Colorado Springs Ceiling Repair.

For cracks, holes, nail pops, sagging, and repairs after a leak, call a drywall contractor. We specialize in rebuilding and finishing ceilings. If water is still coming in, call whoever can stop it: a plumber for pipes and bathrooms, a roofer for storm leaks, or a water restoration company if there's standing water. If a crack is wide or growing, have a structural engineer look before anyone patches it. Our guide to who to call for ceiling damage breaks it down by problem.

Yes! We've been repairing ceilings around Colorado Springs since 2009. We cover the whole city, from the Old North End to Banning Lewis Ranch, plus Fountain, Security-Widefield, Falcon, Monument, Black Forest, Manitou Springs, and Woodland Park. Call (719) 600-2752, and we can usually tell you the same day what's going on and roughly what it'll cost.

In Colorado Springs, most ceiling repairs cost $150 to $900. Typical prices:

• Small hole or nail pops: $150–$350
• Seam or settling crack: $175–$450
• Winter gap where the ceiling meets the wall: $300–$750
• Dry water stain, sealed and refinished: $200–$500
• Water-damaged section replaced: $450–$1,500+
• Full ceiling replacement in a 12'×12' room: $1,200–$2,800

Ceiling height, texture, and how far water spread affect the price most. See our full ceiling repair cost table.

A fair price includes more than the patch. It should cover proper backing, tape, texture matching, primer, and cleanup. If a water damage quote seems very low, ask whether it includes a moisture check and replacing wet insulation, since skipping those is how stains and mold come back. Handymen here typically charge $45 to $85 an hour plus materials, which adds up on ceilings because compound needs drying time between coats. We quote a firm price for the whole job instead, with everything listed in writing, so you know the total upfront and an extra visit for drying time never changes your bill.

Full replacement usually costs about $4 to $8 per square foot, including tear-out, haul-away, new drywall, finishing, and texture. Small rooms cost more per foot because setup and cleanup take about the same time for any size room, so a 12'×12' bedroom typically runs $1,200 to $2,800. That said, most damaged ceilings only need the bad section replaced, which can save you a lot of money. When it's a close call, we'll quote both options.

First, find and fix what caused the damage, whether it's a leak, movement, or loose nails. Then:

1. Make sure the area is completely dry. A moisture meter is the only reliable way to know.
2. Cut out damaged drywall and replace any wet insulation.
3. Add a wood support above the opening and screw in new drywall.
4. Tape the seams and apply thin coats of joint compound.
5. Sand, match the texture, and prime. Use stain-blocking primer on water stains.
6. Paint the whole ceiling so the color and sheen match.

Small cracks and holes are fine to do yourself. See our DIY ceiling repair guide.

Usually not. Roofers fix the roof that caused the leak, but repairing and texturing the ceiling inside is drywall work. Some roofers hire out the interior repair on insurance jobs, so you may not know who's actually doing it. The right order is: the roofer fixes the roof, the ceiling dries out, then a drywall contractor repairs it. We often schedule right behind local roofers, check the attic for wet insulation, and match your texture so the repair disappears. If you're filing a claim, we'll also give you photos and a written estimate so the ceiling damage gets included on your adjuster's report.

Yes, for small jobs like hairline cracks, nail pops, and small holes on a smooth ceiling. Use powder-mix setting compound in thin coats, since our dry air makes thick premixed compound crack. Put a wood support behind any hole patch, and prime before painting. Call a pro if the ceiling is textured, wet, sagging, or damaged over more than a couple of square feet.

For a small hole or a few nail pops on a smooth ceiling, a handyman is fine. For textured ceilings, water damage, or larger repairs, a drywall contractor is usually worth it, because ceilings show uneven work under our bright, low winter sun. Ceilings are most of what we do every week, so we match your texture on a sample board first and check for moisture before closing anything up. Colorado has no statewide contractor license, so whoever you hire, ask for proof of insurance and a written warranty. We include both with every quote.

If the drywall is in good shape, the cheapest option is fixing the damaged spots and repainting the whole ceiling, about $1 to $2.50 per square foot. Adding a knockdown texture runs about $1 to $2 per square foot and hides old patches well. Skim coating to a smooth finish runs about $1.25 to $2.50 per square foot. Tearing out and replacing the ceiling costs the most, around $4 to $8 per square foot, and only makes sense when the drywall itself has failed. Compare every option in our repair vs. replace guide.

Stop the water first. Shut off the main if it's a plumbing leak, turn off the breaker if water is near a light, and drain any bulge into a bucket. Then call a plumber for pipes and bathrooms, or a roofer for storm and snowmelt leaks. If there's standing water, call a water restoration company to dry things out. Once the leak is fixed and the ceiling is dry, call us to repair it. Our leaking ceiling repair checklist walks through the first 30 minutes.

It's called truss uplift. In cold weather, your roof framing bows up slightly and lifts the ceiling away from interior walls, then settles back down in summer. It's common in Colorado Springs two-story homes and isn't a structural problem. Caulk and filler crack again every winter because they try to hold the ceiling still while it keeps moving. Instead of fighting that movement, we fix the corner so the ceiling can rise and fall freely, often with trim attached only to the ceiling so it slides along the wall. The gap stays hidden through every season, and our written warranty covers the repair.

Usually because the repair didn't fix the cause. A straight crack along a seam means the tape underneath came loose, and filler on top just cracks again. That seam needs to be re-taped. A crack at the ceiling-wall corner that returns every winter is truss uplift, which needs a corner that can move. Once the right fix is used, the crack stays gone.

Most ceiling cracks come from drywall seams opening up, seasonal truss uplift, or the small shifts that happen as Colorado Springs' clay soil swells and shrinks. It's worth having a structural engineer take a look if the crack is wider than about 1/8 inch, keeps growing, or shows up along with sagging, sticking doors, or cracked floors. If we see any of those signs during an estimate, we'll tell you before doing any repairs.

It can be, depending on the cause. A ceiling sagging from trapped water is the urgent one. Wet drywall loses most of its strength and can come down without warning, so keep everyone out from under it and call us the same day. The longer it stays wet, the more drywall and insulation need replacing, and the higher the risk of mold.

A slow sag from heavy insulation or loose nails isn't usually an emergency, but it's worth fixing within a month or two. While the drywall is still in good shape, we can often screw it back up and reinforce it. If you wait until it stretches or cracks, it usually needs to be replaced, which costs more. Either way, we'll tell you which kind you have and give you a firm price before any work starts.

Yes, if it's bulging with water. Draining it slowly is much safer than waiting for the ceiling to give way and dump everything at once. Here's how to do it safely:

1. Turn off the breaker for that room, especially if the bulge is near a light or ceiling fan.
2. Move furniture out of the way and put towels down.
3. Place a bucket or trash can directly under the lowest point of the bulge.
4. Stand off to the side, not underneath, and poke a small hole at the lowest point with a screwdriver.
5. If water spreads out instead of draining into the bucket, make the hole a little bigger.

If the bulge is very large or the ceiling is starting to tear on its own, don't poke it. Keep everyone out of the room and call for help. Once the water is out, get the leak fixed and call us. The small hole is easy to patch while we repair the rest of the ceiling.

As new framing dries out in Colorado's dry air, it shrinks and the nails loosen, and the weight of attic insulation pushes them down. That's why nail pops show up a year or two after move-in in newer neighborhoods. They're harmless. We fix them by adding a screw next to each pop so the drywall stays tight, then patch and texture. Fixing every pop in the house in one visit keeps the cost down.

Yes, it's one of our most common jobs. We add a wood support behind the hole so the patch won't sag, put in new drywall, and match your texture so it disappears. Most are done in one visit, and we can schedule right after the source of the leak is fixed.

Yes, absolutely. Vaulted great rooms, two-story entryways, and open stairwells are common in Briargate, Flying Horse, and Black Forest homes. We bring scaffolding to reach them safely, and the setup cost, usually $100 to $400, is included in your quote upfront.

Not with regular paint. The stain soaks into the drywall, so it bleeds back through within days or weeks, no matter how many coats you add. Here's what actually works:

1. Make sure the leak is fixed and the ceiling is completely dry.
2. Press gently on the stain. If it feels firm, it can be sealed. If it's soft, crumbly, or sagging, that section needs to be replaced.
3. Seal the stain with a stain-blocking primer.
4. Touch up the texture if needed, then paint. Painting the whole ceiling usually blends best, since older ceiling paint yellows over time.

We'll check the drywall with a moisture meter and tell you whether a seal-and-paint is enough or a section needs replacing, before any work starts.

As soon as the leak is fixed and the drywall and framing are fully dry. A small damp spot can be ready in a day or two. A soaked ceiling with wet insulation above it takes longer, and the insulation should be replaced. We check with a moisture meter before closing anything up, because sealing in moisture leads to mold.

Yes. The fan sends shower steam into the attic, where it soaks the insulation and the back of your ceiling. In a Colorado cold snap, that moisture freezes into frost, then melts on the next sunny day and leaves stains on the ceiling below.

Here's how to check your fan:

1. Test the airflow. Turn the fan on and hold a square of toilet paper against the vent. If the fan can't hold it in place, it's too weak to clear the steam.
2. Check where it goes. Run the fan and look outside for a vent on your roof or an outside wall with a flap that opens. If you can't find one, look in the attic. A duct that ends in the insulation, or no duct at all, means the steam is staying in your attic.

If the fan needs to be replaced or ducted outside, an electrician or HVAC contractor handles that. We repair the ceiling damage it caused: stained, peeling, or soft drywall replaced with moisture-resistant board and finished with bathroom-rated paint. If we spot a venting problem during your estimate, we'll point it out, so you're not repairing the same ceiling again next year.

It often does when the damage happened suddenly, such as a roof leak after a hailstorm, a burst pipe, or a broken washing machine hose. But it usually doesn't cover damage that happened slowly, like a small leak that went unnoticed for months or cracks from normal settling. Before you clean anything up, take photos of the damage and check with your insurance agent. If you file a claim, we'll provide photos and a detailed written estimate to help your adjuster process it.

It depends on where the leak started, your HOA's rules, and both owners' insurance. Start by notifying your HOA and your own insurance company, and take photos of everything. We repair condo and townhome ceilings regularly and can provide the photos and estimates your HOA and insurers need.

Yes, we match every common Colorado Springs ceiling texture, including knockdown, popcorn, orange peel, hand-applied textures, and smooth finishes. The best way to get an accurate quote is to call us and share more details. We often find that what makes matching tricky isn't the texture itself, but how it's aged. Years of paint soften the pattern, and old popcorn yellows, so a fresh patch can look too sharp or too white. We match your ceiling as it looks today, not as it looked when it was new, which is why our repairs blend in instead of standing out.

Absolutely, small popcorn repairs can be blended into the existing texture and color. If the damage is large or the popcorn is failing in several places, full removal is often the better value. Learn more about popcorn ceiling removal service in Colorado Springs.

Patching makes sense for one stain or small damaged spot on an otherwise good ceiling. If the popcorn is flaking in several places or you were planning to remove it anyway, removal often makes more sense. We can quote both in the same visit, or you can estimate the cost first with our popcorn removal cost calculator.

Most small repairs are done in one visit of a few hours. Larger patches, water damage, and textured ceilings often need a short second visit, since each coat of compound has to dry before the next one goes on. Replacing a full room's ceiling usually takes two to four days. Since we price by the job, not by the hour, the price you approve upfront is the price you pay, even if the repair needs an extra visit.

Every repair is left primed and ready for paint, but yes, we can paint it too. We usually recommend painting the whole ceiling, because older ceiling paint yellows and a touch-up spot tends to show. Painting the full ceiling usually costs only a little more than a careful touch-up.

Typically not. Patching, crack repair, replacing drywall with the same type, and retexturing are considered routine maintenance. A permit from the Pikes Peak Regional Building Department may be needed if framing is changed, new electrical is added, or the repair is part of a larger remodel.

Not with us. We cover floors and furniture, hang plastic around the work area, seal your air vents, and use sanders that collect dust as they go. It's the same Zero Mess Guarantee we use on popcorn ceiling removal, which is a much messier job.

You don't have to. We seal off the work area so the rest of your home stays usable, and most repairs give you the room back the same evening. Just keep kids and pets out of the work area and expect some noise during cutting and sanding.

Yes, all the time. Move-outs near Fort Carson, Peterson, and Schriever often turn up a ceiling stain or crack on a tight deadline. We combine ceiling and drywall repairs into as few visits as possible, coordinate with your painter, and send photos when we're done so you don't have to manage it from another state.