Bathroom ceiling

[Marianne]

Some years ago, we had a fire in our house, and the contractors coated the walls and ceiling of all our downstairs rooms with 'Kill'. The finish coat paint on the ceiling in the bathroom (and one other room) keeps constantly peeling and cracking down to the 'Kill' coat, especially over the bath/shower area, so I am assuming steam is the culprit. Is there any paint or other finish we could use on the ceiling to prevent this? We have sanded and latex-painted it several times, but the problem keeps recurring. In the other room, there are only a few widely separated small areas of peeled and cracked paint on the ceiling; any suggestions there???

[gotmick]

Most likely moisture, but also could be a surface prep issue if they didn't allow a proper drying time.

You might contact KILZ direct. Here's their FAQ page:
http://www.kilz.com/pages/default.aspx?NavID=61

[Marianne]

That's a good suggestion; I'll see if 'Kill' has any solutions.

[Phelps]

You could use shellac based stain block/vapor barrier paint made by Zinsser.

I believe the Kilz left a glossier coating which, when topcoated in say, latex, the vapor penetrates the latex and bounces back off the Kilz, releasing the latex paint. I believe my suggestion above could work for you as the very outer layer then of the shellac finish top coat will be virtually impervious to the steam. I have had pretty good luck with this paint in bathroom ceilings where I have had blistering/ peeling/ mildew problems.

[pushkins]

I agree with Phelps,
I only ever use Zinsser now (usually gold) I have found that it creates a much better bonding surface.

[HayZee518]

Zissner is pigmented shellac. They make exterior and interior grade. It cuts with alcohol. As phelps said it developed a gloss which will repel most stuff applied to it. Regular 1lb cut shellac clear or orange will bond to the Kilz.