What's growing out of my wall?

February 27, 2005 4:22 PM

A couple of days ago, I noticed something very odd in my bathroom - something seemed to be growing out of the wall. It looks kind of like a plant sprout than anything else I can think of, but it doesn't really behave like one - for one, it shriveled up after about two days.

It doesn't look like any type of fungus I've ever seen, but I'm at a loss as to what else it could be.

One detail that might be helpful: about two weeks ago, the shower in the apartment above mine started leaking water down into the walls. When we noticed this, we talked to them, they had it fixed, and the apartment manager had someone come in and rip out and replace the plaster, drywall, etc, all the way down to the frame. The handyman said that he checked out the other walls in the bathroom for water damage, but I kind of doubt it at this point.

The "plant" is not growing out of the area that was replaced, but it is in the same general area of the bathroom. All I really need to know is: is this something that could be bad? Could it maybe signify more thorough water damage than was found at first?

posted by DoomGerbil to Home & Garden (6 answers total)

Without seeing it, that sounds suspiciously like the "ear fungus" we had growing out of the walls in our old house. The room it grew in was under a bathroom that also leaked, also on an opposite wall. It freaked me the hell out when I saw something I thought belonged in a damp and dark forest growing out of the walls in my house! Sorry I couldn't find a better picture of it. Anyway, this was during a very wet California winter, such as I hear LA is experiencing this year. We lopped it off with a knife and scrubbed all the areas with bleach, and eventually moved to a house in a sunnier location. Good luck!
posted by Lynsey at 4:50 PM on February 27, 2005

If it is a fungus, move. The health implications are dire. Any number of respiratory and neurological problems are associated with fungus, mildew, and mold problems.
posted by five fresh fish at 6:13 PM on February 27, 2005

Fungus! .... We had the same thing as lynsey ... steam + mold = growth.
posted by R. Mutt at 7:34 PM on February 27, 2005

There was an article in a popular weekly magazine a while back that had front-cover treatment, focusing on "killer" or "deadly" mold. I believe it was either Time or Newsweek. Either way, what I can recall from the article is that the mold or fungus that you have described can be very, very dangerous.
CNN Article
Mold Pictures
Mold Help- looks to be a community dedicated to the stuff. I suspect a removal guide could be found
posted by gastevens at 8:29 AM on February 28, 2005

Well I can't seem to find the issue that I was thinking of. This may have been the article. From the Time archives: Beware: Toxic Mold. Anita Hamilton, Jul. 2, 2001
posted by gastevens at 8:38 AM on February 28, 2005

Did it have pods? Human shaped pods? Human shaped pods from outer space bent on total global domination?

If so, RUN!
posted by berek at 2:22 PM on February 28, 2005