The ceiling paint in my bathroom drips a brown oily film that covers e

It could be ingredients from the paint or just from a buildup of smoke or dust. The first thing I would do is install an exhaust fan to deal with the condensation. Then clean the ceiling and walls and see if that solves the problem.

You’re not at the painting stage yet. You first need to find out what the substance is, and where it is coming from. If you only paint the substance will still be there, and the wall will stain again. It could be a leak in your roof, which is very important to fix. After it is fixed you can use a stain blocker such as Kilz, then it’s paint time.

If you have lead paint that could be dangerous.

Unless your ceiling is brown or the water coming out of the shower head is brown, I'm going to guess you've got a leaky roof and the brown oily film is tar from the shingles seeping in over a Kilz-type paint.

If you think this is wrong, please take pictures so we can maybe identify it better. Part of your makeover should include an exhaust fan venting outside through the ceiling or wall.

Thanks for asking Hometalk!

I would have someone inspect the attic, have critters like racoons or squirrels moved in, or do you have a bat colony up there? or is there a hole in the roof and its leaking. And I would have that paint tested for lead, you can buy a cheap kit at the hardware store. Once you have that solved, then you can repaint, I would prime with Zinseer B-I-N in case its old bead board above thats bleeding wood resin, then paint with a gloss white enamel.

Your house might have previously been owned by smokers. Wash the walls and ceiling well, then use a semi-gloss ceiling paint. If you are the smoking household you will just need to wipe down occasionally so the tar does not drip when it gets humid/damn.

Hi! I'm more concerned what the gunk is! Could it be mold? I've never seen paint make a mess like that, unless it was something draining. I would look into what it is, and improve air flow/venting.

If you keep the door totally closed when using the shower you will have the "stuff" run down from the ceiling.