Weird patterns on window trim?

previous owner did not sand, spackle woodwork Just painted over the damage

It looks like whoever painted the trim didn’t sand the filler off well. It doesn’t look like damage caused it. Just sloppy workmanship.

I'm pretty sure moisture lifted the paint. How old is your home? Have you chipped away at it? It could be that maybe it was stained, varnished and had water damage. The paint was a "one color" coverup

It could be that the windows were not caulked very well and over a winter, condensation. My mother had an older home and the windows would ice up, melt and it caused this kind of damage to her wood work. She just scraped and painted over it.

That is how I came to the conclusion on yours

I agree that definitely looks caused by moisture to me. If you sand it down, prime and then repaint that should remove the weirdness.

You can fix that by just sanding off the paint, you may need to use a scraper on those raised bits. Sand it smooth and then repaint it. I would use trim paint that you can scrub!

Thanks everyone - first home owners moved in in 2012 and we took possession in 2017. I’ll take your tips into consideration to fix things up and hopefully improve!

Thanks again.

Yes moisture! The question is though, is the problem fixed? I would get someone to come out and look at the windows and check them to make sure it's not still allowing moisture in before you do work to fix the paint and molding.. Good luck!

Is your home absorbing water through the walls/windows? Have you experienced wet sills?

The home is too new for steam radiators to have caused this type of damage.

Have you determined the relative humidity in this home? Have you tried running a dehumidifier set to 40%?

Hi everyone - thanks again for the input. We have a central natural gas furnace in the house with a whole house humidifier attached. It’s set properly now, but I wonder if the previous home owners had it turned up way too high at one point which caused some of this damage (especially if it was very cold out in the winter - would have been a ton of condensation to deal with). The markings seem like they haven’t changed at all in the close to three years that we’ve lived here so I don’t feel like it’s an ongoing concern, but always possible! Might try with just one of the windows first and see how it makes out over a bit of time before I tackle the others.

It could be moisture and the wood and paint buckled or it could be sparkle and that wasn't sanded well. However, the only way to really tell would be to sand the spots down. You'll know right away. Good luck!

Looks like MDF and not wood. Moisture has gotten it wet and it swelled.

Yes it looks like the wood has been affected my moisture. I think you would have to replace it if you want it gone.

Thanks everyone. Appreciate the input!

Check the moisutre with a moisture meter. If none, spray water on a wndow and surrounding area from the outside, wait a couple of hours and retest. No use repairing the inside problem you pictured if there is a continuing problem.

Here's a link to one meter, I'm sure there are other brands that would work equally well. https://www.thedrive.com/reviews/29020/best-moisture-meters

Definitely a poor fix and then a poor paint job. If there is no moisture, you're going to have to sand, spackle and repaint.

This is damage from water.

It is water damage. It will eventually all fall off. I would find the leak and seal that first. Then you will need to sand it all back and repaint it.

That is a sign that there is a water damage .. It will fall apart soon .. I would actually replace that because there may be a mold behind those wood pieces

Yep, water damage. Check the caulking outdoors, it might be time to replace it.

it is for sure a water damage