Caramel colour speckles on bathroom walls and ceiling after painting

Obviously I would need to see it. But…. My suspicion is this is nicotine. Depending on how long you have been in the property ,maybe the last owner smoked. Sugar soap Apply oil based undercoat to everything then paint,minimum 2 coats. Buy ‘proper paint’,not diy weak nonsense. Good luck!! Regards,Mark.

Absolutely agree with Mark; for Health and Safety reasons, modern paint is all acrylic (water based) as opposed to good old fashioned oil based paints. This means anything underneath can blead through - including nicotine, varnish, marker pen, rust, and anything else that is not water based. If you can get to a proper trade paint supplier in future you will get the correct paint for the job; meanwhile, as Mark says, sand back and cover with an oil based undercoat.

No need for oil based these days. You can use a shellac primer for blocking most stains and it's meths based and therefore non toxic (unless you start drinking it). Solvent based paints should be avoided as much as possible.

Hi there, Mark gave a good answer. I am making another suggestion... As long as there is no water ingress or high levels of condensation (the droplets can stain the wall and bleed through any emulsion) Do as Mark said and wash down with sugar soap and rinse. When dry, apply "Zinsser Cover Stain" to the entire area (corner to corner, do not spot-in here and there) two coats will blot out the staining (about 4hrs drying time between coats). When dry preferably the next day, apply two coats of the appropriate emulsion (durable matt, acrylic eggshell or a branded "kitchen and bathroom" paint. The first coat of emulsion will take some time to dry as the "Cover Stain" is oil based and this slows the drying time of the emulsion. When the 1st coat is dry apply the 2nd coat and one more if necessary. This is a "belt and braces" approach and more expensive than undercoat but should give you a satisfactory finish. All the best, Richard.

These speckled spots are caused with mould and steam in the bathroom which is very common . The walls and ceiling require mould cleaning then undercoat in oil base paint or stain block to seal then 2 coats of anti mould paint thanks Steve