How To Fix Water Stain On Textured Ceiling

Solved! What to Do Almost H2o Stains on the Ceiling

Conceal an unsightly h2o stain on the ceiling—and put a stopper on the leak that caused it—with these stain-fighting tips.

Water Stain On Ceiling

Photo: istockphoto.com

Q: I recently noticed some water stains on the ceiling of my living room. I'm not sure where they came from, but the ceiling feels dry out to the touch now. What'southward the best manner to cover them upwards? And since the stains are dry out, can I assume that whatever caused them is no longer a threat to my home?

A: A water stain on the ceiling is commonly a past-product of a roof, heating appliance, or plumbing leak that seeped through the ceiling and evaporated, leaving you lot with an cruddy patch of dried, discolored mineral deposits.

A word of circumspection: If you cover upward a water stain without addressing the leak that acquired it, you lot run the take a chance of boosted staining on the ceiling, not to mention more serious structural or electric harm. That's why information technology's then of import to detect and repair the crusade of the h2o stain every bit soon as possible, even if it is no longer moisture.

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Follow the tips below to pinpoint and repair the crusade of the stains, so clean, prime, and paint over the water stains to restore the blemish-free finish of your ceiling.

STEP 1: Identify and repair the root cause.

Your first priority when dealing with a water stain should be to find the source of the leak (or in rarer cases, the alluvion) that caused information technology—the roof, the upstairs radiator, and the upstairs bathroom are good places to check.

If the roof is to blame, find and repair crumbling shingles, compromised flashing (the weatherproofing material installed on the roof), or weakened seals around roof vents, all of which tin give way to leaks. If you cannot patch the leak in the roof, you may need to supersede it.
If it looks to be a leaky radiator, search out and gear up the radiator trunk, valve, pipe, or bleed point (where cold air escapes from the radiator).
If coming from the upstairs bathroom, supersede old caulking that may be letting wet seep in and encouraging leaks. Also, repair inundation toilets and unclog clogged sinks or shower drains that could alluvion the bathroom floor with h2o.

Make the necessary repairs, or get the aid of a professional roofer, HVAC professional, or plumber as needed, and you should exist able to prevent hereafter leaks—and water stains—on the ceiling.

Stride ii: Clean the stain with bleach.

Now that you've dealt with the underlying trouble, you're ready to tackle the stain itself—starting with a thorough cleaning. Cleaning the stained area of the ceiling with a balmy homemade bleach solvent (one cup of bleach and three cups of warm water) will fade the stain and remove whatever lingering mildew, grease, clay, or dust that can forbid primer and paint from adhering to the ceiling.

Water Stain On Ceiling

Photo: istockphoto.com

Start by setting a driblet cloth on the floor below the ceiling stain and propping up a ladder to reach it. Donning protective gloves and goggles, climb up the ladder and wipe down the stain with a clean sponge saturated in the bleach solution. Rinse the bleach solution off the ceiling with water from a spray bottle, and then wipe the damp area dry out with a clean cloth. Once the ceiling is completely dry, cover the ceiling trim with painter'due south tape to protect information technology from primer and paint.

Stride 3: Utilize a base of operations coat of stain-blocking primer.

At this stage, it tin be tempting to slap a glaze of paint direct over the water stain and call it a twenty-four hour period. Notwithstanding, interior latex paints—which are commonly practical to ceilings—are a poor pick for a base coat over a water stain considering they're water-soluble. When a water stain comes into contact with latex paint, the stain dissolves into the wet pigment layer every bit the pigment dries, causing the discolored mineral contents of the stain to testify through the paint to the ceiling surface over again.

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Your best option for a base of operations coat to cover water stains on the ceiling is an oil-based, mold-resistant, stain-blocking primer in a shade closely matching that of the existing ceiling. Oil-based stain-blocking primers (such as KILZ Stainblocking Ceiling Paint, available on Amazon) are water-insoluble, therefore, water stains cannot bleed through. Dissimilar latex paint, these stain-blocking primers also contain a loftier volume of binders (polymers that demark pigment pigments), so that the primer can finer attach to the surface over the long run.

Primer (and paint) awarding depends on your style of ceiling. If yous have a smooth ceiling, roll the primer over the water stains using a paint roller with an extension and a ⅜-inch nap roller cover, then let the primer dry for two hours or every bit instructed by the primer packaging. If you accept a textured ceiling, opt instead for a thicker nap roller cover (¾ -inch to i-¼ -inch nap) or spray on the primer using a can of stain-blocking primer.

Step iv: Cover the primer with ceiling paint.

The primed area of the ceiling will usually be a few shades lighter or darker than the rest of the ceiling, which tin describe the middle to the stained area. Painting over the primed expanse will help colour-match it with the rest of the ceiling for a professional person-quality comprehend-up.

Whether you have a shine or textured ceiling, you lot can employ either a latex (water-based) or an alkyd (oil-based) ceiling pigment over the oil-based primer—though latex options dry faster and produce fewer fumes from volatile organic compounds (VOCs) than oil-based counterparts. Simply make certain to purchase ceiling-specific pigment (view case on The Home Depot), which is usually thicker than traditional paint and comes in a non-cogitating terminate that helps hide pocket-sized blemishes.

Choose a pigment that matches the color of your ceiling for a compatible look, then use information technology over the primed surface area with a roller (choose a ⅜-inch nap embrace for a smooth ceiling, or a ¾ -inch to 1-¼ -inch nap for a textured ceiling). Permit the first coat of paint dry for up to 4 hours or as instructed by the packaging, and then utilise a 2d coat for more than even coverage.

Subsequently the second coat dries, the ceiling should look every bit though at that place were never any water stains.

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