The ceiling material is flaking!

Have you checked to make sure it's not a plumbing issue first? You'll have to fix that problem first before fixing the ceiling.

It's possibly an exterior leak...I would check the roof first before proceeding. Then ,if everything looks good topside, I would re-do the ceiling with 1/4 " drywall, coating the underside( the side that faces the ceiling) with an oil base primer, then using a ceiling texture specifically for ceilings.

We have a manufactured home the same age with the same ceilings. The ones in the bathrooms are where we had problems. My husband primed the ceiling where it was flaking then carefully dabbed at the ceiling with joint compound. If you add too much it falls off because the moisture makes the texture fall off. So you have to add it little by little. And you dab at it so the texture looks the same as the rest of the ceiling. We put it up last summer and it stayed so it was a good fix but it was frustrating also. Good luck.

Check out a few videos on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=peeling+ceiling+paint+repair

We've had the same issue! It seems they don't prime before applying the texture. We primed and then used the canned texture to fix our problem areas. It's a continuous battle however because there's always loose sections developing. We've begun scraping in our bathrooms and will be painting the ceilings.

If you have ELIMINATED roof and water leak/humidity issues, you might be dealing with bad drywall when the home was manufactured. It is known in the "trade" as Katrina drywall; cheap, imported from China stuff that was used in the US from 2001-2009. It's unhealthy, as well as being an eyesore. You may be dealing with a manufacturer who did NOT prime good drywall before painting/applying the textured ceiling; ALL drywall should be primed. You might be dealing with a mismatch of paint. My walls are "true" sheetrock (not to be confused with drywall) . 5/8" of 2' x 8' of concretion, wrapped in paper, that is installed and coated with 1/4" of plaster. My stick-built home (1950) is solid. However...at some point the interior was painted with an oil-based, semi-gloss paint. (It had become a rental.) I purchased the home and painted the walls and ceilings with synthetic paint. Within 2 years, I had "paint failure". I went to my local paint (3rd generation) store and got a consultation. I should have applied a "pre-Paint" concoction that would have enabled the paint I used to adhere properly to the oil-based paint. Other things I learned in the consultation: washing the ceilings/walls would not have worked; smoke (wood-stove or tobacco) also impedes paint adherence. Best wishes to you.

Here is my take on the situation..... there doesn't have to be any LEAKS. just High humidity and the ceiling I noticed did not have primer... it needs something besides a slick surface to adhere to hence the better stick to the taped area. you could use a rowl with pointy spikes to ruff up the surface instead.

to remove it use a weed sprayer filled with warm water,and a ladder, tape knive (your Choice of width) and a roll of 4mm plastic to be used as a floor guard.

do not soak the ceiling ust wet and let stand for 15 min and try scraping with the knife at a 25 to 35 degree angle.

good luck

Whomever put the tape on didn't apply it correctly if that is above the existing drywall..the existing joints will need to be perfectly smooth in order to get a professional look to your paint

I presume that the dryall was cut so as to the bevel edge is missing and therefore creating a problem for you.

if you remove the seam you will need to re-mud with drywall compound..applied in 1/4 layers or less so that it doesn't crack while drying and once at the top add a little above for shrinkage and let dry then you will need to sand smooth.

I don't recommend not using drywall tape but if the pieces seem to be level and tight you might be able to skip this step.

do you have a vent in the restroom pulling air and moisture out of it?

I would knock off the loose stuff, prime with Zinzer or Kilz, and put on a satin or semi-gloss paint which is more durable.

I have found most manufactured homes here, need a dehumidifer. This should help greatly especially if you live in a cool climate, and you turn on the heat, and then you have condensation problems.

I removed the popcorn garbage off the ceilings in my entire house...it's not rocket science. Spray w water, wait for it to soften and scrape it off w a plastic mud knife. Plastic will not damage the wet Sheetrock...then let it dry thoroughly and prime and paint. That textured stuff dates your home anyway. You will be so happy with a smooth ceiling.