Yes to painting the woodwork (to include wainscot and wood ceilings) in a semigloss. My kids' bathroom is floor-to-ceiling beadboard, it's painted in a semi-gloss. Never a problem, either with mildew or the paint being too glossy. It's normally just high gloss on drywall (not woodwork) that can be problematic. If typical wall preparation was done, the higher gloss paints can show sanding swirl marks, pinholes, mud humps at the seams, even with excellent prep it can reflect light differently from the drywall paper versus where the mud is. A good primer can eliminate that too, but I'm just giving worst-case scenario which seems to be typified in standard construction. A paint with lesser reflective properties will hide those imperfections. Funny, I was going to add what you wrote, that you could paint it a semigloss (or even a gloss) first coat with a satin top coat if desired. And yes, there are mildewcides that can be added to paints. They can be added to both alkyd and latex.

Thanks for your help, Faron. My kids most likely did not usually use the exhaust fan, but they are using it now and leave it running now for a little while after a shower. The mold was in just one area beneath the window and a little up the side we think from window condensation because we couldn't find any place where water could leak in. There had been a little mold in the wallpaper under the window 11 years ago when we moved in, and at the time we thought they just left a window open when it rained or something, but apparently not. We replaced drywall then and wallpapered, but it came back. When we removed the drywall this time we sanded the mold off the studs and painted them with Bins with mildewcide added. The vapor barrier was there and we couldn't find any place where water could leak in, but we did find a spot on one side of the window where we could feel more heat coming in, so we squirted in more insulation around the window frame and in the small space right below the sill. Then we replaced the drywall with cement board in that area, and primed the whole bathroom with Zinsser Gardz as recommended here. We ran into a problem with the Gardz remaining sticky in places even after a month, and someone suggested it was because it couldn't soak in because the walls had primer on them from years ago. So I primed over the Gardz with Kilz 2 and that took away the stickiness. So now I'm ready to paint. The RL color we are thinking of is Prussian Blue, but there's also a similar Valspar color we like. I'm wondering if the RL paint is good in bathrooms, or if we should go with the Valspar, or have the RL color mixed in another brand or perhaps in bathroom paint (Behr has one made especially for baths and kitchens). I read online that RL has a mildewcide in it. Would a satin finish be okay? Hopefully it won't be frozen! : )

Hi everybody! I have been waiting all summer for it to cool off. It seems that the heat makes my dizziness and nausea worse. I have lost about 15 lbs with being too sick to eat throughout the summer. I just this week got my helper here to help me clean the garage and then I moved the vanity out there and sanded it a bit in the easy places, and got it up on a table. I got the brass floor protectors pried off the bottom of the legs and was pleased to find no holes have been drilled in them. That means that I can drill holes for the feet I bought. I have adjustable feet that will give the vanity an extra 1/2" of height, and that can be screwed up to give another 1/2" if we want. That would make the legs appear to float way too high in the air, so I don't think it will work. the extra 1/2" will have to suffice, with the ability to make the vanity level so that the sink will drain properly. I have also decided that the bail-type handles that came with it are not going to work for us. I can't see us fumbling around trying to grab the bail that has recessed back into the grooves of the handle around it, standing there with water or soap in our eyes. A knob is much easier to use. I had Hubby try using the bail and he vetoed it on the first try and said, "replace 'em!" I am using these on doors of a set of shallow cupboards that will be recessed into the closet of the the neighboring bedroom. I figured they were a sure bet for the six drawers, too. I am not going to use the center drawer anymore, what with all the plumbing going on above it, so I will just fill in those holes. I need to cut away the bottom of the drawer space, then move the drawer support piece to the left or right. It is at dead center right now, and the sink's drain will need to go there. I just have to sand down the fluted areas of the vanity table, then it will be ready to be primed and painted. I am still leaning toward painting it the violet Peace and Happiness. I have purchased more components for the plumbing. I have all of the shower controls and the rain shower head and regular shower head. Still need to get the hand-held and some safety hand-hold bars for the shower area. I still have not finalized a wall tile (looking at fake Cararra tile for the room's walls) or floor tile or the surface for the top of the vanity. We HAVE concluded, though, that we cannot get this job done until Toby, our ever-more-confused beagle/golden retriever mix, dies. He will be 16 at the end of this month. He has spinal arthritis and began vomiting every time he was given his Tramadol or his glucosamine/chondroitin pills, then quit taking them. He had to go on prednisone to control the pain. He is peeing a lot in the house, always on a rug or quilted mattress pad put down for him. The bathroom is his main place to pee. I will not have my new floor grout saturated with dog pee. I don't think the poor guy would cope well with the construction, either. He is now blind in one eye and somewhat deaf. It would be too confusing for him to do all that construction. So even though I can't get Jim over here to do the work, if I could, I would not be able to do it until Toby passes on. So, instead, we are getting new gutters and trim, and getting our four remaining windows replaced. We did the other three windows when we remodeled the kitchen and made the living room into the library/music room. I am in the process of cleaning and decluttering so the window guys can get in to measure!

A couple of preventive measures: first, ensure the shower and/or tub surround is truly waterproof (I'm a fan of the Schluter system.) Second, ensure there is an appropriately sized-fan for the bath and that it runs after you finish your shower for a minimum of 20 minutes.