Most of us want our home to look good and for rooms to be clean, free of moisture and unpleasant odors. However, and although we dedicate our efforts to keep them in good condition, the appearance of yellow drips on walls and ceilings is, many times, inevitable.
Yellow drips on walls are quite common and are a problem from an aesthetic point of view and a functional one. They appear in the corners where the wall and ceiling meet and are not always noticeable. So when we see them, it may be too late.
Sometimes, yellowish stains on the top of walls and ceilings can be related to tobacco consumption or kitchen smoke, and in that case, cleaning, sanitizing and painting will suffice.
In most cases, yellow spots result from humidity, and it is necessary to carry out interventions to eliminate the root problem. Therefore, before explaining how to remove yellow drips on walls and ceilings, you must know its origin.
Why do walls drip yellow?
The most common causes of the appearance of yellow spots on walls and ceilings are:
Humidity due to condensation
Humidity due to condensation is produced by the excessive accumulation of water vapor inside the home, being more common in bathrooms and kitchens. When these are continuous, they can manifest as yellowish spots with brown edges.
This type of humidity can be related:
- Poor ceiling or wall insulation produces a thermal bridge between interior and exterior walls.
- A lack/excess of ventilation in a room aggravates humidity and makes its repair more complicated.
Defects in waterproofing
This is another cause of damp yellow spots on the ceiling. When the waterproofing of a house is insufficient or defective, if quality materials were not used in the construction or if the execution project was not carried out correctly, the water can end up seeping, causing humidity that, in turn, generates yellow stains.
This situation is more common in old houses with roofs or terraces in which several factors are combined. Suppose a house has poor waterproofing and has low resistance to steam or water from the materials. In that case, the risk of yellow stains will be higher.
Fissures, cracks and leaks
The appearance of moisture stains can be related to small cracks that, although minimal, allow water to seep in and gradually corrode the roofing materials.
The problem with these cracks is that they are difficult to detect and prevent. For this reason, when we perceive the yellow stain, it is usually too late and it is necessary to act at a certain speed since, if we do not, the fissures will end up turning into cracks that will generate severe leaks or leaks.
Broken pipes
When a pipe breaks or cracks, it can cause humidity that affects both the house where it is located and the neighboring floors or houses or located on lower floors.
This situation is quite common in bathrooms due to leaking toilets and, above all, in showers and bathtubs and is closely related to the appearance of yellow stains on ceilings.
The main thing, in this case, is to detect the broken pipe to repair and, later, to fix the humidity problem to remove the yellow stains from the ceiling.
How to fix yellow drips on walls?
Removing yellow damp stains on the bathroom or kitchen ceiling is tricky. The intervention and the result will depend on the type of humidity and its origin and the material and possible damage to it.
The first step is to know if the yellow damp stains on walls are due to moisture from seepage or condensation.
Leaks usually cause darker and more marked moisture stains, while condensation stains are less severe (at least initially) and are accompanied by other symptoms such as fogging on the glass or drops of water on the window and door frames.
To eliminate condensation humidity, it is essential to check both the ventilation and the insulation of the room or building. Keep in mind that many buildings made in the seventies have excessive insulation that prevents water vapor from escaping to the outside normally.
The first thing you should do is sanitize the area and aerate until it is dry. If the humidity is superficial, painting and sealing together may be sufficient. However, if the humidity comes from inside the wall, it will be necessary to incorporate insulation (through injections or leaks) to eliminate humidity and yellow stains forever.
When yellow spots on walls and ceilings are due to leaks, you must locate the source (a broken pipe, leaks from a neighbor, leaks from rain, etc.) and then assess the damage caused. Remember that water can slowly degrade construction materials (bricks, concrete, mortars) and even reinforce floors, beams and columns, which can rust.
If so, you must contact an expert company in humidity and waterproofing to carry out the yellow drips on walls.
