$2 to $4 per square foot — wet-scrape, skim-coat, sand, prime, and two coats of Benjamin Moore or Dulux ceiling paint. Pre-1990 homes require asbestos testing first ($300–$800 separate).
Popcorn ceiling removal in North Bay typically costs $2 to $4 per square foot depending on home size, ceiling height, and asbestos testing requirements for pre-1990 homes. North Bay Painting Services has been removing popcorn ceilings across Nipissing since 2016, and the 2026 pricing breaks down by room: a single bedroom of about 120 sq ft costs $300–$500, a living room of about 250 sq ft costs $600–$1,000, a whole-floor open-plan main level of about 800 sq ft costs $1,800–$3,200, and a whole-home scrape of about 1,500 sq ft costs $3,200–$6,000+. Every quote includes furniture protection, dust containment with plastic sheeting and zip walls, the wet-scrape, drywall skim-coat to a paint-grade finish, sand, prime, and two coats of Benjamin Moore Waterborne Ceiling Paint (primary) or Dulux flat ceiling paint (secondary). Pre-1990 homes require asbestos testing before scraping — testing runs $300–$800 separate from removal, performed by a certified Ontario lab such as Pinchin or EMSL. Service available across a 45-mile radius from North Bay covering 17 communities including Callander, Corbeil, Sturgeon Falls, Powassan, and Mattawa. Every project is fully bonded, insured, and WSIB covered, backed by a 1-year written workmanship warranty. Owned and operated by Ahmed Khalil, owner and lead painter. See the full popcorn ceiling removal service page for the deep dive.
Popcorn ceilings installed before 1990 may contain asbestos. Disturbing asbestos-containing material is regulated under Ontario Regulation 278/05 and creates a real long-term health hazard for everyone in the home — homeowner, family, pets, and the crew on site. North Bay Painting Services does not scrape any pre-1990 popcorn ceiling without a clean asbestos test in writing. This is non-negotiable, and it's the same standard every reputable painting contractor in Ontario follows. The good news: testing is fast, affordable, and handled cleanly through a certified Ontario lab.
If your test comes back positive, this is not a setback — it's exactly why we test. A licensed asbestos abatement contractor removes the ceiling under controlled negative-air containment, the abatement crew runs a clearance air test once they're done, and once that clearance passes, North Bay Painting Services comes back to skim-coat the bare drywall, sand, prime, and finish with two coats of Benjamin Moore or Dulux ceiling paint. Same warranty. Same finished result. The abatement is a separate quote from a third-party licensed contractor — we'll refer you to one we trust if you don't have one.
Square footage drives the number more than any other variable. Use the scenario closest to your project as your starting reference.
Ranges reflect 2026 North Bay market pricing for residential popcorn ceiling removal within the 45-mile service radius. Cathedral ceilings, severe water damage, and heavy popcorn texture sit at the upper end of each range. Pricing assumes negative asbestos test on pre-1990 homes — abatement, if needed, is a separate quote from a third-party licensed contractor.
Two ceilings of the same square footage can quote $1,000 apart. Here's why.
If your home was built before 1990, popcorn ceilings may contain asbestos and testing is mandatory before scraping. Testing adds $300–$800 to the project. A positive result means no scrape from us — a third-party licensed abatement contractor handles the removal, and we return to skim and repaint after.
Standard 8-foot ceilings are baseline. 9 or 10-foot ceilings add scaffolding and adjustable extension labour. Cathedral or vaulted ceilings (sometimes 14+ feet at the peak) can add 25–40% to the per-square-foot rate because every step of the work requires staging.
Light popcorn comes off in big sheets with a wet sponge and scraper. Heavy popcorn — the lumpy, deep, often painted-over kind — fights every inch and demands more aggressive wet time and more skim work afterward. Painted-over popcorn is the worst case.
If the drywall under the popcorn has cracks, nail pops, water stains from old roof leaks, or visible patch areas from prior repairs, the skim-coat phase grows. Stain-blocking primer is mandatory over water stains. Crack repair adds tape-and-mud time before the topcoat.
Vacant homes scrape faster — no furniture protection, no daily cleanup, no zip-wall isolation between living zones. A whole-home vacant scrape can run 15–25% less per square foot than an occupied scrape of the same size.
Per-square-foot rates drop as total area grows. A single 120 sq ft bedroom runs at the high end of the $2–$4/sq ft range because of mobilization overhead. A 1,500 sq ft whole-home scrape runs at the low end because the same setup-and-teardown amortizes across more ceiling.
The list below is included on every popcorn ceiling removal quote within the 45-mile service radius — not upsold, not "optional," not extra.
Walk-through of every room. Year-of-build noted, asbestos testing flagged for pre-1990 homes. Ceiling height, texture severity, and substrate condition documented before quoting.
Quote within 24 hours, fixed-price, line-itemized by room. No surprises mid-project. Asbestos testing and abatement flagged separately.
All furniture either moved out, centred and bagged, or covered head-to-toe. Floors covered in canvas drops over plastic. HVAC vents masked off.
Plastic sheeting and zip walls isolate the work area from adjoining living space. Negative-pressure air filtration on whole-home scrapes.
Ceiling lightly misted, then scraped clean with putty knives and joint blades. Texture caught on plastic — not blown into your HVAC system.
Drywall compound applied across the entire ceiling plane to a Level 4 paint-grade finish. Every nail pop, joint mark, and scrape divot filled. Sanded smooth to 220 grit.
Stain-blocking primer over the entire ceiling. Two finish coats of Benjamin Moore Waterborne Ceiling Paint (primary) or Dulux flat ceiling paint (secondary). Flat sheen — hides every micro-imperfection.
Skim-coat, primer, and the two Benjamin Moore or Dulux finish coats — covered for 12 months under normal residential conditions. Warranty signed and handed over on completion.
Still have one? Call (705) 482-1142 any time.
Popcorn ceiling removal in North Bay costs $2 to $4 per square foot in 2026, with the per-square-foot rate dropping as total area grows. Common scenarios:
Single bedroom (~120 sq ft): $300–$500. Mobilization overhead pushes the per-foot rate to the upper end. Living room (~250 sq ft): $600–$1,000. Mid-range scope with moderate furniture protection and zip-wall isolation. Whole-floor open-plan (~800 sq ft): $1,800–$3,200. Per-foot rate drops as the same setup amortizes across more ceiling. Whole-home scrape (~1,500 sq ft): $3,200–$6,000+. The most cost-efficient option per square foot, especially if the home is vacant.
Every quote includes furniture protection, dust containment with plastic and zip walls, wet-scrape, drywall skim-coat to a Level 4 paint-grade finish, sand, stain-blocking primer, and two coats of Benjamin Moore Waterborne Ceiling Paint (our primary) or Dulux flat ceiling paint (our secondary). Pre-1990 homes require asbestos testing first — $300 to $800 separate from removal, performed by a certified Ontario lab. If asbestos is detected, abatement is a separate quote from a third-party licensed contractor — we return to skim and repaint with Benjamin Moore or Dulux after the abatement clean.
Yes, if your home was built before 1990 — and North Bay Painting Services requires it on every pre-1990 home before we scrape any popcorn ceiling. Popcorn ceilings installed before 1990 may contain asbestos, and disturbing asbestos-containing material is regulated under Ontario Regulation 278/05. We do not scrape pre-1990 ceilings without a clean lab result in writing. This is non-negotiable.
The testing process is straightforward and fast. A small bulk sample of the ceiling texture is taken from a low-visibility spot. The sample goes to a certified Ontario asbestos lab — typically Pinchin or EMSL Canada. The lab runs polarized light microscopy and returns a written lab report within 3 to 5 business days. Total cost runs $300 to $800 depending on the number of rooms and samples submitted.
Negative result: we proceed with the scrape on the schedule confirmed in your quote. Positive result: we do not scrape. You hire a licensed Ontario asbestos abatement contractor, who removes the ceiling under negative-air containment and runs a clearance air test once they're done. After that clearance passes, North Bay Painting Services returns to skim-coat the bare drywall, sand, prime, and finish with two coats of Benjamin Moore or Dulux ceiling paint. Same warranty applies to our skim and paint work after abatement. If you don't have an abatement contractor lined up, we'll refer you to one we trust.
Popcorn ceiling removal is genuinely messy because the texture is a sprayed-on plaster that disintegrates the moment it gets wet — and the only safe way to remove it is to wet-scrape, which sends pulverized texture down onto every horizontal surface in the room. That's why dust containment with plastic and zip walls isn't optional on our jobs — without it, you'd be cleaning ceiling texture out of HVAC vents, behind the fridge, and in every closet for months.
The labour-intensive part comes after the scrape. The bare drywall underneath is rarely paint-grade. There are joint marks, nail pops, drywall paper damage from the scrape blade, sometimes water stains from old roof or plumbing leaks, and inevitably some areas where the ceiling was patched at some point and never properly finished. Bringing the ceiling to a Level 4 paint-grade finish requires a full skim-coat with drywall compound, sanding to 220 grit, priming with a stain-blocking primer, and two coats of ceiling paint — typically Benjamin Moore Waterborne Ceiling Paint or Dulux flat ceiling paint.
The scrape itself is one day. The skim, sand, prime, and paint cycle is another two to four days depending on room size and ceiling condition. That's why the per-square-foot rate of $2 to $4 is higher than a typical interior wall repaint — most of the labour is the resurfacing, not the scraping. The end result is a flat, smooth, modern ceiling that adds value to the home and looks like the popcorn was never there. See the popcorn ceiling removal service page for the full process breakdown.
Free on-site estimate. We measure every ceiling, flag pre-1990 asbestos testing, and give you a fixed-price written quote within 24 hours.