Are you noticing bubbles on the walls of your home or is the paint peeling off gradually? Now is the time to find out why.
The paint on the walls of a house has one duty which is to make the house look clean and bright. Whenever a house is newly painted, homeowners usually feel that sense of satisfaction as if a reset button was pushed to make the house sparkling again. So for the first few weeks and months, everything behaves exactly how it should: the surfaces of the walls are smooth, colors remain even and there are no imperfections or obvious bumps on the walls. But after some time, you may start seeing changes. At first, the changes might be so small that you may not spot them when you’re far from the wall. It could start as a small ripple near the corner of a wall or you might see a faint bubble in the paints at the lower parts of the walls. These changes usually don’t look like something to worry about so you might assume they’re one of those minor imperfections that happen as time passes. But before you can say JACK ROBINSON, those small bubbles have become large patches, the bulging parts have started peeling off and what you thought was a flawless paint finish is now looking like a total disaster. And the most confusing aspect is that these bubbles and peels do not happen everywhere, instead, you’ll see them in specific areas like near bathroom doors or in areas close to the ceiling. At this point, many homeowners start asking the right questions; why is the bubble appearing here and what is causing the bubble in the first place?
Paints do not just fail on their own. When you start seeing bubbles and imperfections, it means the paint is reacting to changes happening under it and these changes could be as a result of a shift in temperature and presence of moisture or it could even be because of the way the walls were prepared before painting. So while you might think it’s just a cosmetic issue that can be fixed by just repainting, it’s actually more than that. Those bubbles and flakes are your paint way of telling you there’s an underlying problem in the environment that needs to be detected and fixed.
What Does Peeling or Bubbling Paint Actually Mean?
When the paint on the walls of a house peels or bubbles, many homeowners usually heap the blame on the workmanship or the quality of the paint. They’ll assume that the problem is because the product quality is bad or because the workman applied the paint in the wrong way. While this may sometimes be the case, it’s not always the full story.
The major reason why paints fail is because there’s loss of adhesion between the paint and the wall. When you apply paint correctly on the walls, it’s supposed to form a tight bond with the surface beneath it and that bond is what makes the finish smooth and stable. So what does a correct paint application look like? Before professional painters apply paint on a wall, they usually ensure that the wall’s surface is dry and smooth. If this condition is not met, the bond will be weak and the paint will not stick properly; that’s when you may start experiencing bubbles and peels.
Bubbles on a wall is one of the easiest signs that something is interfering with the bonding between the wall and the paint. A bubble is formed when small pockets of air or moisture is trapped under the paint layer. This air or moisture creates pressure under the paint and as the pressure builds up, it starts to push the paint outward and what you see is a bubble or blister.
Peeling usually takes place long after bubbles have occured. As soon as the bond becomes compromised, the paint will no longer be able to hold onto the wall and you’ll notice that the paint will start cracking and it’ll eventually separate from the wall. In other words, peeling takes place when the paint starts falling off. So what started as a small ripple has now turned into a flaking or exposed surface.
Now that we understand what bubbling and peeling means, it’s important to reemphasize that paint doesn’t just lose its grip because it wants to: there’s always something responsible for the bonding failure. Some of the factors responsible are moisture as a result of condensation on cooler areas or residue left behind before a new painting was done. So instead of seeing peeling and bubbling as a problem, it’s better to look at it like a symptom.
Science Behind Paint Failure
When you look at the paint bubbling problem in your room, you might see it as a random bad luck, but there’s a predictable pattern under it and it all comes down to how temperature or moisture interact with surfaces inside your house.
Let’s start with the first reality check. Do you know that the air inside your house is never completely dry? Yes, there’s always some amount of moisture in the air inside your house and your daily activities even add more moisture without you knowing. For instance, when you’re cooking, steam comes out from the boiling pot and fills the space in your kitchen and sometimes the steam may even spread to other parts of the house. Other activities like bathing and breathing also add their own quota of moisture to the air inside your house. The moisture released by these activities doesn’t just sit still, instead, it moves about with the air (moist air is also called humid air) and it eventually comes in contact with surfaces like ceilings, window areas and walls… These surfaces don’t usually have the same temperature, some surfaces might be colder while other surfaces may be warmer. If you’re very observant, you’ll notice that some parts of your house like the exterior walls, corner of the room and areas near the window are usually colder. When the moist air in your home comes in contact with these colder surfaces, the air will no longer be able to hold the moisture so it’ll release it and that is what we often call condensation. One of the materials that condensation can easily be noticed on is glasses. But condensation doesn’t always happen on only glass windows, it can form in hidden parts like under painted walls or even inside the wall structure.
Now picture condensation happening under your newly painted walls. This moisture will have nowhere to go and overtime, it’ll build up and start pushing the paint layers to form bubbles. If the process continues for a long time, the bubble will continue to expand and it’ll eventually burst and the paint will start peeling off.
So, the next time you see a bubbling or peeling paint, just remember that moisture is accumulating under the paint and the paint is struggling to hold the surface to itself.
Common Areas Where Paint Peels
Have you noticed that paints do not just peel randomly? Yes, paint peeling is very frustrating but it doesn’t just affect the entire walls in a room, instead it is found in specific spots or rooms in a house. It is a very selective problem that shows up only spots where there’s an underlying issue. Once you understand the common areas where it usually springs up, it’ll be easier to understand what is going on behind the paint. Let’s look at some rooms where paint peeling is common in most homes.
Bathroom and Shower: If there’s one room in a house where paints peel fastest, it would be none other than the bathroom and it’s not hard to see why. Whenever you take a shower, especially a warm bath, moisture-heavy air is released into the bathroom and if most of that air doesn’t find an escape either through the windows or bathroom extractor fan, it’ll settle and eventually find its way onto ceilings and walls. If your walls or ceilings are repeatedly exposed to this moisty air, the paint will start to weaken and after some time you’ll start seeing bubbles on the walls near your ceiling. As long as steam builds up regularly and there’s limited ventilation in the bathroom, your paint wouldn’t stand a chance.
Aside from the steam effect, water splashes can affect the walls behind or around the sink.
Cooking Areas Inside The Kitchen: The kitchen environment is slightly different from the bathroom conditions because the kitchen is not just exposed to moisty air, it also has to deal with heat and grease. When you’re boiling water or simmering pots, steam is released and when you’re cleaning or washing kitchen items, water splashes around the sink. And that’s not all, let’s now add the temperature fluctuation into the mix and what you’ll get is a paint struggling to bond with the walls.
Window Frames and Exterior Walls: During colder months, the windows and exterior walls are usually very cool and this makes them an ideal spot for condensation to form. Whenever warm indoor air comes in contact with your windows, it’ll be converted into very tiny water droplets. Sometimes you’ll see the water spots on the surface of the window glass and other times you may not even see anything. Regardless, the repeated exposure to condensation affects or weakens the paint that’s why you see paint peeling along the window edges. The same thing happens to walls that are facing the exterior environment. Exterior walls are the best spot for condensation because of the temperature variation between the indoor and outdoor environments. And when the wall is soaked, it becomes difficult for the paint to stick to it.
Bedroom Ceilings: Breathing is the major humid air producing activity in a bedroom. Since warm air naturally moves upward, as you breathe, the moisty air from your breath gradually moves towards the ceiling. By the time you wake up in the morning the ceiling has been exposed to hours of damp air. As time goes by, the repeated exposure begins to weaken the paint and it’ll start peeling off.
Near Plumbing and Hidden Pipes: Another common spot where paint usually peels off in a home is the plumbing areas. If you notice peeling or bubbling on a wall that contains pipe then it means there’s either a slow leak or condensation is happening around the pipes.
Common Causes Of Peeling or Bubbling Paint
Excess Moisture in the Air: Moisty air is one of the most common reasons for peeling and bubbling paint and it is also the most overlooked cause because many homeowners are either unaware of its impact or do not even know about it at all. The moisture content in the air inside a home can increase during normal everyday activity like bathing, cooking, breathing or even drying clothes. If this moisture has nowhere to go, it’ll sit on cooler wall surfaces and slowly weaken the bond between the paint and walls. And when the paint eventually reacts, it does so by bubbling and peeling off.
Poor Ventilation: Moisty air is not the only culprit when it comes to paint peeling in a house, poor ventilation is an accomplice. If there’s proper ventilation, the humid air created from everyday activity will have a place to escape to, but if there’s poor ventilation, the air will be trapped inside the room. In a poorly ventilated house, the air never fully dries out and if paint stays in a damp environment for a long time, it is more likely to form bubbles or peel off.
Damp or Wet Walls: In some cases, the problem isn’t just moist air, rather, it’s as a result of a leak from pipes or even rising damp on the walls. Since the trapped moisture is coming from inside the wall, it pushes the paint out and forms bubbles or peels off after some time.
Paints on a Dirty or Glossy Surface: Sometimes, the peeling paint problem in your room is not caused by moisture but by poor surface preparation. Before you apply paint to a wall, it’s necessary to clean the surface. If there are things like grease or dust on the wall your paint wouldn’t bond properly. The same thing applies to glossy surfaces. It’s difficult for most paints to bond with shiny surfaces so it’ll be a good idea to sand or treat the surface first before applying the paint. If you apply the paint without treatment it’ll leave weak spots behind your painted walls and as time goes by the weak points will start pushing the paint outward.
Painting Over Existing Damaged Paint: Many homeowners do a quick DIY job by painting over already existing damaged paint with the hope that the imperfections will disappear but it doesn’t always end well. Since the layer underneath is already weak, the new paint will inherit the instability and as the old paint continues to fail, it’ll pull the new paint along.
Can Mold Grow Behind Peeling Paint?
The answer is an absolute YES. Mold can grow behind your painted walls. For mold to grow, there has to be heavy moisture in the air or long term dampness in the room. Once moisture finds its way behind your paint, it creates the perfect condition for mold growth.
How To Tell What’s Causing the Paint Peeling Problem
Whenever most homeowners see their paint bubbling or peeling, the first thing that usually comes to their mind is to get a scraper to remove the damaged paint and repaint the wall so it can retain its former beauty. Although this is not a terrible idea, it’s also not the best approach. When you notice peeling paint, it’s advisable to take a step back to observe what’s happening and why the paint is peeling off in the first. If you’re able to determine what’s causing the bubbling, it’ll be easier to proffer a lasting solution instead of just rushing to paint the wall and experiencing another round of peeling in a short time. So how can you tell what’s happening to your paint?
Look at the Pattern of Damage: The first point of call is the places where the paint damage is happening. You have to carefully observe the way the walls are peeling. If it is peeling in one specific area then the problem could be caused by condensation or a leak in the pipes inside the wall. But if you notice that the bubbling is widespread then it could be a general humidity or ventilation issue. The pattern of damage can tell the story of what’s happening to your paint, so watch closely.
Check When It Gets Worse: Timing is also as important as the location of peeling. After you’ve assessed the peeling spot, you may have to take a little more time to observe different seasons and time of the day. You need to check if the bubbling is more pronounced after a hot shower or if the peeling usually becomes worse during colder months. It’s also a good idea to check the condition of the walls in the morning and observe if it improves later in the day. These small observations can help you determine if your daily activities are contributing to the peeling issue or if the problem is caused by other environmental and seasonal changes.
Do A Touch and Texture Check: Sometimes, your eyes might not be able to tell you everything that is happening behind the paint so you might need to run your hands over the affected areas. Check if the damaged paint area feels soft and damp or if it’s flaking away easily. If the paint feels soft and damp then the problem is most likely being caused by moisture within the walls. But if it is dry and flaky it’s highly probable that the wall surface was not well prepared before painting was done or the paint layer is aging.
Pay Attention To Other Subtle Signs: Paints do not always peel in isolation, sometimes, there are other clues that can point you to the cause of the paint failure. For instance, if you often notice condensation in your windows every morning, it means that there’s high humidity inside your room. Another way to know that there’s dampness or high humidity in your home is if you encounter a lingering musty smell.
You don’t always need professional tools or inspection to know what’s causing the failure of the paint on your walls. With keen and careful observation you might be able to determine the problem even before a professional comes to fix it. And sometimes, you don’t even need a professional. Changing some habits will do the trick.
How To Properly Fix Peeling or Bubbling Paint
If you’re determined to get a lasting solution or do not want the problem to return then you have to follow through with the process and avoid skipping any steps. The goal is not just to improve how your walls look but to restore conditions that will allow your paint to last longer.
Fix the Underlying Issue: Before you think about repainting your walls, make sure you fish out the issue and address it. If the problem is due to moisture, then you can take steps like improving ventilation, using a dehumidifier to reduce humidity or fixing leaking pipes. This step is like the foundation, if you skip it, you’ll be faced with another round of paint peeling in the nearest future.
Remove All Damaged Paint: The moment you’re done finding or fixing the cause, the next thing you should do is to remove any leftover, loose or weak paint that’s still stuck to the wall. One simple way to do this is by scraping the walls and sanding the edges to get a clean surface for repainting.
Allow the Surface to Dry: Now that the surface has been scraped, the next step is to allow it to dry thoroughly. Even though the wall feels dry to the touch, it’s advisable to still give it some time to dry. Open windows and improve the ventilation so that any moisture present on the wall can be removed.
Prepare the Surface: Once you’re sure that the wall is dry, you should proceed with the surface preparation by cleaning it to remove dust or any other residue that can hinder adhesion. It’s also at this stage that you’ll add a primer if the surface is porous or uneven.
Use the Right Paint: Paints are not built for the same conditions. If you want to paint areas that are prone to moisture like your bathroom and kitchen, you have to make use of paints that are specifically designed to cope in highly humid conditions. Quality paint equals quality outcome so don’t go for cheaper paints just because you want to save costs now, otherwise, you might end up spending more for a fresh painting.
