How many times can the ceiling be painted with acrylic paint? How to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint: choosing tools, buying paint and other consumables

Ceiling painting is still a popular option for finishing it. The use of acrylic paints helps to highlight the interior of the room. The surface can be created in a variety of colors, completing with the original skirting board.

The affordable cost of materials and ease of application make it possible to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint with your own hands. A roller and brushes are used as the main tools.

Benefits of acrylic paints

It is customary to start repair work in the room from the ceiling surface, since when painting it, there is a high probability that the paint can ruin the already pasted wallpaper or the finishing floor covering.

The most popular are acrylic-based coloring compositions. They have many positive properties, so they have taken a leading position in the modern building materials market.


Among the advantages it should be noted:

  1. Resistant to dirt.
  2. The presence of such quality as elasticity allows painting over small cracks up to 0.5 millimeters. For this reason, the paint should be applied in several layers.
  3. This colorant is UV and abrasion resistant and therefore does not change its original color over time.
  4. Acrylic paints are not afraid of moisture - the repaired surface can be washed to remove dirt. They also paint the ceiling in rooms with high humidity, namely in bathrooms and toilets.
  5. Since acrylic-based compounds are abrasion-resistant and withstand high temperatures, they are used in kitchen decoration.
  6. This type of dye composition belongs to the water-based group and therefore does not have a strong unpleasant odor.
  7. Acrylic paints are easy to apply and dry quickly.
  8. The cost of these products is available to consumers.
  9. A wide color palette is able to delight even the most demanding customers.

Selection of acrylic-based paints

Currently, experts consider the best acrylic water-based paint, for the production of which acrylic resins are used. It is characterized by increased strength and elasticity.

More affordable are compositions based on acrylic copolymers:

  • styrene acrylic;
  • acrylosilicone;
  • vinyl acrylic.

On sale, acrylic paint is represented by a wide selection of products that differ in consistency and composition. Some paints are intended for dry rooms, while others are for those with significantly increased humidity.


Manufacturers do not recommend using compounds for other purposes, for example, if it is moisture resistant, they paint the ceiling surface in the bathroom. Acrylic ceiling paint is usually sold in white, and the use of special colors helps to achieve the required shade.

Depending on the required degree of saturation, the required number of such tubes is added to the coloring composition. The trade network also has ready-made colors and shades.

Depending on the level of whiteness, acrylic compounds are:

  • white;
  • super white;
  • milky white.

Before you paint the ceiling with acrylic paint, you need to purchase the most white products. A label attached to the bucket may contain information regarding a color that differs from the actual whiteness.


Therefore, it is advisable in the store to ask the seller to slightly open the lid to compare the color of the composition with a sheet of white paper for a copier. If their whiteness is similar, then the paint can be used to paint the ceiling surface.

After complete drying, the ceiling with an acrylic surface has a glossy or matte texture. When choosing a coloring composition, you need to remember that in addition to the whiteness of the ceiling, dullness is considered another indicator of its impeccable appearance. The more it turned out, the less noticeable defects in the ceiling surface will be, which include irregularities and uneven coloring.

If you want to create a colored ceiling, it is better to use glossy compositions. But they can be chosen when the ceiling base is perfectly flat and has a significant area. Also, glossy paint is acquired when the room is uninhabited.

The highest quality among domestic and imported products is from the following companies: Svyatozar, Tikkurila, Dulux, Himaton, Himos and others.

Surface preparation for painting

Before painting the ceiling, floor and furnishings with acrylic paint, cover it with newspapers or plastic wrap so as not to get them dirty when preparing the floor for painting. Before doing this, you need to put on old clothes, a hat and rubber gloves.

Then they start cleaning the ceiling from dust and the old whitewash. To do this, a brush or roller is periodically moistened in clean warm water and carried over the entire surface of the ceiling. Work continues until the water in the container where the instruments are lowered stops becoming cloudy.


Particular attention should be paid to the joints between the ceiling and the walls. The corners are washed out with a brush. If the coating is semi-matte or glossy, then experts advise adding a little detergent to the water, and after rinsing, treat the surface with sandpaper.

If there are cracks and recesses on the ceiling, they are sealed. First, these places are opened with a spatula, cleaned and covered with putty. Further, the surface is primed to increase the degree of adhesion of the ceiling to the paint, to ensure the durability of the coating and as a prophylaxis against the formation of mold and mildew.


The main thing is to select the putty and primer so that they are compatible. Since the ceiling is painted when it is flat and smooth, the dried filler is sanded to create a roughened surface.

Before applying acrylic paint, if desired, intermediate decoration of the ceiling covering with previously prepared elements is performed. Curbs, baguettes and rosettes can be purchased in stores or made by yourself.

Stirring the coloring composition

You need to know how to dilute acrylic paint for the ceiling, since the final result depends on the correct preparation. The fact is that the thick coloring composition is not able to hide the joints of the paint stripes. The paint should be diluted with water until the consistency recommended by the manufacturer is obtained. Mix them together with a mixer.

When the instructions indicate the addition of water to the paint, its volume is usually no more than 5-10%. In some cases, it is not required to dilute the coloring composition, then the instructions simply inform about the need to mix it, but this should be done carefully.


If you plan to apply paint in one layer, then good mixing will be enough. The best option is considered to be its dilution to the consistency of milk. If there is a film on the surface, it is not necessary to mix it with the paint, since after drying it does not dissolve.

As a result of this action, the resulting composition is obtained with lumps. Experts advise to carefully remove the film, and strain all the remaining substance and only then mix. In addition, you can add antifungal components to the paint, which are highly resistant to wet cleaning.

Choosing the right tools for painting your ceiling

When making a choice of how to paint the ceiling surface, you can opt for a brush or roller. Each tool has its own characteristics. It is better to use a brush when it is necessary to paint small areas. If the plane of the ceiling is significant, then the roller is used. The technology for applying paint with a brush and a roller is different.

If a brush is selected as a tool, so that during operation the paint does not flow down on it, you can attach to its handle, below the brush is a foam roller. You need to keep it perpendicular or at a slight angle relative to the surface to be painted.


When the brush is dipped into the paint, be sure not to let the bristles touch the bottom of the container as it will deform. Taking it out, you need to knock on the edge of the can. As a result, excess dye composition will be removed from the bristles, but you cannot wipe the tool on the container.

Working with a brush, the strokes are done evenly so that the stripes are wide, then they should be shaded. The handle is kept as close to the surface as possible, and as you move, the angle of inclination is increased. When the smoothness of the surface is important, the strokes are applied by crossing. In this case, two smears are made in one area - one up and the other down.

During use, the brush is periodically rotated around its axis to avoid uneven wear on the bristles. Taking breaks when painting, the tool is not allowed to dry out, otherwise it will become rigid and unsuitable for further use.


When the work with acrylic paint is completed, the brush is thoroughly washed out so that not a drop of the coloring composition remains on it. Usually, white spirit or turpentine is used for this purpose.

Before you paint the ceiling with acrylic paint with a roller, you have to choose a tool taking into account the parameters of the ceiling surface. Its size should correspond to these values.

If you have to work with a roller, then the paint is pre-poured into the container. In a special bath, the composition should be up to half. The instrument must be completely saturated during immersion. After dipping the roller in a container with paint, it is rolled over a non-working surface, which can be, for example, a piece of wallpaper or linoleum.

This technique allows you to evenly distribute the coloring composition over the surface of the instrument, in order to obtain a uniform coating as a result. If you do not adhere to this rule, then on the overlap appear "unpainted", which form ugly spots on the already dried surface.

The application of the coloring composition begins at a distance of about one meter from the corner. The start of the work consists in distributing an abundant layer of paint over the ceiling surface.
The roller should be moved away from you. When using this tool, strokes should be placed crosswise relative to each other, as a result of which the paint layer is distributed over the surface much more evenly and there will be no noticeable traces of paint.

Acrylic paint technology

In order for the result to please for a long time, you need to familiarize yourself with the rules on how to properly paint the ceiling with acrylic paint. For example, the force with which a person presses on the brush depends on how smooth the surface is.

Light pressure will cause the composition to lie in narrow stripes, and the layers will be thick and with gaps. In turn, as a result of too strong pressure, the layers are thinner, but the formation of streaks cannot be avoided.


If the work with acrylic paint is performed for the first time, then experts recommend "training" at another facility, for example, in the country. Light pressure should be applied, increasing its degree as the coloring composition is consumed.

It is advisable to start from the corners, using a special brush, in order to paint over with high quality and not to miss even the smallest area. You also need to try to apply only one layer in one movement and not overlap the already painted areas with it. Otherwise, areas of different color will appear on the ceiling surface. You need to move in one direction.

The next layer is applied perpendicular to the first. Then the paint and joints are smoothed out, for which they are carried out along the ceiling with a brush or roller without a coloring composition. Before starting painting a second time, you need to look at the freshly painted surface from a different place.


When unpainted places are found, they are immediately corrected, and when the paint has dried, these places are designated and during the next painting they first of all eliminate the shortcomings. The main thing is not to apply thicker paint on them. The second layer is made liquid in order to blur the first one and at the same time remove defects.

Places, painted over twice, are processed using a dry roller. When the first coat is applied, wait for it to dry. In the instructions attached to the container with paint, the manufacturer indicates the time required for this. Each subsequent layer is applied after the previous one has dried.

If you put the second layer on a damp surface, then the first will be blurry. The painting will need to be repeated again, and at the end the composition is applied towards the light so that there are no joints left. The ceiling is rarely covered with just one layer of acrylic paint.


The coloring composition of imported production is applied in two layers, and Russian products - in three. After the ceiling has been painted with acrylic paint, wait approximately a couple of hours to ensure that the surface is completely repaired and has a uniform color.

When all the work has been done correctly, and the spots have appeared, you should not try to paint over them. You need to arm yourself with fine sandpaper and grind the entire ceiling plane with it. This technique will only be effective if applied no more than 1-2 layers.

If there are more of them, in this case the cost of the acrylic ceiling doubles, since the way out of this situation will be a complete rework, including the processes of grinding, filling and re-painting the surface.

The assortment of acrylic paints is striking in its variety. They differ in the type of surface obtained. There is a paint for the ceiling, acrylic matte and glossy. Compositions are produced both for rooms with a normal microclimate, and for those with high humidity. Experts do not recommend using moisture-resistant paint in dry rooms, due to its high cost.


Ceiling painting

Despite the fact that there are a lot of ways to finish the ceiling surface, painting the ceiling is still the most economical option. Hence its great popularity. In addition, doing it yourself, without using the services of specialists, is not at all a problem. Here, as in any construction and repair process, it is necessary to strictly follow the stages of work and know some of the nuances.

And since among the wide variety of paints and varnishes, acrylic analogues came out on top, it is not difficult to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint, and besides, do it yourself.

Ceiling decoration methods, where whitewash was used, disappeared into oblivion. Currently, manufacturing companies offer a huge range of products at an affordable price. With its help, you can arrange the ceiling according to your own design project.

Modern acrylic paints have high physical, technical and operational characteristics. Their main advantages are:

  • Sustainability
  • Safety
  • Odorless
  • Practicality (any dirt is perfectly washed off)
  • Vapor permeability
  • Easy to apply
  • Affordable price

The main types of paints

Answering the question, what paint to paint the ceiling, many experts unanimously say - only acrylic. Why? See above, because we have indicated its merits. To this it must be added that acrylic material can be applied in just two layers and thus cover the entire ceiling. This is a guarantee that all microcracks up to 1 millimeter wide will be closed. And the film formed on the surface of the ceiling will be elastic, but strong and will last for more than one year.

Of course, acrylic paint is not the only one used for ceiling painting. There are a number of paints and varnishes that meet modern standards and requirements. For example, silicate.

There are also silicone analogs, which also have a number of advantages. But all of them are inferior to acrylics in terms of cost, and in terms of ease of application, too. So for those who decide to decorate the ceiling in their own house or apartment using the painting method, we recommend the acrylic version. You will not go wrong.

But these types belong to the category of "facade", although they are often used for interior decoration. But in order to accurately choose the brand for the ceiling, it is best to take acrylic and latex counterparts.

The question arises - why in both cases appears the same name "acrylic paint"? The fact is that this type is found both in the category of facade materials and in the category of materials for interior work.

Facade acrylic paint has additional advantages - resistance to UV radiation and increased moisture resistance. It can be applied on both smooth and embossed surfaces.

Option for interior work

The material for interior decoration is most often applied to smooth surfaces, so its characteristics such as spreadability and minimal spatter have slightly different meanings.

Much has been said about the merits of acrylic paint, but it has one small drawback. It is possible to wet-clean ceilings painted with such material, but it is necessary to create a barrier so that water does not get on them. Otherwise, the paint will be washed out. In addition, the correct painting of the ceiling with acrylic is a white color and a high hiding power. It does not need to be tinted.

But for the walls, another version of acrylic paint is also suitable, in which you can add color. This will create rich colors. In addition, such paint must be resistant to abrasion.

There are also highly specialized acrylic paints on the market, for example, for covering surfaces with grease stains, traces of soot and others.

Deep matte latex paint based on acrylic copolymer

Why do we disassemble acrylic paint so carefully? The fact is that in hardware stores you will be faced with a huge choice, which will be difficult for you to understand. But you can't be wrong - choose exactly the paint for the ceiling if you are finishing the ceiling, and for the walls if you are covering them.

And a little about such a process as latex paint painting.
The latex version has almost the same properties and qualities as the acrylic one. But he has one advantage. Latex materials can be applied in a thin layer to ensure quality and efficiency.

Very important! When buying paint in a store, acrylic or another brand, you must first of all pay attention not to the amount of material in the container, but to the consumption rate per square meter of the treated surface.

Process of finishing the ceiling with acrylic paint

Surface preparation

So how do you paint your ceiling with acrylic paint?

To begin with, any repair process, and even such as painting ceilings, must be carried out strictly in stages.

Stage one - preparing the ceiling

It is necessary to remove all old finishing materials from the ceiling surface, up to the concrete floor slab. Then repair all its defects - cracks, grooves and chips. For this, you can use a putty solution.

After that, the ceiling is primed again and waited for drying. Then a thin sanding layer of putty is applied, which, after drying, must be finalized with fine sandpaper. And again, the ceiling must be primed, after which the preparatory stage can be considered complete.

Correct painting

The second stage is painting

The first step is to paint the corners of the room with a brush, which is dipped in the paint on half of the pile, squeeze out excess material and apply with a strip 3-5 centimeters wide. But the rest of the area is best painted with a roller or spray gun.

Painting the ceiling with a roller is the easiest and most affordable way. But here you have to take into account some of the nuances of the process itself:

  1. Do not dip the entire roller into the paint - this way you can avoid smudges. You just need to roll it on the tray, where you pour some material in advance. The most important thing is that the paint is evenly distributed over the roller.
  2. Please note that you should not paint on the ceiling in a thick and thick layer. This can cause wrinkling or bleeding.

  3. It is best to apply stripes along the room. Be sure to check how well the surface is painted over. To do this, periodically inspect the ceiling from different sides and at different angles. This refers to the question of how to paint a ceiling without stripes.
  4. In the process of staining, it is necessary to observe some measures that affect the quality of the work carried out. First, there are drafts. They are simply unacceptable. Secondly, a constant and uniform temperature regime. Pay attention to the instructions on the package. In it you will always find at what temperature it is best to paint.
  5. Do not paint frozen structures under any circumstances.

The result of work done correctly

Of course, ideal if you paint the ceiling with a spray gun or vacuum cleaner. In this case, the material falls on the surface evenly, and the consumption is significantly reduced. And this is the economic side of the issue. But, as practice shows, these two devices are not always available. And besides, not everyone can use them, so a roller is the best option.

Which acrylic paint is better to choose

The modern paint and varnish market offers a huge assortment. Here are both domestic and foreign counterparts. There are actually plenty to choose from. It is impossible to say that some paint from one manufacturer is better than another. But among the large number of proposals today, acrylic paint from the Polish company "Snezhka" stands out. This is an excellent material with all the necessary properties and qualities. Painting with a snowball is a pleasure. The paint lays down evenly, without smudges and lasts a long time.

The easiest and most inexpensive way to tidy up the ceiling, give it freshness and beauty, is to paint it. You can cover the ceiling with chalk whitewash, or you can apply a more resistant and durable dye to it, which can be washed on occasion. How to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint with your own hands, read on this page.

Ceiling paints

Acrylic paint is the most suitable material for whitewashing because it hides small cracks as much as possible and masks minor defects. It is enough to apply such paint in two layers and the ceiling will noticeably change. Due to its structure, acrylic pigment has high adhesion, which gives the coating greater strength.

Acrylic paint for interior use can be diluted with any pigment and select the most suitable color and shade for the room. If dirt accidentally gets on the ceiling, it can be washed off with a damp sponge and soapy water. Acrylic paint is applied to the ceiling with a fine-bristled cloth roller, and in hard-to-reach places with a regular brush.

True, this paint also has disadvantages. First of all, it should be noted that if the room is in an area with a very humid climate, then acrylic dye will not work for the ceiling. A layer of such paint does not allow steam and moisture to pass through. Latex paints are suitable for such conditions.

The second drawback is the high price compared to water-based and paints. However, the masking properties of acrylic are worth the money and if you have a choice, then do not skimp on practical, painted acrylic ceilings.

Ceiling painting technology

To begin with, you need to clearly understand the procedure for performing painting work:

  • Removing the old whitewash from the ceiling surface
  •  Leveling of large drops, filling gaps and large cracks
  •  Priming the ceiling surface
  •  Painting the ceiling area with a roller and a brush in hard-to-reach places

Painting ceilings with acrylic paint begins with removing the old coating. If this is a chalky whitewash, then it is washed out with a warm, soapy solution. To do this, the entire surface of the ceiling is pre-moistened and after 10-15 minutes (until the solution has dried) the chalk is washed off with a sponge.

It's important to know! Blur the chalky whitewash down to the concrete base of the ceiling. There should be no chalk islands. If necessary, remove them with a metal spatula.

It is very easy to remove chalk from the ceiling, but water-based paint is another matter. This coating is more difficult to remove. The ceiling must be moistened with water not once, but at least 3-4 times. At the same time, a draft is arranged in the room. Old paint will soon begin to swell and must be removed from the ceiling with a spatula.

You will have to work hard, but preparation for an acrylic ceiling is a mandatory step. Be sure to cover the floor with plastic wrap before washing out the chalk or removing water-based paint. This will allow you to quickly clean the room in the future.

After removing the old coating, it is possible to expose old and new cracks. Especially it is worth paying attention to the tile joints of the floor slabs. It is recommended to examine them, and remove the swellings and detachments with a spatula. Large cracks (more than 1-2 mm) should be widened with a spatula "to open up"

After that, cracks and crevices are primed with deep penetration soil. After it dries, the defects are putty with plaster putty. As an affordable and high-quality material, you can use the "Starting" and "Finishing" putty of the German company Knauf.

Important to remember! Large defects (layer 5 mm thick) are first putty with soft and elastic "Start" putty, and then the treatment is completed with a strong "Finish".

Ceiling drops from 2 to 5 mm are also putty. If this is not done, then after applying the paint in natural light, the defect will appear. Finish the putty by grouting all defective (putty) areas with an abrasive mesh and applying a primer.

Before painting the ceiling with acrylic paint, you will need a plastic paint tray. One part of it has a ribbed surface for better wringing of the roller. As working tools, a wide and narrow cloth roller with fine nap and a telescopic handle, a narrow brush, masking tape, a container with warm water and a sponge.

Note! If necessary, acrylic paint for the ceiling can be diluted with water, but this should be done strictly according to the instructions on the package.

If you add too much water, the paint will lose its ductility and adhesion properties. In terms of density, the paint should resemble a liquid jelly. To protect the surface of the walls from acrylic dye, you can paste over the contour around the perimeter with masking tape.

When the acrylic ceiling paint is opened, it should be thoroughly mixed. After that, it is poured into a cuvette and, first of all, the areas where the roller cannot reach with a brush is painted (corners, behind the pipes). This is very important because if you do the opposite, even brush strokes will clearly indicate the edges of the tint, which will ruin the look.

If everything is done correctly, the pile of the roller will retouch the brush strokes and the boundaries of the layers will not be visible. When the problem areas are painted, you can start whitewashing the main area. It is convenient to start painting with a narrow roller near the walls. Subsequent strips are applied with a wide roller.

The first layer of paint is applied perpendicular to the wall in which the window is located. The roller is dipped in paint and squeezed slightly against the ribbed part of the cuvette. Stripes of paint are applied with a slight overlap of 5-6 cm on the previous strip. In this case, the direction does not change and gaps cannot be allowed. The procedure is repeated until the paint covers the entire ceiling.

When the last stroke of the first coat has been taken, a second coat of dye can be applied starting from any corner of the window. It is important to remember that it is applied perpendicular to the first layer. All operations are absolutely identical to those for the first layer. The acrylic ceiling is ready, now it must be allowed to dry thoroughly and protected from dust.

There are many types of interior paints. Depending on the constituent components, the dye has certain properties. Among all types of dyes, one of the most popular is acrylic water-based paint. It costs a little more than a traditional aqueous emulsion, but it has a wide variety of shades and textures. Acrylic ceiling paint can be used in rooms for various purposes, because it is resistant to temperature extremes and high humidity. We will tell you how to choose the right type of acrylic mixture, as well as how to properly paint the ceiling with a roller with acrylic paint.

Types of acrylic paints

The most popular are acrylic emulsions, which are a type of water-based emulsion formulations. They use acrylic resins as an additional component. Such mixtures are characterized by high covering power and elasticity.

On sale you can find several subspecies of these dyes:

  • acrylic silicone;
  • vinyl acrylic;
  • water-dispersive;
  • styrene acrylic.

Depending on the consistency and composition, certain varieties are used for painting surfaces in rooms with high or normal humidity. In addition, there are white acrylic mixtures on sale that can be tinted in the desired shade by adding liquid pigments, and color compositions.

According to the type of coating, acrylic mixtures are available with a matte and glossy texture. Please note that matte coatings hide minor defects in the base, and glossy ones emphasize the slightest imperfections, therefore, they require careful alignment and preparation of the base ceiling. However, glossy light coatings can visually increase the height of the room and look more advantageous in different colors, which is convenient when zoning a room.

Important! All acrylic dyes differ in composition, density, operational and decorative characteristics, so you need to carefully read the manufacturer's recommendations on the packaging.

Pros and cons of acrylic paints

Painting the ceiling with acrylic paint provides the following benefits:

  1. The paint layer cures quickly. The elastic film dries up within a couple of hours.
  2. The coating is resistant to mechanical stress and intense friction. It does not absorb contamination.
  3. Good hiding power, due to which the coating hides small defects in the base and cracks up to 2 mm wide. However, glossy mixtures only highlight all the disadvantages.
  4. The paint does not support combustion and does not emit harmful substances during application and drying. It does not fade under ultraviolet rays.
  5. The paint coating is resistant to temperature and humidity changes, so it can be used in the bathroom and in the kitchen.
  6. The surface is easy to maintain. It can be wiped with a damp sponge without the use of abrasive detergents
  7. Water-based acrylic composition, if necessary, diluted with water, easy to apply and does not smell. For application, you can use brushes, paint roller or spray gun.
  8. A large selection of ready-made colors, textures, as well as the ability to tint white paint at your discretion allows you to choose a shade to match the color of the interior.
  9. Acrylic dyes can be used to paint wood, concrete, stone, drywall and plaster substrates.

Environmental friendliness and the absence of organic components in the composition, which can contribute to the appearance of mold and rot, are considered additional advantages of these paints.

Important! The only drawback of acrylic compounds is associated with their price, which is higher than that of conventional water-based emulsions, and is $ 4 per liter. But such a rather big cost pays off with an impressive service life.

Surface preparation for painting

Before you paint the ceiling with acrylic paint, you need to prepare everything you need for work:

  • stepladder;
  • long-handled roller and brushes for working in hard-to-reach places;
  • paint tray;
  • a set of spatulas;
  • sandpaper or metal brush to clean the ceiling from old finishes;
  • masking tape;
  • plastic wrap to protect the floor;
  • primer;
  • putty;
  • acrylic paint;
  • grouting grid.


The foundation preparation process is as follows:

  1. First, the ceiling is cleaned of old finishes. The whitewash is washed off with soapy water or cleaned off with a spatula. Old wallpaper is well moistened and also cleaned with a spatula. The foam tile is peeled off along with the glue. Moisture resistant paints are washed off with a special solvent. It is important to thoroughly clean the ceiling to the bottom.
  2. After that, the ceiling surface is well washed with clean water and allowed to dry. If there are stains from rust, mold, oils or resins, then they are removed with antiseptics, solvents or burned out with a gas burner.
  3. The surface is leveled with plaster putty. All holes, cracks, cracks are filled with mortar, and irregularities are smoothed out with a layer of putty.
  4. After the solution has dried, the surface is sanded, cleaned of dust and primed twice.

Also, at the preparatory stage, you need to glue the surfaces of the walls near the ceiling with masking tape, which can get dirty with paint. The floor is covered with plastic wrap.

Paint preparation

As a rule, before painting the ceiling with acrylic paint with your own hands, you need to prepare a coloring composition. Usually, it is recommended to add water to water-based dyes in an amount of not more than 10% of the total volume. After that, the composition is mixed well.

If the can has been opened earlier, then a frozen film may form on the surface of the mixture. It must be carefully removed and thrown away, but not mixed with the total mass. It is also recommended to strain previously used paint to get rid of lumps and debris, which often precipitates.

For use in a room with high humidity in order to protect the surface from fungal and bacterial damage, it is recommended to add some antiseptics to the coloring agent. After that, the mixture is thoroughly mixed.

Important! Before using in a spray gun, any paint is well filtered through several layers of gauze.

Roller selection

Now let's figure out which roller to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint. A roller with a long handle is suitable for painting the ceiling surface. Thanks to this, work can be carried out without using a ladder. When it comes to drum width, choose a tool with an average working surface.

Care should be taken to select the drum cover. The quality of the paint coating depends on the correct choice of tool. For painting the ceiling with an acrylic water-based composition, it is recommended to use a roller with a coating with a short or medium length woolen or synthetic bristle. Long-haired rollers will spray heavily on liquid paint and leave streaks on the surface.

Staining technology

Painting of ceilings with acrylic paint with a roller is performed in the following sequence:

  1. Pour the paint into a tray with a horizontal ribbed surface.
  2. To begin with, using a brush, paint over the joint of walls and ceiling, as well as hard-to-reach places, for example, behind the risers of water supply and heating pipes.
  3. After that, paint the main surface of the ceiling with a roller. Dip the tool in a tray with paint and roll it over the ribbed surface to evenly distribute the paint and squeeze out excess.
  4. We paint the ceiling, making a backward-forward motion with a roller in one direction. Apply the first layer of paint perpendicular to the window opening in the room. We do not take long breaks from work so that no streaks remain on the surface. We periodically inspect the ceiling from different angles, highlighting it with a carrier. So the unpainted areas are clearly visible.
  5. After that, let the ceiling dry completely. It is recommended to adhere to the drying time indicated by the manufacturer on the paint package. If the temperature and humidity conditions in the room differ from the conditions recommended by the manufacturer, then the drying times may not correspond to those stated.
  6. When the paint is dry, paint the ceiling a second time. In this case, the direction of movement with the tool is changed to mutually perpendicular, that is, we paint along the window in the room.
  7. A third coat of paint can be applied if necessary.

Important! If you are interested in professional painting of ceilings with acrylic paint with a roller, the price of work per square meter is 2-4 dollars.

Can the whitewashed ceiling be painted?

Of course, professional craftsmen do not recommend painting the ceiling surface without washing off the old whitewash. But in some cases this is acceptable. We must say right away that any chalky whitewash must be unambiguously washed off, because by its properties it is loose and fragile.

If there is lime whitewash on the ceiling, then it can be painted without washing off the whitewash layer. This can be done only if the whitewash firmly adheres to the base, does not crumble, does not crack and does not move away from the base ceiling together with the plaster.

Now let's figure out how to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint after whitewashing. Before starting work, the base must be primed with a deep penetration solution. Moreover, this must be done twice, giving time for the first layer to dry. The primer will bind small particles of whitewash and make the substrate strong and not so loose to improve adhesion to the paint. After the primer has dried, the surface is painted with acrylic paint in compliance with the technology.

If you still do not understand how to paint the ceiling with acrylic paint with your own hands, the video instruction will help you clearly understand the process of performing the work.

One of the most difficult stages of a home renovation that every home craftsman faces is finishing the ceiling. The lime or chalk whitewashing that was widely used until recently is now used quite rarely. This is explained by the fact that the initially snow-white ceiling becomes dirty over time and takes on an unsightly appearance.

In addition, such a finish requires a significant amount of labor to prepare the surface for the topcoat. Painting the ceiling with acrylic paint retains its attractive appearance much longer, and maintenance of such a finish is not particularly difficult. The repairs are quick and easy, and the paint can be done by hand.

A perfectly painted ceiling has a completely monotone surface

Preparing to repair the ceiling

The beautifully painted ceiling is shown in the photo. To paint the ceiling without streaks, you need to prepare well for the work. First of all, you should free the room as much as possible from interfering furnishings. Then you need to carefully remove the old finish from the ceiling surface.

After that, it must be qualitatively leveled, removing all significant elevation differences. At the final stage of preparation, a layer of primer is applied to the coating to improve the adhesion of the paint to the base and more economical consumption. The following materials and tools will be required:

  • step ladder and film for covering interior items;
  • spatula and paint roller or wide brush;
  • sanding machine and sandpaper;
  • primer and putty;
  • goggles, respirator and tight work suit;
  • a container with water and a lantern.

By illuminating with a flashlight, you can easily identify the existing irregularities in the coating. It is most convenient to moisten the surface with a spray gun or a paint roller, and apply a primer with a wide brush. The use of a stepladder makes the work much easier. Spray gun helps to paint without streaks.

Painting the ceiling with your own hands will help reduce the cost of repair work.

Room preparation

Painting the ceiling surface with acrylic paint requires preparatory measures. The room should be prepared for the appearance of a simply amazing amount of dirt and fine dust that occurs when removing the old coating. Upholstered furniture can be hopelessly damaged by scattered pieces of limestone and chalk dust soaked in dirty water. As a result, sofas, armchairs and other furniture must be removed from the room.


It is very convenient to close walls and furniture with a special film

Sometimes, for some reason, it can be difficult to do this, in this case you should cover all the interior items remaining in the room with a waterproof film. You can fix it with wide tape, which can be easily removed later.

Chandeliers and other lighting fixtures are dismantled from the surface of the ceiling, to prevent a short circuit, the supply voltage is removed from the electrical wires, which is especially important in the bathroom. Careful preparation helps to paint without streaks.

Removing the old coating

The method of removing the old coating depends on what kind of finishing material was used previously. The easiest way is to remove the whitewash with chalk: it is washed off with a soft sponge soaked in water. If difficulties arise in this process, you have to scrape off the coating with a metal spatula.

To begin with, a kilogram of table salt is dissolved in a bucket of warm water, and the area of \u200b\u200bthe ceiling to be cleaned is moistened with a spray bottle, a wide brush or roller. After waiting until the whitewash is soaked, it is scraped off with a spatula, to which it is useful to screw a scoop with a wire, where crumbling dirt will collect.


The most noticeable irregularities are cleaned with a spatula

In some cases, wallpaper or foam tiles are used to finish the ceiling. Wet wallpaper peels off easily, and foam tiles break off easily. In the latter case, it is better to scrape off the remnants of the glue with a metal spatula; the use of chemicals can lead to injuries of the skin and visual organs. Soot spots on the surface are removed by washing with water mixed with soda, rust spots are treated with copper sulfate.

Putty and leveling

After cleaning the surface of the ceiling, it is visually inspected to detect irregularities in the coating. Large-sized cracks are closed with a reinforcing mesh, the depressions are filled with putty and smoothed with a spatula, the protrusions are cut off.

The seams between the concrete slabs and the joints between the ceiling and the walls are tapped in order to detect voids, which are also filled with putty. After thorough leveling of the surface, a primer is applied to it with a brush-brush in two layers.

A composition with antiseptic properties is well suited, which prevents the further development of pathogenic microflora. For high-quality drying of the primer, it is important to maintain the correct mode of positive temperatures in the room from five to thirty degrees Celsius.


Leveling the ceiling with putty

The final leveling of the surface before covering the ceiling with water-based paint is achieved by applying a putty. Its first layer is located in the transverse direction of the primer coating, the second - transversely to the first. By illuminating the surface to be treated with a lantern, it is easy to detect and eliminate even minor elevation differences that will obscure nearby areas.

After drying, the roughness of the coating is cleaned off with sandpaper. In the bathroom, the putty should be applied especially carefully. Painted concrete will serve for a long time with high-quality preparation of the base. In the bathroom, the painted ceiling is exposed to a rather aggressive effect.

When is a good brush and the better is a roller

For high-quality performance of painting work, both brushes and rollers are used. The brush is good for painting corners, joints of mating surfaces, heating batteries, pipe networks and other similar elements. It is convenient to carry out lime whitewashing with a large brush-brush, it is somewhat difficult to use a roller when working with such material.

The roller is best used when working on large areas: the larger the surface, the more effective its application. This is true for flat surfaces; curved objects of complex configuration cannot be painted with a roller.


Standard set for painting the ceiling

The specified tool can be used while standing in one place, making forward and backward movements with a long handle, which is important in case of difficult access to the treated surface. The paint is applied evenly, without visually noticeable strokes, and this is difficult to achieve with a brush. Painting the ceiling surface with a roller gives good results.

The choice of the roller is a separate question

The choice of the roller is a question that requires separate consideration. This tool is available in a wide variety of sizes to handle various surface features. There are also corner rolls that have a working coating on the end part, which is necessary when processing corners. A fur coat is called a covering of the working part; it is made of the following materials:

  • felt or velor;
  • foam rubber or mohair;
  • natural fur or polymers.

When using a roller when working, it must be borne in mind that the longer the pile of his fur coat, the greater the consumption of paint and varnish material.

It is much faster and easier to work with a roller, since it takes up several times more paint than an ordinary brush.
Rollers are very different in size and quality

To cover the ceiling with acrylic paint, a roller with a fur coat made of synthetics is better suited, while the coating will turn out to be even and without streaks. You can work with oil-based paints with almost any type of this tool. It is undesirable to only use a foam rubber coat, as this material deteriorates under the influence of solvents that make up oil paints.

Which water-based paint is better

Before going to the store, you need to decide which paint is better to paint the ceiling. In the modern construction market, there is a huge selection of paints based on water emulsion. They contain pigment and polymer components dissolved in water. Depending on the active substance, the following types of water-based paints are distinguished:

  • containing liquid glass (silicate);
  • highly resistant to moisture (acrylic);
  • resistant to aggressive chemical media (latex);
  • notable for its versatility (silicone);
  • inexpensive (polyvinyl acetate).

Several representatives of ceiling paints

To decide which water-based paint is better in each specific case, you can compare their technical characteristics. It should be based on the correspondence of the price and quality of this type of paints and varnishes.

Acrylic paint color and tinting

Acrylic paints are available in a standard color palette. To obtain the desired shade, their tinting is used. It is a procedure for mixing paint and coloring pigments to obtain the desired shade of paint and varnish material.

Tinting is used when a cosmetic repair is necessary, if part of the coating is swollen or peeled off, in case of a lack of paint to complete the entire amount of work or the need to create a color palette in harmony with the environment.


When tinting, the paint is thoroughly mixed

Coloring pigments, so-called colorants, are added to acrylic paint, made in the form of dry mixtures, paste or the same paint. They can be based on organic or inorganic origin, organic gives more saturated colors, but they are unstable to ultraviolet radiation. Inorganic colorants have good resistance to aggressive environmental influences, but the resulting colors are less vibrant.

If we paint on whitewash

Previously, whitewash was widely used to finish the surface of the ceiling. If it is necessary to apply paint over it, certain conditions must be met. The whitewash should be applied in a thin layer that does not crack. Otherwise, whitewash particles may start to flake off during painting.


Ceiling primer is like butter that can't spoil porridge

The check is carried out by applying a deeply penetrating layer of primer to the whitewashed surface. After it dries, the control area is wetted with water, and if the coating does not peel off, paint can be applied over the whitewash.

Water-based paint will stay on the ceiling for a very long time if the whitewash layer underneath has good adhesion to the surface, and there are no bumps and cracks.

Of course, the use of a primer is mandatory if the painting is not done with the material that was previously applied. In this case, the composition of the soil is determined by the choice of the topcoat.

How to paint correctly with a roller

Compliance with some simple rules will help to paint the ceiling with a roller. Before starting the bulk of the work, paint over the corners and joints of ceilings and walls with a brush. Then a little paint is poured into the paint tray, a roller is dipped into it, the excess from the fur coat is removed on the ribbed part of the tray.


When painting the ceiling, it is important to sit on a comfortable staircase

The first layer should be applied from the window opening in the direction perpendicular to the incidence of sunlight, and the second layer is applied after the first has dried in the transverse direction. Thus, it is possible to avoid the appearance of weakly stained areas, imperceptible at first glance, but which will appear over time. You should start work early in the morning, as the sun's rays at this time highlight all the irregularities well. Small defects of the dried coating found during visual inspection are cleaned with fine-grained emery cloth.

You can work with a spray gun

You can paint the ceiling by working with a spray gun. Its application greatly speeds up and facilitates the process compared to using a paint roller. When preparing the tool for use, the spray gun is directed to the side and, releasing excess pressure in the system, they ensure that the emerging paint is applied in a uniform and thin layer.


When using a spray gun, it is easy to ensure an even color of the ceiling

The surface of the ceiling is divided into several sections and their sequential painting is performed, while the paint stream is directed strictly vertically. The sprayer is held at a distance of thirty to fifty centimeters from the surface, the meter section is covered in approximately five seconds.

It is necessary to maintain a uniform pace of work, a delay of the nozzle at one point will lead to the formation of an excessively thick layer of paint flowing down. The first layer is applied in the direction transverse to the incidence of sunlight, the second - in the longitudinal direction. To form a high-quality painted surface when using a spray gun, three layers of paint and varnish should be applied. Each subsequent layer is applied after the previous one has completely dried.

Little tricks

Little tricks in the work will help to qualitatively paint the ceiling. So, the finishing layer of paint and varnish material is applied in the direction of incidence of natural light rays, this makes the joints of adjacent layers invisible.

If a local, incompletely painted area of \u200b\u200bthe surface is found, it will have to be completely covered with a new layer of paint; attempts to paint over only the defective area will lead to the appearance of clearly distinguishable spots. Visual inspection from different angles of view helps to identify such areas.


Pattern of movements when painting the ceiling

In no case should you try to neglect the application of the primer coat. Such attempts to save money will lead to the fact that the paint that has poorly adhered to the base will soon simply crumble. You should not hesitate when applying paint, unjustified delays will lead to the fact that the dried material will begin to stick to the paint roller coat, and the work will have to be started anew. An excessively thick layer of applied paint can be brought back to normal by running a dry roller over it, while the pile on his fur coat will absorb the excess.