All
I have a stucco ceiling that has what appears to be brown rust stains on it. The stains appeard some time in the last month or two. In three areas there are clear blotchy redish brown stains. Two bathrooms are directly above this room. The strange thing is that the ceiling is completly dry. No indication of any wetness. Also when I open the access panel for the tub there is no indication of wetness their either. I recaulked the bathroom about two weeks ago so that may be why everything is dry now but the original caulking was not extremely bad. I also see faint specks of red brown stains throughout the ceiling for the whole room beyond the three obvious spots. This is even in spots far from the where the plumbing is. There are only brown spots in this room. If you walk out the door of the room there are no faint brown stains on that stucco ceiling.I fear that it may be mold but I sprayed it with bleach and that had no effect. Also there is no fuzziness or tackiness to the stains. Is this just a water leak or do I have more to fear here? Where do I go from here to determine if it is rust or mold? Why would I have three distinct spots about 1 to 2 feet away from each other. Can I just paint over it and hope the leak is gone? Thank you for your help.
Dan Phillips