Moldy floor near toilet, is it the seal or something else?

[Terry]

Posting for a friend from Pittsburgh who is trying to determine a fix for this. Mold has been showing up near the toilet bowl, but the floor is dry. A bit confusing as normally you would think it's from the toilet seal.

Mold to the right of the bowl.

Water streaking on the wall. But feels dry.

Going to look at the roof gutters and roof to see if that's the issue too.

 

[John Gayewski]

Occam's razor.

It's the toilet

 

[Sponsor]

 

[Weekend Handyman]

Could they have dropped some makeup or something in the area of the staining? My kids got some Crayola paint on the old linoleum and it transferred like crazy. My wife keeps telling it is mold. I keep telling her it is Crayola paint.

I am assuming you pulled the toilet. If not, it could also be there was water under the toilet and wicked laterally under the waterproof layer.

 

[Terry]

I am assuming you pulled the toilet. If not, it could also be there was water under the toiled and wicked laterally through under the waterproof layer.

This home is in the Midwest. So no, I haven't pulled it.

 

[WorthFlorida]

The wax ring is leaking and the subfloor wicked up the moister and started to mold. That vinyl flooring has a paper backing. It also sucks up water and starts to mold. The vinyl top layer is very thin and translucent. The picture of what looks like the ceiling is from too much moisture after showers with not enough ventilation. If this is a second floor bath, that ceiling corner has little insulation behind it because of all the wood framing, therefore, during winter months it is a cold spot that will cause more condensation. Doubtful it is a roof leak. A roof leak the staining would start at the base molding, not at the toilet.

 

[Weekend Handyman]

This home is in the Midwest. So no, I haven't pulled it.

My money is on the toilet then. The floor is not wet becsuse the water/mould is below the waterproof wear layer.

 

[Peterson]

The wax ring has failed and the linoleum tile is absorbing the water, leading to a discoloring of the tile. You are going to have to pull the toilet and replace the linoleum. You will want to look at the underside of the toilet to make sure there are no cracks in the porcelain which could also cause the leaks as well.

I bet the streaking on the wall is from taking hot showers without the fan on or the window open. Water condenses on the walls, and the condensation runs down, making streak marks on the paint. I have the same issue in my house.

 

[Terry]

She had a plumber come out and pull the toilet. This is what that looks like. Hard to see here though.

The ring itself was stuck to the toilet, in bunches on the floor, it was a mess and the floor sub floor is wet , raised somewhat and soft in a spot. He sprayed it with Lysol.. the floor is moldy

 

[Weekend Handyman]

Too bad she has some water damage. On the bright side, if the toilet is the source, she can fix the damage and move on with certainty. Tracking down external leaks can be a real pain.