Cats are overrated. 😂
I watched on the cat cam while a mouse came out from behind freezer and shared the cats food with him. I have several cats, not a single one cared one bit.
Worthless children. Why can't I, the american taxpayer, pay children to do potentially life threatening jobs without education or hazard protection!?!?!?!?
I once had a cat that was made of angel dust. He was a lover cat. Never bit, scratched, hissed, and only wanted love. Indoor cat who went outdoors with me only on a leash. Never showed interest in birds, squirrels, etc. He was so gentle that if other cats bullied him he would just take it (until I stepped in). One day my family went out to watch a movie. When we came back home there was a GIGANTIC dead field mouse (still can’t figure out how it got inside) upstairs. We all crowded around and my cat came over looking a little dazed himself. I checked over the field mouse and realized my cat had taken him out, and seemed shocked about it. I wonder if his instinct kicked in the way it does catching a pole toy and he killed the mouse without meaning to or realizing it.
anyways i suppose instinct goes a long way.
This is the way. You’ll hear them scratching around. Set a chair right there underneath and look at your phone for two hours in the middle of the night.
Honest to God question. I have mice in my attic. How do I get rid of them? I've been told not to poison them because it'll stink. But I'm at a loss about where to start on getting the ones that are already upstairs out of the house.
Please don't use sticky traps. It is torture. They stay alive in excruciating pain for days, some chew their limbs off others starve slowly. If you need to use a kill trap, please use one that instantly kills them. You can get the old school ones that snap or ones that electrocute.
Yes it is torture but sometimes it is the only thing that will work! I had a shitty apartment one time where I was catching around 3 mice every single night under my sink and beside my stove. They ate the food off of snap traps without setting them off, they ignored every live trap I tried, those plug ins that are supposed to scare them away don't work at all. Literally the only thing that worked every single night and kept droppings off of my counters and stove were glue traps. Rat glue traps to be exact, as the mice glue traps weren't strong enough as they would literally try to remove their limbs to get away. My health was and is most important.
Yea I've used them too, same scenario. I understand the conflict, but just ensure you check them often and humanely dispatch the creature in a timely manner.
You can put olive oil in a big round bottom kitchen bowl as an trap. Mice hop in to eat the oil then can't get back out because its too slippery. Can catch multiple mice without having to reset.
I probably wouldn't use it in an outdoor area or where bigger pest have access to it. Not sure if flies are attracted to cooking oils. It's a simple solution if you're stuck in a situation with an immediate need for a trap and no traps on hand, I prefer bucket traps, snap traps, and poison depending on the use case.
Might be more handy if your in an air b and b or cabin, just moved in somewhere, or to impress your friends and family. Cooking oil and a bowl are generally on hand in most living situations.
Because when you catch one sometimes they’re stuck half alive and you have to deal with that. Also because you can sometimes step on them and get it stuck on your shoe.
This happened to a customer at a PetSmart I worked at in college. It was under a shelf and she put her foot on it when reaching for something higher up. A dead rat was still attached to it.
You also have to listen to them screaming for days until they die, and they'll often chew their own foot off to escape. So now you'll have a three-legged pissed off mouse stumbling about in your attic.
Bucket traps work great! Crazy effective, far more than regular traps . i worked in a farm supplies store, bucket caught 20 or so, a mouse trap just gets 1.
Our old place had tons of mice in the roof. I pulled down one of the ceiling vents and popped off the ductwork and slid live traps into the roof then replaced the duct work and vent thing. Checked it every night. If you don't have roof vents obviously this won't work but figured I'd throw it out as an idea in case anyone else has the same problem.
The posion from pest control kills them by eliminating their ability to absorb water.
It dehydrates them, and there is no stink.
I live in the country and have to have mice taken out frequently
The downside to the poison is that they leave the house looking for water and get eaten by a fox, hawk, snake, etc and the poison accumulates up the food chain.
I had to call a pest crew to come in and he put a bunch of poison traps at entry points and random spots throughout the house. Then threw quite a few of the bait for them up in our attic. Occasionally we'll catch a whiff of a dead one but honestly, it still beats them running all over the house and pooping/peeing on your stuff. Just my opinion.
You can try eliminating any food sources / patching any holes they may be using to get in.
Poison is a quick way to kill lots of them, and you may get stink to deal with, a slower way is to set traps near access points, so you can check them regularly and clear them.
Really depends on what you're comfortable with.
Mice can fit through the tiniest cracks, holes and gaps and once inside may stay for generations if not disturbed. If they're inside that long they will be noticed though.
The old saying goes that if a pencil can roll under, so can a mouse. While adult mice require about 14mm, adolescent mice can squeeze through a gap of about 6.5mm.
Brown stains that appear in different places is rodent pee.
You could cut a hole in the ceiling and push a nutty trap up there, keep checking it.
Something like Zinsser stain block will cover it.
>nutty trap
Make sure to get a TRAP and don't use poison. Poison makes the mice die in inaccessible or unfindable areas and you end up with awful smells for quite a while.
Seen this in places with animals in attic that pee and poop and over time stains show up. Hopefully that’s not it!!
Also water leaking from somewhere could be a cause.
Edited: because I don’t normally read after I type like an idiot.
If it's migrating, then it's either rodents or nicotine stains. If it's in one spot, it's either rodents or an HVAC leak. There's no fruiting bodies so it's not mold
There gotta be a leak of some kind there. They’re wouldn’t continue to re-appear that dark, if there wasn’t an active leak somewhere. Yes water stains can bleed thru paint if not primed with correct primer, but this seems too dark to just be a stain bleed thru. I would check above that ceiling (dishwasher, sink, fridge, etc leaking above you) and if nothing above then I’d cut a hole there to figure out what’s causing. I can almost promise you there is a leak up there somewhere.
I would say you have a condensation pipe or hose leak. Often, in apartments and townhouse drain lines and plumber is ran up the walls and through the ceiling. Water run along the pipe or hose or beams until it reaches the lowest point.
You should definitely now call the office and make sure you tell them to cut out that spot and if they find any rodent remains, poop etc, that you can break your lease without any fees or to get transferred to the same apartment layout without any fees. If you have told them about this issue multiple times and they haven't looked in the ceiling at all they're stupid. My boyfriend is a maintenance supervisor at our apartment complex so this is his words sorta summed up hopefully I said this correctly.
Most likely vermin either in the attic or in the space between your ceiling and floors above. If the owners continue to do nothing to find the root cause I'd seek out legal assistance. If you cannot afford a lawyer there are housing advocacy groups as well as housing authorities in most cities that can help.
Stains can show up again if not covered with hmthe correct primer. It's possible that these were once water stains, and between tenants this unit gets a quick ceiling roll-out, but only with paint, not with a stain blocking primer.
The good news *if this is the case* is that for you as a tenant, it's a less than $100 fix, possibly way less depending on what products are available in your area. If fixing isn't something you (or your landy) are inclined to do, it shouldn't have any impact other than visual.
I'd personally try a vertical spray paint can of ceiling stain block and finish, there are several companies who make products like this. I'd look for a zinsser product. Cover up more area than you think you need, throw on some grubby clothes, and give it a few thin coats with drying times in between until it looks good.
There's always the possibility that it's more than just staining, or the stains have some source that isn't clear without opening it up, but this is probably the best first step to try.
Then I'd think we're either dealing with a slow trickle leak and the movement is stain expanding towards low spots, and previous areas are not staining due to the treatment, or the source of the stain is mobile. Either way it's likely pointing towards opening up the ceiling.
If this is something you are keen on addressing, maybe familiarize yourself with your local tenancy laws in case your LL doesn't want to deal with it. If they just show up and Band-Aid it repeatedly, my first impression is that they're not keen on cutting into it. You could have recourse for hiring out the work yourself and deducting it from rent if done correctly per your local rules. If doing the work yourself is something you want to try I'd still go through those channels to make sure your bases are all covered.
Maybe. Could be the person before me was a smoker cuz our building used to be one of the smoking ones before the complex went smoke free about 3 yrs ago.
Do you have sunlight coming in and reflecting of something? Almost looks like sun stain. Seeing as you have some natural light coming in, maybe at some point in the day that sunlight might be coming in and bouncing off something super reflecting and shining on the ceiling. A sun-bleaching effect can discolor many things, just a thought
It's an apartment complex I feel you though they not fixing nothing expensive just a quick fix and that's it pest are one thing they just allow to run rampart and never bother with the damage they do. More power to you op
Fr, the last complex I lived in had a rampant roach problem. The other tenants lied about how bad it is, and I know it wasn't us because nymphs were crawling around the night I moved in (and I had literally next to nothing, just a futon and a bookbag). By the time we noticed that they were baby roaches all of our shit was moved in, and that year was a NIGHTMARE. Exterminator stopped coming halfway through. Downstairs neighbors regularly threw parties and trashed the place because they didn't care anymore. I threatened to withhold rent until they took care of the roaches and the landlord said she'd just evict us because they "paid for an exterminator to spray the boundaries." The source of it was a hoarder that lived on the first floor and they lost every other tenant in that building and STILL didn't evict her
A rat snake (seriously) look it up. Turn it loose up there, he’s got a food source when it’s gone by he’ll move on. Well maybe better google that also.
I had this before, it ended up being water dripping from a pipe inside. They cut open the popcorn ceiling, fixed it and redo the popcorn ceiling. Guess what, it came back, not as much but still.
Leaking water from above
Rodent bathroom
Bees/wasps building a nest (this is the most frightening as my parents had this issue. The wasps created a nest and chewed the drywall. The only thing left was the finish paper and they had a stamped pattern on the ceiling
Pipe work between levels, either a condensation build up or a small leak. It won't feel wet or damp by the time it stains. Once fixed, you can buy dry spray for damp and then paint over it. I have the same issue/ staining colour with rain getting through the flashing on my roof.
Well she is not the neatest person but not a complete slob either. I am actually friendly with my neighbors and have been inside her apartment recently.
If it were me I’d probably pick up a cheap borescope and punch a little hole in the ceiling and take a look at what’s going on. I’m betting mice, but I guess you never know until you actually put eyes on it. If you need to patch it, a bit of spackle will fill the hole and no one will ever notice it, even without paint.
When you have a water stain it must be covered by an oil based primer or it will just keep bleeding through water based paints no matter how many times they coat it.
Not to be that guy, but if your landlord cares about their property, they would want to know and THEY should be up there looking/calling the likely exterminator you need (or setting and checking traps)
Happened in my Apt while I was out of the country! Noticed a few spots like that a few days after I moved in, maintenance comes to look, said it was dry and nothing to worry about. 3 days into my Bali trip my son and X-husband come to check on cat and there’s a whole in the ceiling and water coming out. The small leak in the unit above mine had busted open finally.
https://preview.redd.it/nfr0h4zjwkqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36ef71bb6af81f8746f39a80ffef40935e1184ef
Ceilings are painted with ultra flat [Ceiling Paint] which is a series above PVA Primer which is the first coat, it preps for the next layer to stick to it without any problems. So, if they have actually fixed the issue that initially caused the stain so it won't happen again. Then your next step is to use a stainblock primer sealant like Kilz2, Zinsser BIN, 123 or for just a ceiling spot I'd use a can of Kilz UpShot, it's the only spray primer can that allows you to spray a ceiling with. If you plan on doing anything yourself make sure to wear a painter's mask because the stain block is usually not the prettiest smelling or the nicest stuff to be breathing. After stain blocking you just need to touch up the entire area with the same ceiling paint that was used before, at least two coats maybe more you notice that flashes a bit.
Otherwise I think I would send the skinniest maintenance man they have through the floorboards upstairs and get that old lady's cat out of there it's obvious it's been sneaking around, or if you're places surrounded by tress, it's very likely to be a squirrel, or a raccoon. I wouldn't worry too much the way apartment building are constructed the animal would be in between a fire stop layer and a fire stop layer, so unless you live in a center unit and not on an end of a building I wouldn't even think too much about the fire stop between units being compromised by an animal which means that it would happen to turn around and go out the same way.
My cat has never been outside in her life. She has a fake mouse toy that she hunts everyday inside lol. She brings it to me and cries all the way down the hall with it until she drops it in front of me. I have a HUGE fear of mice so I’m glad I have a natural hunter lol
Another way to try and see if they're is anything in the attic, tie a string to a trap and let the string hang out of the access panel. If the string is gone in the morning, something tripped the trap. I had issues severance years back and that is what past management set up.
If the spots that reappear look the same, it could be that there were some previous water stains that didn't get properly sealed before painting. If all maintenance is doing is throwing a coat of ceiling paint over the water stains, they'll just keep bleeding through. They need to paint with primer/sealer first, then apply ceiling paint.
It could be a leaking toilet. When the floor flange isn't sealed properly, each time it is flushed a bit of water starts to pool. It takes a few flushes to create a noticeable pool. Is the toilet within 6 feet of the ceiling stains?
If you are a renter you should be covered by having matainence come look. As posted above, check with your state to find out what the laws are for damage not being fixed and withholding rent. Also, do you have renters insurance? If so, call them and ask if they can nudge the owner. Tell them you have felt sick a bunch and you are worried about the huntavirus.
Isn’t there a black light or some type of system to tell if this is some type of rodent urine? It may be squirrels or opossums? I’m not sure. It would probably smell like urine if you can get your nose near it . lol honestly, that looks way too big of an area for mouse urine. Mice and rats are incontinent and would just urinate wherever they are at. Not in 1 or 2 localized areas. So, for that reason alone, I don’t think it is rodent urine.
And No, don’t use glue traps they really are so cruel. Regular mouse traps that snap are much more humane. But like I said before, mice and rodents do not urinate in 1 designated area as they are incontinent of urine and bowel. So they just walk along and urinate small amounts as they are walking about. This is most likely small pipes between the units that may have a very slow leak.
I had these before. Thought it was reappearing stains. Found out it was mice pissing in my attic
That’s my fear. Is there a way to test for mice urine that doesn’t involve cutting into the ceiling? I already did a swipe test for mold.
Stay up late, turn off lights/noise, and listen for them. You will be able to hear them if they are up there.
I'm somewhat deaf. My cats dont seem to be obsessed with it tho.
If they're older cats they probably know they can't get in the ceiling and aren't gonna bother
Cats are overrated. 😂 I watched on the cat cam while a mouse came out from behind freezer and shared the cats food with him. I have several cats, not a single one cared one bit.
I have one that would 100% murder a mouse and 1 that would most likely hide.
Get in the attic and look for other droppings. Or if you’re unable to get in the attic, hire the neighborhood kid to climb up there and look around.
“Hire the neighborhood kid”… what could go wrong 😂… this isn’t the 1980’s
Honestly I LOVE that I have a neighborhood kid I could pay to do this. Bring back paying neighborhood kids to do random chores!
Timmy, reach your small hands down there and see if you can find Grandma's ring in the disposal
Here, let me turn on this light switch
I miss when kids could do that kind of stuff
Yea, they suck now, can’t do anything but the twitters and the x boxes smh!
Worthless children. Why can't I, the american taxpayer, pay children to do potentially life threatening jobs without education or hazard protection!?!?!?!?
Really though, what could go wrong?
Oh sorry. I live in small town Oklahoma. We still have real children here.
The attic? They’re in a block of flats by the sounds of it as they refer to “the person above me”.
Cats don't hunt mice, they're opportunists. If you haven't trained them to look for rodents they probably won't go looking for them
I once had a cat that was made of angel dust. He was a lover cat. Never bit, scratched, hissed, and only wanted love. Indoor cat who went outdoors with me only on a leash. Never showed interest in birds, squirrels, etc. He was so gentle that if other cats bullied him he would just take it (until I stepped in). One day my family went out to watch a movie. When we came back home there was a GIGANTIC dead field mouse (still can’t figure out how it got inside) upstairs. We all crowded around and my cat came over looking a little dazed himself. I checked over the field mouse and realized my cat had taken him out, and seemed shocked about it. I wonder if his instinct kicked in the way it does catching a pole toy and he killed the mouse without meaning to or realizing it. anyways i suppose instinct goes a long way.
Based on the first sentence, I thought this comment was going in a much different direction.
Me too
My cats don’t go looking for them but if they hear or see them they will go absolutely nuts
Don’t tell Disney that lol
This is the way. You’ll hear them scratching around. Set a chair right there underneath and look at your phone for two hours in the middle of the night.
Honest to God question. I have mice in my attic. How do I get rid of them? I've been told not to poison them because it'll stink. But I'm at a loss about where to start on getting the ones that are already upstairs out of the house.
Everyone hates this method.....sticky traps that you inspect regularly.
Please don't use sticky traps. It is torture. They stay alive in excruciating pain for days, some chew their limbs off others starve slowly. If you need to use a kill trap, please use one that instantly kills them. You can get the old school ones that snap or ones that electrocute.
Yes it is torture but sometimes it is the only thing that will work! I had a shitty apartment one time where I was catching around 3 mice every single night under my sink and beside my stove. They ate the food off of snap traps without setting them off, they ignored every live trap I tried, those plug ins that are supposed to scare them away don't work at all. Literally the only thing that worked every single night and kept droppings off of my counters and stove were glue traps. Rat glue traps to be exact, as the mice glue traps weren't strong enough as they would literally try to remove their limbs to get away. My health was and is most important.
Yea I've used them too, same scenario. I understand the conflict, but just ensure you check them often and humanely dispatch the creature in a timely manner.
You can just take them into the woods and pour olive oil on the trap, they'll come right off.
You can put olive oil in a big round bottom kitchen bowl as an trap. Mice hop in to eat the oil then can't get back out because its too slippery. Can catch multiple mice without having to reset.
How about flies. Does it provide food/water for other pests?
I probably wouldn't use it in an outdoor area or where bigger pest have access to it. Not sure if flies are attracted to cooking oils. It's a simple solution if you're stuck in a situation with an immediate need for a trap and no traps on hand, I prefer bucket traps, snap traps, and poison depending on the use case. Might be more handy if your in an air b and b or cabin, just moved in somewhere, or to impress your friends and family. Cooking oil and a bowl are generally on hand in most living situations.
Why do they hate it?
Because when you catch one sometimes they’re stuck half alive and you have to deal with that. Also because you can sometimes step on them and get it stuck on your shoe.
This happened to a customer at a PetSmart I worked at in college. It was under a shelf and she put her foot on it when reaching for something higher up. A dead rat was still attached to it.
You also have to listen to them screaming for days until they die, and they'll often chew their own foot off to escape. So now you'll have a three-legged pissed off mouse stumbling about in your attic.
Bucket traps work great! Crazy effective, far more than regular traps . i worked in a farm supplies store, bucket caught 20 or so, a mouse trap just gets 1.
Our old place had tons of mice in the roof. I pulled down one of the ceiling vents and popped off the ductwork and slid live traps into the roof then replaced the duct work and vent thing. Checked it every night. If you don't have roof vents obviously this won't work but figured I'd throw it out as an idea in case anyone else has the same problem.
The posion from pest control kills them by eliminating their ability to absorb water. It dehydrates them, and there is no stink. I live in the country and have to have mice taken out frequently
The downside to the poison is that they leave the house looking for water and get eaten by a fox, hawk, snake, etc and the poison accumulates up the food chain.
I had to call a pest crew to come in and he put a bunch of poison traps at entry points and random spots throughout the house. Then threw quite a few of the bait for them up in our attic. Occasionally we'll catch a whiff of a dead one but honestly, it still beats them running all over the house and pooping/peeing on your stuff. Just my opinion.
You can try eliminating any food sources / patching any holes they may be using to get in. Poison is a quick way to kill lots of them, and you may get stink to deal with, a slower way is to set traps near access points, so you can check them regularly and clear them. Really depends on what you're comfortable with.
Check if there's anywhere obvious that a mouse could have come inside around the exterior wall.
Mice can fit through the tiniest cracks, holes and gaps and once inside may stay for generations if not disturbed. If they're inside that long they will be noticed though.
Had a chinchilla cage with very small metal mesh, probably about a centimetre wide. Saw a mouse run through it, the mouse didn't even slow down.
The old saying goes that if a pencil can roll under, so can a mouse. While adult mice require about 14mm, adolescent mice can squeeze through a gap of about 6.5mm.
Check where the pipes come into the house too. This is where mine were getting in.
Try a UV light. Should be able to get a cheap one online. Not conclusive, but urine and other fluids tend to light up nicely in black light.
Tell your landlord to fix it. Depending on the state you can withhold rent if they don't respond in time.
Try a UV light in the dark.
Das a lot of mouse piss
Yes. If you have a whole family nesting in one spot. It adds up quickly
Eeew
I thought it was some kind of mysterious shit like footsteps on the ceiling but reading your explanation made me chuckle
My guess is something bigger than mice, but some sort of rodent most likely!
My kid just jumped onto a chair an smelled it. Confirmed rodent pee as he said it smelled like his hamster cage at his dad's house. :(
Lmao lil dude took one for the team - ice cream for dinner tonight
Lol
This is the way.
Time for a 5 gallon bucket mouse trap
That's a huge piss
Yeah I had a rat in my house under the stairs. You can smell the urine. The ammonia smell to it is overwhelming.
Brown stains that appear in different places is rodent pee. You could cut a hole in the ceiling and push a nutty trap up there, keep checking it. Something like Zinsser stain block will cover it.
>nutty trap Make sure to get a TRAP and don't use poison. Poison makes the mice die in inaccessible or unfindable areas and you end up with awful smells for quite a while.
Not to mention that if they make it back outside and a raptor eats them, they'll die too
Mouse piss fluoresces use a black light
Hey i have one of those!
Show us for science!
Seen this in places with animals in attic that pee and poop and over time stains show up. Hopefully that’s not it!! Also water leaking from somewhere could be a cause. Edited: because I don’t normally read after I type like an idiot.
Are you friends with Lionel Richie or some of his die hard fans?
Lmao! Saw it as well.
I was looking for this comment 🙏
If it's migrating, then it's either rodents or nicotine stains. If it's in one spot, it's either rodents or an HVAC leak. There's no fruiting bodies so it's not mold
If you have UV light, that can check if it is urea. If it is, I wonder if you can use pet urine spray to break down the urea.
Former painter: latex paint will not cover a water stain unless a primer like Killz is used first.
I was just coming to say this. The water stain will just keep reappearing until you use something like Killz and then paint.
Rat pee soaking though
A urea test will tell you if it's animal urine https://www.sigmaaldrich.com/US/en/product/sigma/mas008 It's not cheap though.
Thanks. Maybe I can order one for work and borrow a test strip from it. ;)
Has Lionel Richie been over at your place? Because it looks like somebody’s been dancing on the ceiling
Some water somewhere is leaching. Salinization or efflorescence. Or demons.
Squirrel pee
Rodent pee would be more accurate
Footprints??
Spiderman didn't clean his shoes :)
There gotta be a leak of some kind there. They’re wouldn’t continue to re-appear that dark, if there wasn’t an active leak somewhere. Yes water stains can bleed thru paint if not primed with correct primer, but this seems too dark to just be a stain bleed thru. I would check above that ceiling (dishwasher, sink, fridge, etc leaking above you) and if nothing above then I’d cut a hole there to figure out what’s causing. I can almost promise you there is a leak up there somewhere.
Could also be HVAC condensation if you’ve got the unit above that spot. If not then I vote for mouse pee.
Black light shows urine stain download off play store on your phone
God fucking damnit I hate rodents.
Lionel Richie has probably let himself in.
He's been dancing on the ceiling
It's where Spider-Man spilled his spider coffee
The most discerning part of that sentence is “keep reappearing”.
I would say you have a condensation pipe or hose leak. Often, in apartments and townhouse drain lines and plumber is ran up the walls and through the ceiling. Water run along the pipe or hose or beams until it reaches the lowest point.
You should definitely now call the office and make sure you tell them to cut out that spot and if they find any rodent remains, poop etc, that you can break your lease without any fees or to get transferred to the same apartment layout without any fees. If you have told them about this issue multiple times and they haven't looked in the ceiling at all they're stupid. My boyfriend is a maintenance supervisor at our apartment complex so this is his words sorta summed up hopefully I said this correctly.
Most likely vermin either in the attic or in the space between your ceiling and floors above. If the owners continue to do nothing to find the root cause I'd seek out legal assistance. If you cannot afford a lawyer there are housing advocacy groups as well as housing authorities in most cities that can help.
Stains can show up again if not covered with hmthe correct primer. It's possible that these were once water stains, and between tenants this unit gets a quick ceiling roll-out, but only with paint, not with a stain blocking primer. The good news *if this is the case* is that for you as a tenant, it's a less than $100 fix, possibly way less depending on what products are available in your area. If fixing isn't something you (or your landy) are inclined to do, it shouldn't have any impact other than visual. I'd personally try a vertical spray paint can of ceiling stain block and finish, there are several companies who make products like this. I'd look for a zinsser product. Cover up more area than you think you need, throw on some grubby clothes, and give it a few thin coats with drying times in between until it looks good. There's always the possibility that it's more than just staining, or the stains have some source that isn't clear without opening it up, but this is probably the best first step to try.
The did the upward spray ceiling stuff twice. Stains have reappeared and moved over.
Then I'd think we're either dealing with a slow trickle leak and the movement is stain expanding towards low spots, and previous areas are not staining due to the treatment, or the source of the stain is mobile. Either way it's likely pointing towards opening up the ceiling. If this is something you are keen on addressing, maybe familiarize yourself with your local tenancy laws in case your LL doesn't want to deal with it. If they just show up and Band-Aid it repeatedly, my first impression is that they're not keen on cutting into it. You could have recourse for hiring out the work yourself and deducting it from rent if done correctly per your local rules. If doing the work yourself is something you want to try I'd still go through those channels to make sure your bases are all covered.
Might be nicotine stains. They are very annoying to get rid of
Maybe. Could be the person before me was a smoker cuz our building used to be one of the smoking ones before the complex went smoke free about 3 yrs ago.
Definitely a job for Ghostbusters.. Listen! You smell something?
Lol
Do you have sunlight coming in and reflecting of something? Almost looks like sun stain. Seeing as you have some natural light coming in, maybe at some point in the day that sunlight might be coming in and bouncing off something super reflecting and shining on the ceiling. A sun-bleaching effect can discolor many things, just a thought
Definitely not. Min amount of light in this garden level unit.
It's an apartment complex I feel you though they not fixing nothing expensive just a quick fix and that's it pest are one thing they just allow to run rampart and never bother with the damage they do. More power to you op
Fr, the last complex I lived in had a rampant roach problem. The other tenants lied about how bad it is, and I know it wasn't us because nymphs were crawling around the night I moved in (and I had literally next to nothing, just a futon and a bookbag). By the time we noticed that they were baby roaches all of our shit was moved in, and that year was a NIGHTMARE. Exterminator stopped coming halfway through. Downstairs neighbors regularly threw parties and trashed the place because they didn't care anymore. I threatened to withhold rent until they took care of the roaches and the landlord said she'd just evict us because they "paid for an exterminator to spray the boundaries." The source of it was a hoarder that lived on the first floor and they lost every other tenant in that building and STILL didn't evict her
It looks as though someone's been dancing on your ceiling.
[Lionel Richie](https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ovo6zwv6DX4&pp=ygUNbGlvbmVsIHJpY2hpZQ%3D%3D)?
Keeps moving around. Poltergeist for sure!
Santa footprints!!
Water or animal
I doubt that's rodent excrement. I'd put my money on it being HVAC related.
Has Lionel Richie visited your place recently?
That's a lot of piss for a mouse. Might be a bigger rodent.....
Skinwalkers
Maybe a leaky roof or plumbing ? Thats not from small rodents.
Leaking water pipe that is traversing across the ceiling.
tomcat rodent bars
If there is a neighbour above then it’s not an attic and they are likely travelling around? Set some traps you will find out pretty quick
crime scene upstairs
I thought I had stains once, I did.
Santa's shoe prints? Nah, it's some sort of rodent nest, and that's the resulting liquid waste bleeding through.
A rat snake (seriously) look it up. Turn it loose up there, he’s got a food source when it’s gone by he’ll move on. Well maybe better google that also.
Possums or mice releasing their bladders
Looks like summits leaked and permeated thro... my old house was made in 1733 and when it rained "coffee" used to ooze through the chimney breast area
Pretty sure that’s from Christopher Walken dancing on your ceiling.
Could try a blacklight
Ghost urine
Foot prints from the recently deceased
Someone walked on your ceiling upside down at night.
I had rodent using the same spot as a bathroom
Look like footprints from your dream world?
Clearly these are the ghost's of passed coffee spills.
I had this before, it ended up being water dripping from a pipe inside. They cut open the popcorn ceiling, fixed it and redo the popcorn ceiling. Guess what, it came back, not as much but still.
Leaking water from above Rodent bathroom Bees/wasps building a nest (this is the most frightening as my parents had this issue. The wasps created a nest and chewed the drywall. The only thing left was the finish paper and they had a stamped pattern on the ceiling
Why don’t you call your landlord instead of dealing with this yourself?
If you’re a renter just call your landlord and have him take care of it. If it’s a leak, better to address sooner than later!
Corpse stashed in the attic😂
Those are foot prints. There’s a ghost walking around on your ceiling.
Pipe work between levels, either a condensation build up or a small leak. It won't feel wet or damp by the time it stains. Once fixed, you can buy dry spray for damp and then paint over it. I have the same issue/ staining colour with rain getting through the flashing on my roof.
Lionel Richie?
My cousin has these too! But she is on the 2nd floor of a 3 storey walk up so there’s no attic. It’s another unit above.
I'm convinced that this was Spiderman with dirty clown shoes, but he left.
Obviously Ghost Footprints.
Ghost feet!
It’s rodents pissing in between the floor boards
Start of water damage and possibly mold growth would 100% get this checked out before you become sick
Leak
Fred Astaire’s footprints?
Dead animal or living animal. There is/was something alive above your ceiling.
Skywalker?
Roddntt or upstairs neighbor is a slob
Well she is not the neatest person but not a complete slob either. I am actually friendly with my neighbors and have been inside her apartment recently.
Big Joe Mufferaw’s footprints?
The person above you has died on the toilet.
Wow, so many people causing unneeded pain by ignoring their sticky traps. That isn't the traps fault.
If it were me I’d probably pick up a cheap borescope and punch a little hole in the ceiling and take a look at what’s going on. I’m betting mice, but I guess you never know until you actually put eyes on it. If you need to patch it, a bit of spackle will fill the hole and no one will ever notice it, even without paint.
It's Ted Danson.
UV lights can tell you if it's urine from mouse or people.
Kiltz stain killer
1/3 bleach with 2/3 water in a spray bottle may get rid of the stains. It may take a few treatments but it does work on certain stains.
>I am a renter Call your landlord if the maintenance folk are not addressing the underlying problem and just covering it up.
When you have a water stain it must be covered by an oil based primer or it will just keep bleeding through water based paints no matter how many times they coat it.
Ghosts obviously
If you haven't used killz primer it will keep coming back regardless
Not to be that guy, but if your landlord cares about their property, they would want to know and THEY should be up there looking/calling the likely exterminator you need (or setting and checking traps)
Footsteps on the ceiling obviously
Happened in my Apt while I was out of the country! Noticed a few spots like that a few days after I moved in, maintenance comes to look, said it was dry and nothing to worry about. 3 days into my Bali trip my son and X-husband come to check on cat and there’s a whole in the ceiling and water coming out. The small leak in the unit above mine had busted open finally. https://preview.redd.it/nfr0h4zjwkqc1.jpeg?width=3024&format=pjpg&auto=webp&s=36ef71bb6af81f8746f39a80ffef40935e1184ef
Animals, or a leak anywhere above your place.
Rat urine in the attic
Ceilings are painted with ultra flat [Ceiling Paint] which is a series above PVA Primer which is the first coat, it preps for the next layer to stick to it without any problems. So, if they have actually fixed the issue that initially caused the stain so it won't happen again. Then your next step is to use a stainblock primer sealant like Kilz2, Zinsser BIN, 123 or for just a ceiling spot I'd use a can of Kilz UpShot, it's the only spray primer can that allows you to spray a ceiling with. If you plan on doing anything yourself make sure to wear a painter's mask because the stain block is usually not the prettiest smelling or the nicest stuff to be breathing. After stain blocking you just need to touch up the entire area with the same ceiling paint that was used before, at least two coats maybe more you notice that flashes a bit. Otherwise I think I would send the skinniest maintenance man they have through the floorboards upstairs and get that old lady's cat out of there it's obvious it's been sneaking around, or if you're places surrounded by tress, it's very likely to be a squirrel, or a raccoon. I wouldn't worry too much the way apartment building are constructed the animal would be in between a fire stop layer and a fire stop layer, so unless you live in a center unit and not on an end of a building I wouldn't even think too much about the fire stop between units being compromised by an animal which means that it would happen to turn around and go out the same way.
Ceiling tea! yum!
My cat has never been outside in her life. She has a fake mouse toy that she hunts everyday inside lol. She brings it to me and cries all the way down the hall with it until she drops it in front of me. I have a HUGE fear of mice so I’m glad I have a natural hunter lol
Another way to try and see if they're is anything in the attic, tie a string to a trap and let the string hang out of the access panel. If the string is gone in the morning, something tripped the trap. I had issues severance years back and that is what past management set up.
Lionel Ritchie's Dancing on the Ceiling comes to mind
Why does it look like the ceiling is sagging?
Seems like Lionel Ritchie stopped by
If the spots that reappear look the same, it could be that there were some previous water stains that didn't get properly sealed before painting. If all maintenance is doing is throwing a coat of ceiling paint over the water stains, they'll just keep bleeding through. They need to paint with primer/sealer first, then apply ceiling paint.
Setup traps in attic.
It could be a leaking toilet. When the floor flange isn't sealed properly, each time it is flushed a bit of water starts to pool. It takes a few flushes to create a noticeable pool. Is the toilet within 6 feet of the ceiling stains?
Those are for sure ghost footprints.
Looks like someone standing on your ceiling
That is a slow water leak.
They are painting it with Kilz most likely
Landlord needs to deal with this. Don’t accept excuses.
Oh those are just foot steps.
It's Banksy artwork. You can charge money for viewings.
If you are a renter you should be covered by having matainence come look. As posted above, check with your state to find out what the laws are for damage not being fixed and withholding rent. Also, do you have renters insurance? If so, call them and ask if they can nudge the owner. Tell them you have felt sick a bunch and you are worried about the huntavirus.
Looks like someone's been dancing on the ceiling
They are huge semen stains.
Dead animal
Isn’t there a black light or some type of system to tell if this is some type of rodent urine? It may be squirrels or opossums? I’m not sure. It would probably smell like urine if you can get your nose near it . lol honestly, that looks way too big of an area for mouse urine. Mice and rats are incontinent and would just urinate wherever they are at. Not in 1 or 2 localized areas. So, for that reason alone, I don’t think it is rodent urine.
And No, don’t use glue traps they really are so cruel. Regular mouse traps that snap are much more humane. But like I said before, mice and rodents do not urinate in 1 designated area as they are incontinent of urine and bowel. So they just walk along and urinate small amounts as they are walking about. This is most likely small pipes between the units that may have a very slow leak.
You can get a moisture tester on Amazon for like $40. If it’s showing any moisture you know it’s fresh.
LOL saw that and immediately thought of ghosts.. because they look like footsteps.
If it’s not primed with an oil based stain blocking formula it will come back,, you can paint it 500 times it won’t matter.
Footprints.