How to Paint Over Water Stains
With all of the rain that we have had in Atlanta this year, thousands of buildings have water stains that have come through roofs and ceilings. I want to give my readers tips on how to fix the stains…for good.
The first, and MOST IMPORTANT, step to fixing water stains is to fix the leaks! This is imperative. If you have not fixed the leaks, then stop reading now. The stains will return during the next water intrusion.
Now that you have fixed the leaks, we can fix the water stains. Here’s how you do it.
1. Repair or replace the drywall; reapply drywall tape, joint compound, and sand everything smooth. If the drywall is warped or is crumbling, I recommend replacing the drywall. If you try to prime and paint bad drywall, it isn’t going to look good.
2. Choose a good stain blocking primer. Many waterborne primers say that they seal water stains, but my experience proves that they fail quite often. Alkyd primers are better, but I prefer a shellac-based primer. We have great success using Duron’s Terminator 3 or Zinsser’s BIN primers. Both of these products come in regular and aerosol cans. Atlanta Painting Pro tip: These products are very thin and will run if you put too much on. Put light coats. If you get any runs, wait for the coating to dry and sand out the runs.
3. After you have repaired the drywall, the hard part is done. It’s time to prime. Prime the areas according to the manufacturer’s specifications on the can. If the stain is really bad, you can put 2 coats. These primers dry very quickly so a second coat can be applied in less than an hour.
4. Repaint the area. I wouldn’t count on being able to touch up these repairs, so be prepared to repaint the wall or ceiling corner-to-corner.
I hope that this has helped. GreenWave Solutions is the best painting contractors in Atlanta. Call us for a free estimate. We offer painters in Alpharetta, painters in Sandy Springs, Painters in Atlanta, and more! We also have energy star roofing in Atlanta, radiant heat barriers, and window contractors in Atlanta.