Bathroom Walls weeping... HELP - Contractor Talk - Professional Construction and Remodeling Forum

hbl164 · 05-15-2009, 01:36 PM

I'm hoping someone can help me identify this problem and provide a solution.

Problem: Bathroom walls weeping when shower running, with a yellowish sticky residue on baseboard trim and top of shower/tub fiberglass unit.

Background Info: Bathroom was painted in Dec-2007. The house was built in 2001 and had 2 previous owners; 2001-2002 and 2002-2007 (smoker). The house was bank-owned when I purchased so I couldn't consult the previous owner(s) as to prior painting, wallpaper, etc. At closing, the bathroom walls were white. When prepping to paint, a light blue paint was found under window covering hardware. We know it was painted twice (blue, then white). Wallpaper? Unknown.

Material: Shower/tub is fiberglass unit with shower curtain.

Ventilation: Window 2 ft from shower/tub; Exhaust fan above, directlyy in front of window. Even if the bathroom door is open, the window is open and the fan is on, there is moisture on the walls within 30 seconds of starting the water.

Is this nicotine oil or old wallpaper glue or perhaps something else?

WisePainter · 05-15-2009, 04:12 PM

The answer is somewhere in the question, I just know it is!

sparehair · 05-15-2009, 10:50 PM

I think that brown weeping color is from the drywall mud. If they buy the cheap chinese mud it'll create all kinds of staining problems. I think your going to need to sheetrock the bathroom again with the finest montenegran sheetrock and mud you can find.

naptown CR · 05-15-2009, 10:57 PM

Could this be a golden shower?

Dustyrose · 05-15-2009, 11:07 PM

Is this nicotine?

Like Wise said your answer is probably in the question. Do you smoke?

Static Design · 05-15-2009, 11:41 PM

Time for some kilzzzzzz......

Frankawitz · 05-16-2009, 06:09 AM

I would say that bathroom was used as a smokers hind out. I would use TSP it comes in a spray bottle at Home Depot in the Paint dept. spray the walls and ceiling down then wash off, the Nicotine is what your looking at. I just finished a job that the owner was a heavy smokers, I had to two coat to get the paint to cover it. good luck

www.frankawitz.net

Mellison · 05-16-2009, 07:23 AM

Actually the answer was in the question.

The fact that it most often when the shower is running leads me to believe that this is what a Benjamin Moore Chemist explained to me as "surfactant leaching". It occurs when drying time is inhibited (steamy shower / little ventalation in a bathroom etc.)
Read on: http://www.flood.com/Flood/TipsandTo...ching+Fact.htm

The good news is nothing wong was done on your part and it should wipe off quite easily.

naptown CR · 05-16-2009, 07:35 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hbl164

Ventilation: Window 2 ft from shower/tub; Exhaust fan above, directlyy in front of window. Even if the bathroom door is open, the window is open and the fan is on, there is moisture on the walls within 30 seconds of starting the water.

I think part of the answer is here. What is the room temperature of the bathroom and what are the walls constructed of. If the room is cold and he starts a hot shower particularly with certain kinds of ultra low flow shower heads that have a fine needle spray these things will put out a lot of steam which could be condensing on the cold walls. This is not to say there is not surfactant leaching but constant moisture on the walls will eventually take its toll on the drywall plaster whatever.

Darwin · 05-16-2009, 07:36 AM

I ran into this before. In my opinion, it is the oil in the drywall mud that has seeped through due to added moisture. I have also seen this in the master bedroom of this same house. Just tear out and redo with premium product.

Mellison · 05-16-2009, 07:56 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Darwin

I ran into this before. In my opinion, it is the oil in the drywall mud that has seeped through due to added moisture. I have also seen this in the master bedroom of this same house. Just tear out and redo with premium product.

If this were the case it would not be affecting the trim.

Surfactant leaching is quite prevelant here due the large number of small bathrooms . I see it alot. Just a simple wipe down and that is that. The only solution is repainting with a different color and hope the pigments and hardeners bond well or simply give it time.

Darwin · 05-16-2009, 08:20 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mellison

If this were the case it would not be affecting the trim.

Surfactant leaching is quite prevelant here due the large number of small bathrooms . I see it alot. Just a simple wipe down and that is that. The only solution is repainting with a different color and hope the pigments and hardeners bond well or simply give it time.

great point i didn't factor in..

DRC · 05-17-2009, 09:49 AM

This thread is similar to another one about peeling paint. They both have asked why the problem is happening. Why isn't going to fix the problem. They really want to know how to make it go away.

sorry (not really) I'm in a nit picky bastard kind of mood this morning.

hbl164 · 05-18-2009, 11:37 AM

Ok first, smoking isn't the issue. We're non-smokers. Second, it's not 'affecting the trim' but rather the residue is accumulating on the trim, as well as the top of the enclosure. It's dripping and the 'end point' is the collection zone. If there was no trim, the residue would be on the floor.

My question is most definitely 'why' because I do not want this problem to happen again after repainting. We are repainting the room to address the situation. First we're going to wash down the walls and then use a paint more suited to the moisture situation in the bathroom. The temperature of the bathroom is consistent with the rest of the house, typically around 67 degrees when using the heat and 72 degrees when using the a/c.

Thanks for all the ideas. Much appreciated.