respackeling my cieling

Rowley,

If the popcorn has not been painted over, it removes fairly easily, if somewhat messily. The popcorn is nothing more than dryed chalk which will readily absorb water and soften. It can then be scraped off with a wide bladed spackle knife.

If it has been painted over, the process is much slower. Water will still slowly penetrate most paints, especially flat latex paints. An area must be repeatedly  sprayed with water until it can again be scraped. Some people report good results using a wallpaper remover steamer to help loosen the popcorn.

Either way, it is a messy operation. You will have to completely cover the floor with plastic to catch the falling popcorn and the water which has been sprayed around.

After the popcorn has been removed, the ceiling can either be sanded or wiped down with a sponge and water to smooth the residue. Any knicks made in the ceiling should then be spackled and sanded. The whole ceiling should then be primed and painted.

I neglected to mention the option of texturing the ceiling with a more contemporary "orange peel" or "knockdown" application. These are best applied with professional type spray equipment from a rental store. The texturing would be done after the ceiling has been patched.. Texturing does not hide bad imperfections. After the texture has dried, it is then primed and painted.

Thank you for your help I also have a question about before putting knockdown on the question is do I have to use some kind of primer before putting it on