Ceiling leaking, is this a DIY repair?

Question

Tenant just sent me this photo of his ceiling. Says it’s leaking a bit. This is my first rental and I’m trying to get an idea of how to repair this. Is this a type of fix I can do myself with basic Home Depot materials or should I bring in a handyman?

I have no experience with this but if it's a basic fix, I'll YouTube it. Just trying to get an idea if it's something I can fairly easily learn, as I have no real frame of reference.

Josh E. · Answer

@Jim Vanhorn @Scott Mac Thank you guys for your input! Very helpful!

Jim Vanhorn · Answer

@Josh E. you need to locate exactly what is leaking. is the bathroom directly above the leaky ceiling? If a bathroom is above then I would reseat the toilet and caulk all floor/baseboard and tub seams. then wait a few weeks. Verify the ceiling is dry and hit it with kilz spray and ceiling paint.

Jill F. · Answer

Especiallly if you are paying water, it is worth buying a new toilet. I have had good luck with Glacier bay 1.28 gpf at home depot (Consumer reports likes this model as well). If you have and old 3.5 gpf it will save you a lot of money. Our handy man likes the blue waxless rings (fluidmaster universal better than wax toilet seal) which are great because they can be reused if you later have to pull the toilet for flooring replacement.

Scott Mac · Answer

Hi Josh,

It seems easy enough to try.

It might just be the wax seal on the bottom or the tank to base seal.

If you replace just the broken parts you can save some money.

Scott...

Josh E. · Answer

@Jim Vanhorn @Scott Mac The toilet in the unit above is leaking. The toilet is very old and I am thinking I'm just going to replace it. Would you guys install the new toilet yourselves or have a plumber do it? It looks like a fairly easy thing to learn on YouTube...

Scott Mac · Answer

Hi Josh,

If you're going to do this, you'll need to find the leak and fix it before fixing the ceiling.

If it's wet up there beware of electricity too.

The ceiling can be a homeowner fix (how well it's done is up to you and your skill).

If you choose to try it, you'll will need to match the drywall texture, and prime the fix and entire discolored area with primer that covers water spots, and repaint the area to match (or the whole ceiling).

If the drywall is heavily damaged that will need to be replaced too.

The sell texture repair spray to help with this (see YouTube for how to use it).

Good Luck!

Ceiling leaking, is this a DIY repair?

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