Acoustic ceiling texture is a bumpy, sprayed-on ceiling finish, often called a "popcorn" or "cottage cheese" ceiling, used to hide flaws and soften sound. From the 1950s into the 1980s many texture products contained chrysotile asbestos, and scraping, sanding or patching these ceilings can release fibers.
Origin
Spray-on ceiling textures became popular in American homes after World War II. Federal restrictions on spray-applied asbestos decorative materials came in the late 1970s, but existing stocks could still be used, so homes built or refinished into the 1980s may have asbestos-containing ceilings.
Significance in Asbestos Context
Popcorn ceilings are a common source of household and construction exposure. The texture was often mixed from dry powder and sprayed by drywall finishers and painters, who also sanded and scraped it during repairs. Homeowners and family members were exposed when ceilings were scraped off, patched, drilled for fixtures, or damaged by water leaks. Many of the products were made by the same companies that made asbestos joint compound, so claims often involve both. Because the texture can crumble by hand, it is treated as friable surfacing material, and removal is regulated; rules for homeowners differ by state and locality. A lab test of a small sample, taken by a professional, is the only way to know whether a given ceiling contains asbestos.
Example Sentence
When they scraped the popcorn ceiling off the bedrooms in 1979, the whole family lived in the house while the dust settled on everything.
Related Terms
Surfacing Material, Joint Compound, Consumer Product Exposure, Friable, Take-home Exposure, Asbestos-Containing Material (ACM), Product Identification
Notes
- Have a popcorn ceiling tested before scraping, sanding or drilling it; do not dry-scrape it yourself.
- If a ceiling was removed or patched in your home years ago, note when, by whom, and who was living there.
- Product names on old bags or cans of texture or drywall compound can help identify makers.
Category: Exposure Concepts · All Lexicon terms A–Z
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