Q – I have just noticed in our family room that there are a row of dots on three walls all about 4-5 foot high and almost in a perfect line.  I tried to paint over one but it just came back.

What is going on here?

Tricia in Atlanta

A – Although you may think your house is haunted, I have thought long and hard about this and I think I have your culprit.

My best guess is that your ceiling fan – who doesn’t have a ceiling fan in their family room that runs all day these days – is leaking oil.

Maybe not a lot of oil, but enough to track its way down the back of the fan blade and hurl itself across the room onto the wall.  It probably can’t reach the fourth wall because it is too far away.

Check the back of the blades and see.  Cleaning the blades will be easier than cleaning and painting the wall.

You will have to try to clean the dots before repainting.  You can try wiping with a little soap and water and let dry.

If that doesn’t work you can try cleaning with TSP.

If that doesn’t work you can get some drywall mud and feather out a layer over the spot – (that would be where I start actually) – and sand it.  Then prime it with Kilz then paint.

After that it gets serious.  Worst case scenario is either to hang pictures over every spot or gouge out each spot and re-mud it.

It only gets worse from there.

This is one of those projects that will test your “That’s good enough” level.  Good luck.