General Contractors

[Xander]

I closed on my property 2 weeks ago, and have been trying to get a contractor in to work on my ceilings for 4 weeks now. Still no luck.

My building requires all contractors be insured, and that has been the largest hurdle. Does anyone know if there's a directory somewhere listing insured contractors and reviews on the work they've done? I want to move in already! :p

[WorkInProgress]

Ads in the yellow pages don't list whether they're licensed/bonded/insured?

[old_school_soul]

What's wrong with your ceilings?

[Xander]

Ads in the yellow pages don't list whether they're licensed/bonded/insured?
Yes, but then I don't have a gauge of quality of work.

What's wrong with your ceilings?
They're popcorned. :frustrate

[old_school_soul]

Yes, but then I don't have a gauge of quality of work.


They're popcorned. :frustrate


That's usually the sign of a leak.. Are you on the top floor? If the leak is fixed, all you need is some drywall mud and sand paper to smooth it out.. scrape off the bubble, apply the drywall mud, let dry, sand, paint. Easy work.

[wordsmith]

Xander - my dad is a contractor, but not in the metro area. I do have the ability to get some reliable contacts on the north side, though, if you're interested.

[Xander]

That's usually the sign of a leak.. Are you on the top floor? If the leak is fixed, all you need is some drywall mud and sand paper to smooth it out.. scrape off the bubble, apply the drywall mud, let dry, sand, paint. Easy work.
I actually am on the top floor, but I meant popcorn ceilings, like the entire ceiling looks like cottage cheese. That was really big in the 70s, apparently, because it was cheap and easy. But I hate it, so... it has to go.

words, if you can find an insured contractor for downtown who's willing to remove popcorn ceilings (a lot of people don't want the work) I'm all ears! Thanks very much.

[wordsmith]

Hah, I thought that's what you meant by popcorn...it's just a styrofoam coating blown onto the ceiling to texturize it (and usually camouflage cracks in plaster or poorly done seams and/or nail pops in sheetrock). At my current apartment, in the spare room, they not only did it to the ceiling, but TO THE WALLS. It's the reason I didn't make that room my bedroom. I'm not sure the process for removal. I may know who to put you in touch with.

[WorkInProgress]

If wordsy's contact doesn't pan out, you could call up and ask for references. Clearly not as good as a person from your network, but still a possibilty, I'd think.

Have you asked your real estate agent?

[capella]

What's wrong with popcorn ceilings? My whole house has popcorn ceilings. :?: How often do you look at the ceiling? I guess to each his own or something.

[old_school_soul]

Hah, i thought you were referring to the bubble things that form when the drywall gets wet sometimes :).

[TinyDancer]

What's wrong with popcorn ceilings? My whole house has popcorn ceilings. :?: How often do you look at the ceiling? I guess to each his own or something.
Poporn ceilings are considered "out". . . I've heard it can deter people from buying because it's dated. If you watch HGTV, A&E, and TLC, you'll often hear people complaining about places with popcorn ceilings.

People still bought my last place even though the lower level was popcorn though. . . so whatevs.

[Xander]

What's wrong with popcorn ceilings? My whole house has popcorn ceilings. :?: How often do you look at the ceiling? I guess to each his own or something.
It's just personal preference, but I know that was a big negative when deciding to buy the place, so I just factored in the cost of removal into the purchase price (purchase price + removal = real price). I did the same thing with the carpet, which I don't like as well. So there's nothing wrong with it... I just don't think it looks good.

And any contractor is appreciated. I'm meeting with a guy today, but he's talking about covering it up, instead of removing it... It's easy to remove, so we'll see. I'd do it, but I don't have time.

[wordsmith]

Just from what I know from work my dad has done, I'm betting that covering it over is the less expensive/time and labor-intensive option, between covering it and removing it.

[Xander]

Hmm.. that's what I figured. But I'm willing to pay more to get it removed. Or, if it's not much more, just remove the damn drywall and put new ones up. I guess I should wait for the quote today. After I meet with the contractor, I'm going to start tearing up the carpet and fixing the drywall cracks on the wall (the inspector said the building is settling, but I think it's just a really bad drywall job).

[EmberMae]

My cousin works for a company called angie's list (www.angieslist.com) that has contractor listings & reviews. I'm not sure about the insured thing.

[embrassezla]

I'm no fan of the popcorn ceilings either, but I've read about removing them (almost bought a house with em too), and it supposed to be a fairly easy DIY - it should just scrape off. Try googling.

[wordsmith]

Yeah, the only thing is, they're often put up to disguise flaws or subpar plastering or drywalling jobs. So once you scrape them off, you may find more cosmetic damage.

[WorkInProgress]

Yeah, the only thing is, they're often put up to disguise flaws or subpar plastering or drywalling jobs. So once you scrape them off, you may find more cosmetic damage.

Yep. That's why the previous owners of my parents' house had them put in before they listed it.

[embrassezla]

Yep. That's why the previous owners of my parents' house had them put in before they listed it.
I hate that kind of sneaky sh!t homeowners do.

[WorkInProgress]

I hate that kind of sneaky sh!t homeowners do.

It wasn't sneaky. They told my parents straight up. And it was just covering up cosmetic stuff. Sure, they could have refinished all the ceilings flat, but that's more expensive, more time consuming, etc. So they just popcorned it. I don't particularly care for it, but in this particular house (if I owned it, which I don't), I probably wouldn't go through the trouble of taking it down.