilings when you add tint to the paint your adding a little shine therefore showing inconsistancies.


----------



## DeanV (Apr 18, 2007)

I used to have great luck with Regal Flat on smooth ceilings. The last job I did on smooth ceilings was Navajo White and regal, super spec, 4 different roller naps, Floetrol, etc none of it worked to make it look like what it should. It had been a while since a smooth ceiling was not painted white (Mursesco) for me though, so I would if the reformulation of Regal is the problem. Who knows.


----------



## michfan (Jul 6, 2008)

APC said:


> I use alot of Sherwin Williams CHB. Its a cheap dead flat for ceilings. Looks good. I have found if the customer doesnt want white ceilings when you add tint to the paint your adding a little shine therefore showing inconsistancies.


I just used some CHB on a repaint. Ceilings were all sorts of different colors in this house. Light Yellow, Light Peach, etc. That CHB covered all of 'em (2 coats obviously) and flattened out nicely. First time using this stuff and it was not too bad. To me it covered and looked as good as some $20 ceiling paints! We even had them gray it up a bit with a drop of black.


----------



## Mantis (Aug 4, 2008)

APC said:


> I use alot of Sherwin Williams CHB. Its a cheap dead flat for ceilings. Looks good. I have found if the customer doesnt want white ceilings when you add tint to the paint your adding a little shine therefore showing inconsistancies.


I started using CHB for my ceilings last summer. It does indeed lay dead flat! Good stuff :thumbsup:


----------



## johnthepainter (Apr 1, 2008)

i like chb for lids too,,,,,i also use an economical lid paint from pittsburgh(maybe pitttech)

maybe try adding some water, and turn off the furnace.


----------



## johnpaint (Sep 20, 2008)

chrisn said:


> I would think the first step would be a good drywall finishing job, you can blame it all on them. We as painters are not miracle workers and can only hide or repair so much.:yes:


For sure, tape joints have a different porosity than paper they soak up paint different and will give you a flatter sheen no way around it.And also if you blow orange peel texture on the wallboard before you seal it the texture will not smooth out as much, and how many drywall installer do this?Maybe 5%.


----------



## timhag (Sep 30, 2007)

high fibre said:


> maybe try adding some water, and turn off the furnace.


 Okay Johnny Boy!


----------



## cullybear (Mar 10, 2008)

we use chb also,no backroll just crosshatch your spraying and lay it on heavy,saves alot of time and looks great


----------



## jack pauhl (Nov 10, 2008)

What were you spreading that wasnt working for you? How do you roll them? Continuously or by section?


----------



## UnDeRtOw00 (Feb 20, 2009)

Thanks for all the advice. Im using pittsburg ceiling flat and it flattens out ok. Haven't been having any problems with it all year till now. The weather has changed but i don't know if that is making a difference because the heat is on. Maybe humidity is doing it? it is really showing roller texture. Spray and backroll was same result. Its just getting a little frustrating because i dont' have a fix or a straight answer for the gc.


----------



## johnthepainter (Apr 1, 2008)

timhag said:


> Okay Johnny Boy!


yes, turn off the furnace, and maybe add some water to the paint.


----------



## cullybear (Mar 10, 2008)

You dont need to backroll the ceilings just use chb and crosshatch your spray pattern


----------



## Mantis (Aug 4, 2008)

If im spraying, I always backroll the last coat of my chb ceilings. The stuff is dead flat, but why risk a bad touchup flash because of no backrolling?


----------



## jack pauhl (Nov 10, 2008)

So these ceilings are smooth and never before painted? you going over bare drywall or skim coat, like level 5?


----------



## johnpaint (Sep 20, 2008)

Mantis said:


> If im spraying, I always backroll the last coat of my chb ceilings. The stuff is dead flat, but why risk a bad touchup flash because of no backrolling?


This is what I have found too.Evens out the finish.Drys faster also.Mobetta.


----------



## cullybear (Mar 10, 2008)

because its dead flat and touches up without a problem.


----------



## coastalpainting (Feb 15, 2009)

UnDeRtOw00 said:


> Hello everyone. First post and already asking for help. lol
> I've been painting for 15 years professionally and am still trying to solve the mystery behind the perfect ceiling. I've been doing alot of new homes with large long vaulted ceilings with huge windows at both ends of the room. The ceilings look good but standing at either end of the room with the glare from the windows i can see some imperfections. I just can't seem to figure out how to make them look great from all angles/lighting. i've tried many different rollers/techniques, keeping it wet and rolling clean from one side to the other with no stopping. I know im not the only one with this problem. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!!!! Thanks.


 
Primer! Primer! Primer! I am not saying I got the answer, but I have also had this problem. One thing I found out that works for me is the choice in primer. I couldn't tell you all the reasons, but its in the chemicals of the materials , aspecially the (resins) in the formula. Also the choice in sheen is a big part, never higher then velvet. I use all columbia paint products: 735 primer, premium pro for finish with a velvet sheen. Shermian willams bought columbia paint so you should be able to get some to try out. Its not the application I beleive its the products; learn your product formulas.


----------



## jcaraveo (Feb 9, 2009)

well the way to make a ceiling look good is spraying it but that is just me in Arizona that;s the way we do it but when the house has furniture and is only one room what we are painting we just make sure that the paint we use is just for interior only,because the paint that is in/ext they have some kind of sheen because of the chemical they add for durability on the outside so if u are using only for interior paint just make sure u don't dry-roll because that make a big difference so keep u roller nice and wettttt.


----------



## bikerboy (Sep 16, 2007)

Is it your imperfections or the drywall guys?

Are you doing one or two coats?

Was the drywall stored outside and got damp, or some kind of crud on it?

You said it was howing rolller texture. Is it uniform or flashing? What is wrong with the roller texture?


More info please.


----------



## Bender (Aug 10, 2008)

Dude, take a 500W halogen light and hold it next to and shine it across the ceiling. 
That will tell you if its drywall errors or painter errors.

Is undertow a reference to Tool?


----------



## jack pauhl (Nov 10, 2008)

Bender said:


> Dude, take a 500W halogen light and hold it next to and shine it across the ceiling.
> That will tell you if its drywall errors or painter errors.
> 
> Is undertow a reference to Tool?


What Bender said is excellent advice to pinpoint the issue. 

What to look for... If you have a smooth ceiling for example 8x12 and you roll the 8' width left to right moving on down the 12' length and then turn around and roll the opposite on a second coat, your own roller marks (textures) starts and stops will show through with the light you are getting from the windows.

Common scenario... basement walls. Difficult to roll for many guys, they tend to roll them in random paths due to its angle as you move down the stairs so when you get back to the top of the stairs and look down, you can see every move you made.

You mentioned you did full runs though, which leads to more of a paint or product issue as drywall imperfections should have been ruled out prior to you posting. So what I would do is jot down the batch number and tell your PPG rep about it, have him out to the job.

If the job got rolled heavily with a nappy cover like lambswool, 50/50 or the like, there is no way possible a pro doo z will fix the problem now.


----------



## UnDeRtOw00 (Feb 20, 2009)

Thanks again everyone.

Sprayed primer and 2 coats of finish (flat). Backrolled finish coats. I ruled out bad drywall as the problem I think. Im pretty sure it has something to do with the product and weather. Im in canada so its been cold here. The drywallers put up the drywall quick with only a small heater to a 3000sqft home. I don't think their mud was fully drying between coats either. I've seen alot better jobs but i've also seen worse. The problem seems to be more the paint though. I think I may try to find some CHB and apply with the furnace off. Where can i find CHB? Never heard of it or just aren't getting the acrynym. I"ve got this going on in 2 homes and can't wait solve it. 
Thanks again to all. And yes undertow is a referance to Tool.


----------



## Mantis (Aug 4, 2008)

UnDeRtOw00 said:


> Where can i find CHB? Never heard of it or just aren't getting the acrynym.


Sherwin Williams.


----------

