dark (brown/red) spots appeared after I painted the ceiling!

[speasy]

I'm a little bit freaked out by the look of my kitchen ceiling. I spent ages painting it white after the previous owners had left it in a horrible light green colour. The first coat went on fine and after about 5 hours I applied the second coat. Still no problems. I have just come back home after a few hours to see the kitchen ceiling 'bleeding'! What is that? What happened there? It's not even grease or stains as I can wipe them off (leaving some marks), but they reappear, it's actually quite spooky!
Has anyone got any idea what this might be, please?
And possibly any recommendations as to what I could do about this?
Any comments much appreciated.

Thank you!

 

[misterhelpful]

Something like this in a kitchen is normally caused by grease spots bleeding through the new paint but if you can definitely rule that out it's a bit puzzling.

Any chance of a piccy?

You could try a thinned oil based undercoat or a stain blocking paint before another coat of emulsion but it would be good to know what is causing the problem.

 

[Nige F]

Was the emulsion you used in an old metal tin - you can get bits of rust in the paint from the tin

 

[speasy]

Thank you both for your comments, much appreciated!

The paint was not in a metal pot, but good thinking.

I still don't really understand what happened. It genuinely looked like the ceiling was bleeding, it was wet, dark red drips! I've painted over it again and it's better now, but still visible. Now it looks more like someone tried to fry something with brown oil having splashed all over the ceiling, not pretty.

Unfortunately, I'm a bit too busy with work right now to look more into it, but I will certainly come back to it and see what else it could be and whether I'd need primer or other things to prevent this from happening. But it would definitely be good to find the cause for it all rather than just covering it up, like you said!

Many thanks!
Silke

 

[Growler]

How and what did you wash it with
Then...........What "exactly" did you paint it with.

I think Mr H has got it right.

 

[speasy]

Hello and thank you for your comment,

I did not wash the ceiling at all. Basically, before I decided to paint there were no greasy spots or any dirt at all, it was just a horrible colour. It is also nowhere near the cooker and we have a relatively high ceiling. It's all along the window though, so maybe that could have something to do with it?

Silke

 

[Growler]

I did not wash the ceiling at all.

Silke

There you have it

Grease, need not accumulate over the cooker. It may be heading for the cold spots when you're frying your sausages, wrapped in streaky bacon with a lit fag, sticking out the side of your mouth.

 

[speasy]

Strange. I've painted quite a few walls/ceilings over the years. Never washed anything, never had such a problem before! But how does it all 'happen'? Does the new paint cause for the grease to come lose, so to speak and drip?
Also, any suggestions what I do now, having painted two layers over it (with no 'bleeding' after the first layer..)? Can I still wash it?
Thank you for your info!
Silke

 

[misterhelpful]

It's all along the window though, so maybe that could have something to do with it?

That pretty much confirms that it's grease spots to me.

As Growler suggests, the grease doesn't only gather above a cooker but also in areas where condensation forms and then drips - above a window is a typical point, especially with steel lintels.

The grease stops the paint adhering to the surface properly and then any moisture in the air (even just from the paint drying) will cause it to bleed back through and give the drips you describe.

If the paint is now totally dry you should be alright cleaning the affected areas with sugar soap or a mild detergent (my preference here) and rinse off well. Once dry, you should then be able to repaint without fear of the same thing occurring.

 

[speasy]

Ah, fabulous! Thank you very much!

I'm glad that there is some kind of explanation other than 'something spooky going on'

I'll give this a try when I have time!

Thank you all for your comments and help!
Silke