Mods, if this isn't the best location please relocate or if this is something generally not acceptable here please nuke and let me know (and please accept my apologies in advance!).

I am doing some work in my bathroom that has a skylight. I noticed the paint peeling up close to the skylight. I can scrape/sand/paint the wood frame of the skylight no problem. However, the paint is bubbling and peeling in some spots of the drywall and I can scrape some of it off but in general it's not coming off easily. See photo (discoloration is from scraping with a taping knife). I am looking for advice on what to do here without doing a ton of work. Not on the table: replacing the sheetrock. I am looking for a 5 year repair here as I don't plan on staying in NJ any longer than I have to. Any thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

Five year repair?  I would most likely cover it with 1/4 inch rock.  But there are other finish products that you could buy in sheets and cut to fit with minimal edge finish issues.

1 hour ago, EdF said:

Five year repair?  I would most likely cover it with 1/4 inch rock.  But there are other finish products that you could buy in sheets and cut to fit with minimal edge finish issues.

I probably should have also said that I am trying to avoid any serious mud work.

Amazingly (to me anyway) I was able to cleanly scrape away the paint in the regions that were bubbling. It doesn't appear they used green/purple board but maybe my house pre-dates that. Also, it doesn't look like they used primer as I was able to scrape down to the drywall surface.

My plan now is to put on a thin coat of mud to seal and transition the scraped edge, put on two coats of a good mold-resistant primer and then paint two top coats. Given the location any minor imperfections should not be very noticeable.

Might suggest getting on the roof and checking, caulking the skylight. Maybe some moisture seeping in/causing the paint peeling.

10 minutes ago, Brisco said:

Might suggest getting on the roof and checking, caulking the skylight. Maybe some moisture seeping in/causing the paint peeling.

That's a fair question. The roof is getting close to needing replacement. I can see that the gaskets on the inside are getting stiffer. Also, the user of the bathroom takes ridiculously hot and long showers so the skylight opening is effectively a chimney for hot, moist air, which probably condenses when it hits the cooler window and then drips back down. Also, attention to detail in this part of the construction (like many others sadly) was not at the top of their list so there's plenty of spots for said condensation to collect and pool a bit, some of which I will try to correct as part of this repair.

To the extent that this is moisture related, it's most likely that it the result of steam gathering in the opening to the skylight.  How's the exhaust fan in the bathroom?  Do you use it consistently?  Does everyone in the house?  If the fan is falling short of it's work, try leaving the door open while in the shower and for a while after you are done in the bathroom or leaving the window open  a crack.

3 minutes ago, EdF said:

To the extent that this is moisture related, it's most likely that it the result of steam gathering in the opening to the skylight.  How's the exhaust fan in the bathroom?  Do you use it consistently?  Does everyone in the house?  If the fan is falling short of it's work, try leaving the door open while in the shower and for a while after you are done in the bathroom or leaving the window open  a crack.

We use the exhaust fan consistently but it sits at ceiling level so I have to wonder how much it actually helps as the skylight is another 6' above the fan. Plus, the edge on the skylight opening is closer to the shower than the fan by at least a foot. I've been asking the primary user of the shower to leave the door open after done but that's throwing water in the wind because children... Also, the skylight doesn't open, which begs the question: what's the point other than making things unnecessarily complicated? Last, I suppose I am also to blame here as I drill out the shower head restrictor openings more than stock because the pressure is terrible so there's more water flowing to create steam, etc.

 

The paint may have been applied without a primer.  Unless there is obvious moisture infiltration such as a softening or staining of the drywall, give it a light sanding then apply a dedicated primer, not a paint/primer combo. Skim coat to level if necessary, Prime again then top coat.

2 minutes ago, NickySantoro said:

The paint may have been applied without a primer.  Unless there is obvious moisture infiltration such as a softening or staining of the drywall, give it a light sanding then apply a dedicated primer, not a paint/primer combo. Skim coat to level if necessary, Prime again then top coat.

That's a bingo. It definitely wasn't primed. No staining or soft spots that I could find so what you suggested was exactly my plan.

In the "gift that keeps on giving" dept, I started this project because of some software drywall right on top of the shower/tub surround. When I started looking at it (i.e. cutting stuff out) I found out that the drywall was 1/2" too short and their solution was to run paper tape across the gap, mud it up, caulk the bottom, and call it a day. The caulk dried out and failed (20+ years old) and softened up the paper tape. I solved this bit using plaster of paris, though I still need to sand and paint.

Thanks everyone for your input, much appreciated!!!

 

On 1/24/2021 at 4:24 PM, Xtors said:

We use the exhaust fan consistently but it sits at ceiling level so I have to wonder how much it actually helps as the skylight is another 6' above the fan. Plus, the edge on the skylight opening is closer to the shower than the fan by at least a foot. I've been asking the primary user of the shower to leave the door open after done but that's throwing water in the wind because children... Also, the skylight doesn't open, which begs the question: what's the point other than making things unnecessarily complicated? Last, I suppose I am also to blame here as I drill out the shower head restrictor openings more than stock because the pressure is terrible so there's more water flowing to create steam, etc.

 

Exhaust fan needs to be at the highest part of the ceiling or water will condense at the skylight. Also use Benjamin Moore Aura bath and spa paint it will not absorb moisture like normal paint. Well with the 65$ a gallon price.

1 hour ago, Redlines said:

Exhaust fan needs to be at the highest part of the ceiling or water will condense at the skylight. Also use Benjamin Moore Aura bath and spa paint it will not absorb moisture like normal paint. Well with the 65$ a gallon price.

Agreed but I am way too lazy to relocate it at this point.

I will definitely check out that paint. Appreciate the tip.

Speaking of paint, I've had a few instances with recent repairs where applying primer with a roller lifts of small blotches of drywall compound. I do the standard surface prep (good cure time, sanding, TSP, cleaning, wiping, etc.). It seems like the primer is very thick and the surface tension strong enough to just pull bits off. My workaround was to brush on the first pass as they were small regions and then roll on the second coat, which worked and also looked ok. Would love any theories on this.

On 1/24/2021 at 2:49 PM, Brisco said:

Might suggest getting on the roof and checking, caulking the skylight. Maybe some moisture seeping in/causing the paint peeling.

This!

On 1/24/2021 at 3:04 PM, Xtors said:

the user of the bathroom takes ridiculously hot and long showers

When I was having this "problem" I found a particularly effective technique of after about 10-15 minutes, going down to the basement and shutting off the hot water. 

12 minutes ago, YankeeSC said:

When I was having this "problem" I found a particularly effective technique of after about 10-15 minutes, going down to the basement and shutting off the hot water. 

Old school. I like it!!!

When I was growing up my father was on a "navy shower" kick for a while. Something tells me if I did either of these I'd never be spoken to again.

 

On 1/25/2021 at 5:49 PM, Redlines said:

Exhaust fan needs to be at the highest part of the ceiling or water will condense at the skylight.

I don't think that will make a difference. The condensation on the skylight is probably more from the temperature differential of the room to the outside. The ceiling has more insulation, so it won't react as much.