Here’s How to Fix “Crying Walls” — Plus What’s Actually Happening to Your Paint

Have you ever painted a room and stood back, impressed with the beautifully smooth job you did? You cut all the corners perfectly. You did even coats. It’s as good as a professional job.

But then, a few weeks pass, and you notice that your walls appear to be “crying.” Drips are running down your walls, making them look like they’re wet, even when they’re not. Why is this happening? And can you get rid of it? Or did you do something in the painting process that has forever ruined your walls? 

We asked the experts for answers and, not only did they have an explanation, but they also came armed with tips to make sure it doesn’t happen to you again.

The streaks running down your walls are called surfactant leaching, and they most often happen in painted bathrooms. Surfactants are water-soluble ingredients within latex paint that can be pulled out when there’s moisture in the room. When the surfactants leach, they leave “crying” streaks down your walls that appear as either darker, lighter, or discolored compared to your wall paint. They may be immediately visible, or you might notice them when the light hits the wall in a certain way.

Surfactant leaching has nothing to do with your painting ability. It’s when the surfactants come to the surface of the paint because moisture in the air pulls them out. Kassity Moore, owner of Ohio City Painting, explains, “This ‘dripping’ happens almost exclusively in bathrooms or areas in a home that receive a lot of interior moisture.”

Moore adds that this often occurs because the paint itself is not formulated for high moisture. Paints without the proper formulation are more likely to have surfactants that will leach and drip down the walls. “Sometimes it can show up as yellowish-orange droplets on the ceiling, too,” says Moore.

While they may look devastating — particularly after you’ve spent a ton of time and energy on painting your walls — crying walls are actually an easy fix. According to Moore, all you need to do is wipe down the walls with water and mild detergent or vinegar and the surfactant leaching should disappear easily. 

After letting the walls dry, it’s time to re-paint. “Find a paint that is specifically formulated for high-moisture areas, like kitchens and bathrooms,” says Moore. “Our go-to product for these spaces is Sherwin-Williams’ Interior Duration.”

Of course, the ideal way to deal with surfactant leaching is to prevent it from happening in the first place. “The best solution for surfactant leaching is to use high-quality paint with a high sheen or paint made for high-humidity rooms,” says Juliano Da Cruz, project manager of paint_LAB Painting and member of the Thumbtack Pro Advisory Board

Will Jo, owner of Soho Painters, adds that he prefers to use Benjamin Moore Aura Bath & Spa in high-moisture areas like bathrooms, kitchens, and laundry rooms, and he always properly primes the surface first. This is part, he says, is an exercise in patience. “You also want to let the paint cure fully before introducing moisture, which can take anywhere from 20 to 30 days,” says Jo.

That said, if your room doesn’t have proper ventilation, any attempts to clean and prevent surfactant leaching will be for naught. “Even after the paint has cured properly, areas with poor ventilation and sustained humidity can still draw out the surfactants from the paint,” says Jo. “Painting over these areas will not solve the issue because there will just be more surfactants for the moisture to pull.”

Beyond having excellent ventilation, you also have to use it properly. Da Cruz adds, “Keep a working fan on the ceiling or the windows open for at least an hour after someone finishes showering.”