LESLIE: Alright, we’ve got Donna in Minnesota who’s got a paint issue. What’s going on? Is your paint feeling depressed? (laughter)
DONNA: Yes, it is. (laughing) My problem is, we remodeled our bathroom 10 years ago because the plasterboard wasn’t mildew proof and we had tile on the wall.
TOM: OK.
DONNA: And, at one point, when my son was sitting in the tub, he literally put his foot through. So we remodeled it …
LESLIE: (overlapping voices) Oh, my goodness.
DONNA: … and we put mildew plasterboard on and retiled it. Now, on the outside of the shower stall, the paint is kind of eating into the plasterboard again.
TOM: The paint is eating into the plaster. Do you mean the paint is sort of bubbling off or …?
DONNA: Yes, it’s bubbling off and the plaster is kind of breaking …
TOM: Well, this is a – this is a moisture issue, Donna. You know, water and paint don’t mix. And if you’re getting a paint that’s bubbling, then what’s happening is moisture’s getting below that paint. And the thing to do here is to strip off all of the old paint, as much as possible, and apply an oil-based primer first – like a KILZ or something of that nature – because that is very adhesive and does a really good job of making sure the paint – which comes next after the primer – is going to stick to the wallboard or whatever material you’ve chosen to use in that area. But whenever you see that deterioration of the paint, then that’s what’s happening. And if your bathroom’s 10 years old, it’s definitely time for a new paint job.
Donna, thanks so much for calling us at 888-MONEY-PIT.
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