I wonder if someone can help or advise please? I have one room almost renovated but am now having a problem with the ceiling.
Apart from the usual detrious found on the painted wooden slats (usual type of ceiling here in Limousin) that has been neglected for about 30 years, and the joints needing some attention, they were sound. After cleaning, sanding and filling the joints with caulk, I proceeded to give three coats of satin gloss paint to the surface. It looked fantastic and clean, I was so pleased. I am now back to complete the room and do some other bits and have noticed what looks, and feels like a pale brown wax or resin appearing. I have wiped some off with one of my fingers and there does not appear to be any 'crack' in the paint or anything else where this could be coming through from. Has anybody any idea what it is, and how do I go about getting rid of it?
I have used PVA before after a minor flood at the UK house, but that was really to prohibit the staining coming through and was nothing like this....
I've attached a few photos, if they help...
I should add that this room is a bedroom with an open plan en-suite shower facility, but due to problems (now sorted) with the hose to the shower, has only been used properly in the last week, and although this stuff is mainly appearing at that end of the room, is not directly above the shower!?
Any help or suggestions would be much appreciated, thank you!
As the paint already on the ceiling did not at all look or act like gloss (and I have done a fair bit of decorating in the past to know), and as obviously cleaning and sanding took all the 'muck' away, it was not possible to tell what would happen once I had used the 'proper' ceiling paint. I have checked the tin, and it was an emulsion, but specifically formulated for ceilings. I am now going to prepare to paint with an oil-based paint. I am going to assume that I would need two coats of this, one to act as a primer?
As I have said on my previous replies, I definitely know what to do with the remaining ceilings now! I will make sure I have plenty of dust sheets, as this place has nice original wooden block flooring :-)
Hi there :-) I would be agreeing with the 'oil based' route for sure.. Water based paints are getting better with technology, but with any kind of damp, water, tar stain. A really good quality oil based under coat, (a couple of coats) would be the best solution prior to top coat. If the wood is slightly pourus also it will bleed through so the oil undercoat will prevent that :-)
It is not advisable to paint gloss on gloss especially without considerable preparation of cleaning and particularly sanding first of the previous gloss coat first. Gloss is a usually the final coat.
Not necessarily Melissa. I'v'e painted gloss over gloss for years with few problems except for one occasion when I painted a water based "modern" gloss over an older proper gloss paint. A few years later it was possible to peel off the modern paint rather like skinning a sausage.
Provided it is prepared properly of course, I too don't like the water based stuff. But it is quicker ;o) There is a very good one in the UK now, called permoglaze but it is 'nearly' as expensive as french paint ;O
Hi Melissa - it wasn't true oil based 'gloss', which is why I think there's a problem. It was a water based satin 'gloss'. And unfortunately, not a very good quality one it seems (Homebase own-brand, non-drip ceiling paint) as you could still see the old paint through it until I'd done 3 coats. It was not 'new' wood, so no need for primer or undercoat - previously painted with French paint but no idea what kind....
Thanks Andy. More work! Never mind, as I've already said, a lesson learnt! I do have contact of a sort with one of the sons, so I will see if I can find out about the smoking. At least then I'll know for sure!
Why did you use three coats of gloss paint? After knotting, wood primer the two coats of undercoat yes, but gloss will peal off if painted on top of another gloss!
I agree it looks like tar stains, I have them in two rooms near an old chimney they are fading with each coat of paint over the years but doubt they will ever go away entirely. It looks like the moisture in the paint may have drawn them through from a previous layer. Try oil based paint like David suggests.
Thanks for your responses, Robert and David, I shall certainly have a google as well.
With regard to soot deposits, although there was an open fire 2 rooms away, I would doubt the soot would get this far. Also as the French have a habit of doing, they have 'added' on this room at some point in the past, probably after the time the open fire was enclosed looking at the age of the soot deposits left behind, and this room is about 20m lower than the middle one. The middle room does certainly seem to have soot on the ceiling (have only had a cursory swipe at it with a damp cloth so far)...
And in answer to your response, David, we have no idea if they were smokers, but as most French men seem to (apart from the odd exception of course), then I wouldn't rule it out. I have had a look at the paint and gleaned from my memory cells and yes, I think it was water based... what a pain! I will have to wait for OH to arrive next month as there is no way I can shift the king sized iron and wood bed by myself. I may be able to do all sorts of DIY, but as I am less than 5 foot tall and less than 8 stone (I wish), weights like that are beyond me and my platform is not long enough to go over the blasted thing... Oh well, at least I'll know what to do come the other 3 ceilings I've yet to tackle.... I had thought I'd cleaned and sanded them well enough...
If anyone else has any suggestions though, keep them coming, much appreciated.
Were the previous owners smokers I wonder? Nicotine/tar stains will bleed through water based paints with ease. Did you use a water based paint? If you could wash the brushes out in washing up liquid and hot water then you probably did. I think you are going to have to repaint with at least one coat of oil based paint to seal the lambris. Then you can use a water based satin:glos on top. A pain but you'll always be looking at the stains. Lots of tips available if you google nicotine stains paint over. It isn't actually nicotine which is colorless its tar
Bad luck! it looked to me at first to be knots coming through but there are too many for that. The only thing I can think of that would do that is soot deposits that may have been left on the ceiling?? Do you have an open fire in that room or was there one before? Not sure if unibond (PVA) would help in this situation but probably worth a try....