water stains on ceilings - Solved

How do I cover up stains / marks on my ceiling from an old leak?

Pictured: A typical water stain, now dry but the stain re-occurring through the paint.

Old water stains can be notoriously tricky to deal with, read on for the permanent fix.
Stains can be particularly noticeable during cold or damp weather, sometimes even after re-painting the old stain you thought was dealt with can re-appear.

We recommend thoroughly treating the stain with a sealant before carrying out any decoration, here’s the professional way to do it…

Buy some P.V.A. (polyvinyl Acetate), otherwise known as wood glue or white glue and sold as general purpose adhesive.

B&Q brand shown but others are just as good. B&Q link Wickes Homebase Focus Wilkinsons

Mix  1 part P.V.A. to 3 parts water.. ( i.e. One cup of P.V.A. to 3 cups of water.)  Mix well so no lumps are present and it resembles milk, apply with a brush or roller and allow to dry. Apply a second coat if staining is bad then decorate as normal.

Coverage:
Expect around 3 litres of diluted P.V.A to cover 9 meters square or 100 square feet.