Have you ever tried to paint a ceiling and after 2 or 3 coats of kilz or a similiar stain killer, you still had overlap lines and uneven coverage? Well, get in line you're not the only one. Cigarette smoke and ceilings have a way of" bonding", and I don't mean as good friends do! Texture ceilings are mostly dry and porous and hold in the orange color from smoking until a heavy bodied alkyd/oil based paint penetrates and locks it in. If there is a new coating on the market that works as well as the oil paints mentioned (Benjamin Moore Calcimine Recoater or Kyanize Clingcote come to mind), please let me know. Excessively dry and dated ceilings, stained with nicotine, can absorb 100 square feet per gallon. At $40.00 a gallon that adds up quickly. Simply put, an average bedroom of 150 sqare feet would cost about $100.00 for materials(don't forget a respirator, gloves/long sleeves/hat etc...to keep the "product" off your skin) and another $100.00, for the services of a professional. If you do it yourself, be sure to vent the fumes, and use a fan if no cross ventalation is available, since it isn't pleasant breathing it in. The odor does fade overnight considerably, if properly aired out .

There really isn't any special technique to painting with this type of coating. It's hard work, and requires covering all furniture or items in the room as tiny spatters can be a problem. Try to keep the roller on the ceiling as much as possible. Determining how heavy a coat to apply is best done by rolling out a 3'x3' area with a fully loaded roller cover, and checking it after an overnight dry. You could need two coats even with these high quality paints. One last bit of advice is to try to keep the area being worked on as evenly rolled out as possible. If the surface is not too porous, this shouldn't be a problem. Ceilings are arguably the most difficult areas to paint, so don't expect an easy time if tackling one yourself. Or you can hire a pro, if you can find a willing one. Good luck!