strange red spots on garage ceiling after Ivan

Some molds are red.

Looks like a mold/mildew bloom, to me.

Mold, bleach will kill it. You may have alot of hidden mold in the attic, look into leaks and venting.

I've seen stains like that on walls in my mother's former house. She was a heavy smoker and one day had a leak. The residue of years of smoking liquefied and then formed streaks like your first photo.

It could be exhaust particulates loosened from the ceiling surface by water but it could also be mold/mildew. To be safe I'd treat it with bleach.

how would you tell if it were a mold - mildew - fungus? I suppose there is some way to test for it???

The attic appears clean and dry - well, dry until Ivan. I have an elaborate drain system in my basement and got water there too. First time I've ever seen water in the basement. My patio was about 12" deep at one point and I am the highest house in this area. Never seen so much water...

I had ridge vents installed with the new roof in Oct.2002.

r wrote:

If it is mold bleach will change its color to grey in about 2-5 minutes, put some in a spray bottle, spray away. Black mold can change to red or grey with bleach.

Is your house haunted?

Parking car with leaky transmission on ceiling?

Looking at the photos, it is not mold. Something appeared to have leached out of the drywall and evaporated by the next day. Seems oily as it didn't mix evenly with the water. Very odd something with such deep color would vanish without a trace. John

I did a deep search > I've seen stains like that on walls in my mother's former house. She was a

I tried spraying water on the walls of the garage but it just ran clear. I loaned out my ladder so I can't get to the ceiling to try it just yet.

And yes - these are really bad water spots on the ceiling now and the drywall is buckled and and abraded looking in a few spots showing it was really soaked but none of the red drops show. Did seemingly vanish. Drywall will probably have to be replaced. This was an AMAZING amount of water that came down via Ivan.

I saw where some of "the red" dripped on the plastic shelves at the end of the garage. I sprayed some water on these spots to see if I could "awaken" any smell, but can't find any. The spots were hard to liquefy and wipe up... dried a brownish red like dried blood.

If I had not gone out to the garage that night, I never would have seen it. It was all gone by the next morning. I would have been REALLY puzzled about the spots on the shelves though.

Water could have dissolved something like wood dust or insulation or (!) then leaked thru seams and nail holes in sheetrock. The darker red dots look like where the liquid dripped to the floor, then, over time, evaporated at those drip-spots, leaving a concentrate of the liquid, making it darker thru concentration. I doubt it is mold. If it is an organic liquid, whether mold or not, it will lighten up with bleach. Feel it , touch it, smell it. Prob. will give you a hint.

The color is nothing like red mold that I've seen in Florida, and mold doesn't grow as soon as a surface gets wet. Almost like something had accumulated on the ceiling - didja do a sanding project in the garage that produced a lot of dust? It is truly difficult to imagine something permeating from above and not leaving a ring on the ceiling??!? I'd take it easy on the "smell testing", if it should be residue of some critter living in the attic. You could touch it up, make it look like the madonna, and sell tickets :o)

this seems logical - and keep in mind this was quite a lot of water. Does not seem to me that mold could grow while the water is pouring through.

Almost like something had

no, but I have only lived here since 1997 - house is 35 years old - the people I bought the house from did a lot of quality renovation here. New kitchen, refinished hardwood floors, quarry tile in kitchen, den, hall...He (or she) could have had some "interesting" project done in the garage.

They were transfered before they did anything to the garage. It needs painting and, now, new drywall on the ceiling. Had not thought about this.

It is truly difficult to imagine something

there ARE two BIG 3 - 4' dia. dark water spots - just no little red spots. The spots are bowing and I will probably have to replace the drywall. And there are red spots on the shelves beneath.

I'd

I did go up there the next day - difficult area to get to! and the backside of the drywall has no obvious stains nor is there any indication of nests, etc. No insulation there. Very clean - almost swept looking. Definitely NOTHING right above the spots BUT since the drops disappeared the next morning, anything above might have disappeared too. I did NOT go up into the attic while Ivan was pounding and the power was out...call me a wuss if you will.

You could touch it up, make it look like

I like this! Make enough to repair the ceiling...

I do hate a mystery that I can't solve.