Paint Over a Water Stain

Learn how to paint over a water stain. Find out how to properly prime and paint a water stain after a ceiling leak.

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LESLIE: Frank listens on WPRO from Rhode Island. What’s going on at your money pit?

FRANK: Yes, the question I have is I have a bathroom on my second floor and it’s above my entry foyer. And it – unfortunately, some water leaked through the floor and there’s a water stain, now, on my ceiling. And I was wondering how do you get rid of that?

LESLIE: Have you fixed the leak? The source of the water?

FRANK: Yes. They’re remodeling the whole bathroom upstairs and taking care of all that.

TOM: How big is the stain?

FRANK: Probably about two to three feet.

TOM: OK, you’re going to want to prime the entire ceiling. And I would recommend an oil based primer. Because what happens is you get a chemical reaction with that water and the drywall and the paper …

FRANK: Mm-hmm.

TOM: … and it tends to sort of give you this dark, like almost iron-looking like stain.

LESLIE: Mm-hmm.

TOM: And if you prime the surface of that ceiling – and you can’t just spot prime it because it’s such a big area. That’s why I asked you how big it was – you’re going to have to prime the whole surface. Because it’s going to make it a little bit more impervious than the rest of the area and if you don’t prime the whole thing, when you put your top coat of paint on …

LESLIE: Just going to wear differently.

TOM: Well – yeah, it’ll have sort of a different sheen. You’ll be able to see it. But if you prime the whole ceiling and then you paint it again, you’ll never see it again.

FRANK: Does it matter if it’s – what do you call? – the scroll type ceiling?

TOM: Textured ceiling?

FRANK: Yes.

TOM: It’s a little harder to work with a textured ceiling but no, it doesn’t matter. Leslie, you had a good trick of the trade on that when it comes to the roller to use.

LESLIE: Well, with a textured ceiling, depending on what it is, if it’s a firm, rigid texture you can go ahead and just use the very thick nap roller. But if it’s that popcorn texture that kind of comes off, it flakes against it if you rub on it, you want to get one of those foam rollers that are spirally sliced so that as you roll across the ceiling it sort of opens up to accommodate the texture. So depending on what kind you have, choose the proper roller and you’ll get a really good job.

FRANK: Thank you very much.

TOM: You’re welcome. Thanks so much for calling us, Frank, at 1-888-MONEY-PIT.