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I live on 4th floor of a seven-storey building. It's been a month since I noticed these strange things growing on my ceiling. It looks like mud when observed closely.

At first I cleared it with brush which can be seen in the picture as light stains. But it grew again. The darker one is how it looks like now.

The other side of the wall from which this thing grows is the bathroom. Above the bathroom there is a small compartment for storing things. The door of the compartment can be seen in the picture.

I've never seen anything like this. What is this thing? And how can I get rid of it? As mentioned above clearing with a brush doesn't help.

mud-like

close-up

Saikat Ashraf
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    Looks like termite tubes. – bib Jun 14 '17 at 11:53
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    I google it and its not like most of the images. It doesn't hang from the ceiling. Instead it it attached fully to the ceiling. – Saikat Ashraf Jun 14 '17 at 12:01
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    What part of the world are you in? – isherwood Jun 14 '17 at 12:04
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    I'm from Bangladesh. Termites are not very common here. I've seen them once or twice in past 20 years (Not in this house though). Also it's rainy season now. – Saikat Ashraf Jun 14 '17 at 12:12
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    Yes, those are (for sure) termites! – Joe Z. Jun 14 '17 at 15:50
  • It may be insect tunnels, or it could basically be mud -- some sort of substance mixed in water which dribbles out onto the ceiling and dries. If there's a bathroom above, that would be the source of the "mud". Inspect the stuff closely: If it's insect tunnels they will be hollow; if it's "mud" the stuff will be solid with no hollow core. – Hot Licks Jun 14 '17 at 18:51
  • @HotLicks since it's growing on the ceiling, it's unlikely to just be dribbles. – stannius Jun 14 '17 at 20:06
  • @stannius - Hard to say. If the ceiling is not particularly level it could well be "dribbles". – Hot Licks Jun 14 '17 at 20:35
  • Note that termite tubes go somewhere -- they don't just dead-end in the middle of nowhere. (Dunno about other insects.) – Hot Licks Jun 14 '17 at 20:36
  • @HotLicks It is surely not mud. There is no leakage in the ceiling and bathroom above. – Saikat Ashraf Jun 14 '17 at 21:06
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    scrape most of it off, leave some. Mark the end with a pencil. Check regularly for a change in length, scrape some of the new growth off and inspect it for working insects. Using a brush will obliterate live insects. – Yorik Jun 14 '17 at 21:46
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    @SaikatAshraf - If water gets dripped onto the floor above (which certainly happens in many bathrooms) it will run down through cracks in the structure and collect various chemicals along the way. I've seen similar stuff (but on a smaller scale) in our house. – Hot Licks Jun 14 '17 at 23:30
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    @HotLicks: if you look at where the previous "growth" was scraped off, there are clearly no cracks there. This is insect activity, not water. – Martha Jun 15 '17 at 00:47
  • @Martha - I mean the liquid is entering at that corner and running along the ceiling. – Hot Licks Jun 15 '17 at 02:01
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    @Martha - And explain why an insect would build branching "tunnels" like that. – Hot Licks Jun 15 '17 at 02:02
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    This is classic termite mud tunnels. What is the material of the structural beams of the building--steel or wooden timbers? In New Orleans LA USA I have seen substantial houses with heavy timber beams supporting the raised floor above ground level that have been replaced with steel due to termite damage to the original timber beams. Some of these beams were from baldcypress which is resistant to rot, but not to termites. – Jim Stewart Jun 15 '17 at 18:52
  • @JimStewart It's steel. – Saikat Ashraf Jun 16 '17 at 10:25

3 Answers3

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It may not be termites but it looks likes some kind of insect infestation. I would contact either the building owner or a local pest exterminator. What ever the tunnels are made of is likely building material. I would recommend doing this quickly before there is structural damage to the building.

mikes
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Not that it's for sure termites. But this is how termites get place to place in well lit areas. You'll commonly find these types of tunnels from the ground, up the cement portion of a foundation, and into the structure. Since not all insects like light, this is how they do it.

For sure call an exterminator for a full evaluation.

Tim Meers
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Those are mud tubes created by ground termites. They search for food during the day and go back into the ground at night, then start the process all over again the next day. That is why the tubes keep coming back after you sweep them away with your broom.

There is a white looking termiticide chemical (that the termites think is food) you can squirt into the termite holes in your ceiling and they will take it back to their nest in the ground and it will kill them.

Robert Holland
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