Totally baffling problem

[Susieq1]

Hi all
This is my first post and Ive hopefully posted in the right section and maybe someone can help me out.
About 3 or 4 months ago I had a decorator to paint my kitchen. He was really rubbish ( drips all over etc and painted every surface first coat in 2 hours flat ) so agreed he didnt return.
Paint used was Johnstones Stainaway as I smoke in the room.
I decided to wait a few months for my usual decorator to do the job.
A few weeks later ( cant remember exactly ) I noticed brown patches on the ceiling - sort of like " splashes" like someone had thrown coffee.
Now theyre just all over the ceiling and walls - literally all over everywhere.
I have white gloss kitchen units and half of them were absolutely covered in like brown splash/drip marks.
They wipe off but come back. Its definately not from cooking.
I did wash all the walls and coving with Zinssers cleaner but went over it with water. I didnt wash the ceiling at all.
The marks on the walls etc are quite stubborn to scrub off so ive painted 2 coats over a small patch to see if it comes back through and it does look like its browning again after 3 weeks.
Its absolutely puzzling especially the kitchen units and to keep coming back.
Theres no wetness or condensation in the room.
If anyone has any idea of what this could be I would greatly appreciate it .
Thank you

[aeromech3]

Very strange but just a guess: Nicotine stains can be quite stubborn needing a de-greaser and perhaps the paint was old or reacted to the nicotine, likely when you washed the surfaces, splashes carried the nicotine to your units.
In the days before cigarette smoking was banned on airliners, we had a devils job removing these stains, often goop, from the below floor structure where the airflow exited the cabin.

[dynamod]

Sealing nicotine staining is not always a straightforward job.

The reappearance of staining suggests that it's not all come off. The Zinsser spray cleaner is pretty good, but a far more effective way to remove nicotine (and it's not pleasant I'm afraid) is very hot water and sugar soap, made to a strong solution. This can be brushed on and 'worked up' (a scrubbing action) with a 4" brush, then sponged off with clean warm water. Both the cleaning solution and clean water buckets need changing frequently. It's an unpleasant process, but no stainblock stands a chance, unless every square inch of a nicotine damaged room is cleaned properly. Most decorators dread those jobs, but it's essential if paint is to work

It's tricky to advise blind, but if more stains keep appearing, it still going to need cleaned, and blocked. Zinsser Coverstain would be my preference here, though BIN will also work. Nicotine staining is amongst the most aggressive contamination to hold back, and as much as there may be water based stainblockers available, I would still go with an alkyd or shellac based product.

Thorough cleaning really is the key in these situations though. Half-done preparation, or just straight on with a stainblock primer is going to fail.

Did the first guy come recommended? He sounds pretty unprofessional in all honesty. How much time was left between coats, as if the first hadn't dried fully, the second would simply reactive it, leading to failure.

[dynamod]

BTW - nicotine contamination retards drying times of alkyd based paints quite dramatically, so unless paint goes onto a clean surface, the re-coat times on the tin are largely meaningless, and paint failure will result.

[dewaltdisney]

I remember talking to a guy who did pub decorating and he said the nicotine removal was the worst part. I think he used sprayers and sugar soap to coat the ceiling and then they used brooms to scrub it down respraying as they went. He said the gloop was terrible and by the time they washed back the water was brown. All their suits, plastic floor coverings etc reeked and it all had to go in the bin. Of course, this was before smoking was banned in pubs.

DWD

[dynamod]

Unless I know the people already, I normally body swerve this sort of stuff these days.

You have to have plastic coveralls, gloves and eye protection. The tar especially is horrible.....and ceilings are just appalling. Try controlling water and see what happens. Everything needs so heavily covered as well, plus the sheets normally have to go to the laundry after use Or the bin.

The water that went down the drain was the colour of dark mahogany.

If smokers saw that aspect, they would quit yesterday.

[Tom d'Angler]

Unless I know the people already, I normally body swerve this sort of stuff these days.

Same. I'm an ex-smoker (9 years and counting...) and I hate the stuff now.

Mrs d'A's older sister smokes like a chimney. Last time I stayed over, the fug was so bad that I had to use Mrs d'A's inhaler as I was having what seemed like an asthma attack. I told Mrs d'A that I wouldn't be staying over at her sister's ever again and I've stuck to that. The place is absolutely filthy too, full of dust that is actually stuck to the oily nicotine-covered surfaces. Her sister says she's not bothered and then complains that nobody visits her any more.

Giving up smoking isn't at all difficult. I tried and failed to give up several times and then I read that the chemical addiction to cigarettes leaves your body after just 48 hours of stopping and from that point onwards it's nothing more than willpower. As soon as I read that I gave up and haven't even been tempted since. Mrs d'A continued to smoke for another seven years after I stopped, although none of us ever smoked in the house, and she smelt horrible whenever she came in from the garden after having a fag. She was quite belligerent too whenever she saw anyone wrinkling theirs noses after she'd been smoking, and she made all sorts of excuses to not quit. The thing that made her stop was the thought of going without a cigarette on the long flight that we were going to make to visit our eldest son in Australia. Unfortunately, she has the odd one now and again when she's been drinking in the company of people who still smoke and she ponces one or two off them, despite me asking her to at least pay the other person for them as I know they're not cheap.