Problems with painting ceiling

[DIYAmateur]

Dear DIY forum,

I recently repainted my ceiling in the dining room at home, but have ended up with a number of ‘shadows’ . It’s difficult to explain but it doesn’t look like a smooth, even surface. It looks a bit uneven. I have gone over it twice now. Would it help if I used a very fine sander to make it look smoother? Any advice would be appreciated.

So far I have found ceilings are harder to paint and show more imperfections than vertical walls which I find easier to paint

Thank you

 

[MarineBob]

My experience with ceiling painting: Years ago, I never had any problems making it look good. Now, Maybe its my imagination, but I think the low VOC paint or for whatever reason, dries quickly and I have found that I pay a lot of attention to keeping a wet edge. Seems like its harder to do than back in the day. (30-40 yrs ago) On a couple of jobs I did, I had that same impression as you describe and since, I pay close attention to not letting any edge dry (sometimes hard to do). And I think I have to put paint on thicker than I sort of feel is necessary for coverage but needed to avoid the sploches. I might be nuts, my wife would confirm, but that's my experience.

 

[DIYAmateur]

Thank you very, very much. I think you have a point…. it could also be that I am an amateur, but trying my best!

 

[zaydenwood]

Hi,

When you have the tools ready, it is time to prep your ceiling. Make sure that you do a once-over, checking the surface of the ceiling for any damage. Whether you have just bought the home or have lived there for years, it is possible for holes, cracks, and other blemishes to arise.

With spackle or putty, you should go around and make sure that you have repaired the ceiling plaster. Unless your ceiling is truly in horrible shape, this should be a process that doesn’t take all that long to complete. And you will be covering all of the patches at the end, too.
Is your ceiling looking more yellow than white? After years of wear, this just happens. Brighten your ceilings with a fresh coat of paint. If you want to change a popcorn ceiling to a knockdown.