u/AltruisticAd3755

Hi everyone,

I’m the unfortunate soul who found a fungus growing out of my kitchen floor (https://www.reddit.com/r/MoldlyInteresting/s/AiNcwoerRN). Thank you all for your helpful advice, for explaining the difference between mold and fungus, and for validating that this was not normal. I wanted to provide an update.

​We have temporarily relocated out of an abundance of caution. Two days ago, the maintenance man came by. He said he did not think there was a mold problem but identified a leak under the sink (and replaced the supply line) which he said had caused mold in the cabinet underneath the sink. He removed the fungus with a chisel (photos 3 and 6) and tried to show me it was not hazardous by putting it up to his nose and sniffing it(?!?!?). He also removed the plastic mat lining the cabinet underneath the sink (photo 7), and cleaned the wooden cabinet (photo 5 is before, photo 4 is is immediately after) with some kind of spray and told us to air out the cabinet. He said he did not think there was a mold problem but would get a second opinion. Yesterday, he came back and removed the tile and said he wanted to continue to the area air out. Photos 1 and 2 are what it looked like yesterday, post-maintenance man. The last five photos are what it looked like two days ago, before the maintenance man cleaned things up.

I am not convinced it is safe to move back and trying to get my renter’s insurance to do an inspection/environmental evaluation. I am worried that otherwise, maintenance will just do some surface cleaning, replace the floor tile, and do no mold remediation. In the meantime, is anyone able to tell from the first 2 photos whether there is continued evidence of mold?

Hi all, there is a strange barnacle-like substance that seems to be pushing up a tile in our kitchen. The nice folks ar r/moldlynteresting thought that what I was dealing with was a fungus and you might be able to help identify it. This is right by the sink in an area where water often splashes on the floor. The maintenance person (we rent; it’s a second floor apartment in the mid-Atlantic US) said it looks like there was some kind of leak underneath the sink that could be connected. I am waiting for him to come back to address the problem, but in the meantime, if anybody knows what kind of fungus this is (and whether it is hazardous for humans or cats), I’d be very grateful. I have taped an upside down takeout container over it so at least the cat cannot touch it accidentally. Thank you in advance!

Can somebody help me identify what barnacle-like substance seems to be pushing up this kitchen tile and how much I should be panicking about it? I am concerned it may be some kind of fungus. (I’ve taped a plastic takeout container upside down on the floor to cover it.) This is near the sink in an area where water often splashes on the floor. I will be bothering the maintenance office first thing in the morning but I thought it might be helpful in the meantime to know what we’re dealing with. New to posting on Reddit so apologies if I have done something incorrectly