# Painting basement ceiling



## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

I removed the old ceiling tiles down to bare rafters, ran wire and installed six recessed light cans. Tonight I plan on running speaker wire in the rafters, then I plan on using an air compressor to blow all the webs and dust out of the rafters. Once that's done, I'd like to move onto painting the ceiling black. What do you guys recommend I use for primer and paint? I plan on using a paint sprayer, so maybe Glidden? I haven't sprayed before, but I'm sure regular paint used for rolling would be too thick for the sprayer, right? Any tips you have would be much appreciated. thanks


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

Use a quality latex primer tinted to a 50-60 percent gray or purchased that way. 

From experience, paint tinted black does not hold up so well as it requires so much added pigment into just a deep tint base. You will probably have to order a factory mixed flat (I assume?) black of some kind. Your paint store can help with this. 

I forget what it was, but my Ben Moore supplier recommended a cheap, flat black, factory mix product they sell a lot of for ceilings and I used for galleries at one time. I would not even swear it was a Ben Moore product. PM me and I will call the old store and ask them if you want me too. It has been stuck up there for 7-8 years now, close to tons of halogen fixtures with no problems. It was thin stuff and went on rather sloppy but was latex. I should think it would be a breeze to spray on. My client didn't listen to me and tried to use it on some pedestals once and while the finish had a nice velvety look? Everything that touched it scuffed it up instantly.


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## tpolk (Nov 7, 2009)

in commercial use on jobs i did they would use what is called a dry fall black paint . It would spray on wet and by the time it hit the floor it was sweepable dust so no over spray worries


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

Thanks sdsester, but I think I got it figured out. I'll definitely do the 50-60% primer, that's a great idea. 

tpolk- I talked to my old employer last night and he told me about that same stuff. I think I might take that route, though it doesn't really matter if I get paint on the tiles since I'm replacing all of them. Then again, don't want to be tracking wet paint throughout the house. I'll have to look into that dry fall black paint. Do you know who carries it? I think my ex-employer told me Sherwin Williams. Thanks


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## tpolk (Nov 7, 2009)

not sure who has it. we always used it when the area above the drop ceiling was the return air plenum. all mechanical above grills was bly, pretty neat illusion


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

tpolk said:


> not sure who has it. we always used it when the area above the drop ceiling was the return air plenum. all mechanical above grills was bly, pretty neat illusion


As opposed to regular paints, is it any different, as far as cleaning the sprayer when I'm done? Is it more difficult or about the same to clean the lines?


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## tpolk (Nov 7, 2009)

I dont remember the painters jumping thru any new hoops to clean tho i seem to remember they used a HVLP sprayer. paint store will know and can prob rent sprayer setup


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

tpolk said:


> I dont remember the painters jumping thru any new hoops to clean tho i seem to remember they used a HVLP sprayer. paint store will know and can prob rent sprayer setup


Great, thanks for the tips.


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## mazzonetv (Feb 25, 2009)

dry fall paints are nice but they really are a commercial product intended for much higher ceilings. They typically only come in 5's and for the product to perform as expected, they have to be sprayed at a much higher height than your basement ceiling would be. This is to allow the product to dry before it hits the ground. Ben Moore makes a ready mixed flat in their regal line - product code n21580. They also make an Ultra Flat ceiling paint which can be tinted to black. I'm also partial to the ready mixed blacks for true color accuracy, but the ultra flat uses the waterborne colorants so coverage should be pretty good and the ultra flat would be ideal for what you are doing.


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

mazzonetv said:


> dry fall paints are nice but they really are a commercial product intended for much higher ceilings. They typically only come in 5's and for the product to perform as expected, they have to be sprayed at a much higher height than your basement ceiling would be. This is to allow the product to dry before it hits the ground. Ben Moore makes a ready mixed flat in their regal line - product code n21580. They also make an Ultra Flat ceiling paint which can be tinted to black. I'm also partial to the ready mixed blacks for true color accuracy, but the ultra flat uses the waterborne colorants so coverage should be pretty good and the ultra flat would be ideal for what you are doing.


I've worked with the Regal before, with brush and roller. Nice paint. I'll have to look into it. Like I said before, I'm really not too familiar to spraying. I'm having a friend with experience come by to show me how to get started, but I want to make sure I'm getting paint that's going to last, that can withstand fairly high temps w/o flaking since I'll be spraying both the light fixtures and the heating ducts. Would the Regal be ideal for this? I definitely want to go with a flat. I'd rather not draw any attention to the ceiling at all. thanks


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## mazzonetv (Feb 25, 2009)

light fixtures and heating ducts don't get hot enough to worry about using a high heat paint. If you are concerned just make sure the paint fully dries before putting the registers back and the light fixture up. You might be better off getting a flat black spray paint to paint those items however, not sure how nice they will look brushed - unless of course you do end up using a paint sprayer for the entire job. My biggest pet pieve is painters who paint around registers, switch plates, door knobs, fixtures, etc.. without taking a few mins to take them down and do it right.


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

Oh yeah, I definitely plan on spraying the entire basement. I picked up a Magnum X7 paint sprayer from Home Depot when they went on sale about a month ago. I have to paint the fence in my backyard, too, so I figured instead of renting, I'll just buy one. Then I can keep it in the family. I'm with you on the part of not taking the time to take down fixtures, removing plates and all that stuff. When I was on a paint crew, we'd spend a good portion of the day doing all the prep work, removing plates, fixtures, registers, etc, mudding, sanding, and all that good stuff before we'd even dip into paint. Definitely makes the job a lot easier when you take your time with the prep work.


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

I love using Ben Moore Regal but it strikes me as a bit pricey for painting a "raw" basement ceiling black. Why not step down to the Super Spec flat contractor grade and tint it as black as you can if you are headed in the direction of tinted paint. Doing so will save you $10-15/gallon off the cost of Regal. I would still find a factory black of some kind if it were me. Ask the store what they have or can get.

And before I forget. You don't want to thin latex paints with water, especially with lots of pigment in them or you will have a mess. Floetrol might help or ask the paint store what they sell for the sprayer you end up renting.


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## Matthewt1970 (Sep 16, 2008)

sdsester said:


> I love using Ben Moore Regal but it strikes me as a bit pricey for painting a "raw" basement ceiling black. Why not step down to the Super Spec flat contractor grade and tint it as black as you can if you are headed in the direction of tinted paint. Doing so will save you $10-15/gallon off the cost of Regal. I would still find a factory black of some kind if it were me. Ask the store what they have or can get.
> 
> And before I forget. You don't want to thin latex paints with water, especially with lots of pigment in them or you will have a mess. Floetrol might help or ask the paint store what they sell for the sprayer you end up renting.


I agree 100% on the SuperSpec as well as not thinning it. As long as they shake it, which youshould get them to do anyways, it should have no problem going through a sprayer.


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

I almost forgot, my Mom had her theater ceiling in her basement spray painted black, and she gave me the remainder of the paint. Only difference with her ceiling, she has the insulated panel suspended ceiling and had that spray painted with this Sherwin Williams Promar 400 black latex paint, and she gave me the remainder, which is about a 3/4 full 5-gallon bucket. Are you guys familiar with this paint, and would you recommend I use this?

Otherwise I'll definitely check out the SuperSpec. I've been out of the game so long that I forgot about all these paints. We used to use the SuperSpec for exteriors all the time, too.


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## user1007 (Sep 23, 2009)

jho said:


> Sherwin Williams Promar 400 black latex paint, and she gave me the remainder, which is about a 3/4 full 5-gallon bucket. Are you guys familiar with this paint, and would you recommend I use this?


Promar is SW's contractor grade paint. I use it often. I didn't know they made a black. But sure, if it is still good I would use it in a heartbeat. Cannot beat the price you are getting. Make sure you spend some time stirring it thoroughly. You might want to buy a paddle for your drill to make sure you get all that has settled to the bottom. You might want to strain it if it has been sitting, especially if you are going to spray it. You need two coats.

Still need primer though!


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

sdsester said:


> Make sure you spend some time stirring it thoroughly. You might want to buy a paddle for your drill to make sure you get all that has settled to the bottom.


I'm kind of a tool geek. I can't go to Home Depot and leave empty handed. About 4 months ago, I went in with the intention of buying a few small supplies, and ended up walking out with a Husky mortar mixer. It was on clearance from being an open item and missing instructions. You can find instructions to just about anything online, so I'm not too concerned about those. I could probably use that thing for mixing the paint, but I agree, I'll most likely strain it. Don't want to clog the lines on my new paint sprayer. Oh yeah, and I definitely will be priming. 

Thanks again fellas for taking the time with all these suggestions. I really appreciate it. :thumbsup:


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## jho (Jan 18, 2010)

Got the ceiling painted, used the SW Promar 400 latex paint in flat black. Turned out better than I had anticipated. I even painted the light fixtures with some high heat Rustoleum flat black paint. Surprisingly, that paint matched the ceiling perfectly. Everything went smoothly. Here are some pics, now onto tiling the floor.


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