Restore your tin ceiling tiles by removing the paint.
The paint on tin ceiling tiles can be removed with oven cleaner. The chemicals in the cleaner break down the bond the paint has on the tin's surface. If the tins have been painted several times, then only one to two layers of paint can be removed at a time. The loose paint is removed from the tins by wiping with painter's rags, scrubbing with a soft bristle brush and a scraping with a plastic putty knife.
Instructions
1. Lay painter's plastic on the floor beneath the ceiling. Tape the plastic to the floor around the perimeter with 2-inch masking tape so it doesn't move around .
2. Attach low-adhesive painter's tape around the top-side of the walls surrounding the ceiling. Stick the tape in a corner and then unroll the tape rightward while sticking it to the wall's corner edge along the ceiling. Leave the lower edge of the tape loose. Use a ladder to reach this area.
3. Drape painter's plastic down the walls all the way around the ceiling. Unroll the plastic so that it hangs down the wall to the floor. Stick the upper edge of the plastic beneath the previously placed painter's tape around the upper edge of the wall. Press the tape to the plastic to hold it in place. This will protect walls, cabinets, counters and appliances from the dripping oven cleaner.
4. Set a ventilation fan in the room to blow in fresh air. Turn on the fan and open all exterior doors and windows.
5. Put on a paint respirator, a see-through face shield, rubber gloves, a long-sleeve shirt and pants.
6. Climb the ladder with a spray-bottle of oven cleaner and spray the entire ceiling with cleaner. The nozzle of the bottle should be set to the mist setting to provide even coverage. Spray one tile and one row at a time to ensure you don't miss any. Wait two hours.
7. Climb the ladder and scrape the loose paint from the tiles with a 6-inch plastic putty knife. Use painter's rags to wipe after the scraper and to wipe the paint off the scraper. Scrape one tile and one row at a time. If you can see the bare tin after you scrape and wipe, then this is the only application of oven cleaner needed. Use a toothbrush to clean the paint out of the grooves in between the tiles and any ornamental grooves.
8. Clean excess paint residue off of the tiles by wiping them clean with a painter's rag that has been soaked in oven cleaner. Ring the rag out before using it to wipe.
9. Dip a painter's rag into some mineral spirits and wipe all of the oven cleaner off of the tiles or the oven cleaner will dissolve the tin in areas and leave pock marks.
10. Remove all of the painter's plastic and masking tape when finished.
Tags: oven cleaner, painter plastic, ceiling tiles, Climb ladder, loose paint, masking tape, paint removed