My aunt has this fungus growing in her house. What is it and how do I deal with it?
You can see indentations where I’ve pressed my shoe against it - it was quite firm and rubbery
Are there no mycologists on the Dope?
:eek: :eek: :eek: That is UGLY!
I don’t know what it is, but I’d scrape it up, bleach the area, and eliminate the source of the moisture that’s letting it grow.
Seconded. If you don’t want to put bleach on that rug, use copious amounts of hydrogen peroxide or vinegar. I don’t like using bleach unless I absolutely have to; and I had a boyfriend who had some scary black tree-ear-looking fungi growing on his walls. The peroxide and vinegar worked for me.
I quite agree
It’s coming in underneath the window. Now I have the legal authority to spend her money, sealing is on the list. I just need to get some of those foam strips used to exclude drafts.
Murderer!
Holy Christ. That thing is getting ready to grow limbs and begin its killing spree.
Yeah. Can’t identify it, probably wouldn’t want to, since my first instinct is KILL IT WITH FIRE. Or, uh, something less destructive perhaps, since I assume you want to save the house.
I would be nice to find out what kind it is, purely in the interest of morbid scientific curiosity, so maybe a mycologist can come along before that thing grows mouth parts.
That’s the dry rot fungus. what you’re seeing is just the fruiting body - the main part of the fungus consists of a network of fine threads (hyphae), which unfortunately will be found to be spread throughout some of the timber behind the fruiting body.
It can cause quite serious structural damage - you probably need to get an expert in to stop it spreading.
I’m thinking Mangetout is correct - it’s certainly what it looks like. And with that cautious ID, I’d like to share David Aurora’s comments on it, which I found entertaining:
One of the few fleshy fungi that lives up to the label fungus in its most perjorative sense - odious, insidious, hideous, obnoxious, downright abominable. Once it gains a foothold it is hard to eradicate because the gigantic, padlike fruiting bodies exude great quantities of water, stimulating further fungal growth. The mycelial strands spread with astonishing rapidity. Like a horde of hungry army ants in search of food, they will overrun anything and everything in their way: brick, stone, tiles, plaster, drain pipes, wires, leather boots, cement floors, books, tea kettles, even corpses.
From Mushrooms Demystified:* A Comprehensive Guide to the Fleshy Fungi*, 2nd Edition ( 1979, 1986, Ten Speed Press ).
Aargh!
The most disgusting thing I’ve seen in a looong time!
I’d have to burn down the house and move someplace else.
JFC. Nothing like that can grow in So Cal, can it?!
That is horrible!! :eek: Who do you call to eradicate something like that?!
Woah!! :eek:
I repeat.
AARGH!
At least the recommendations for control and eradication are just the removal of whatever water source is feeding the fungus. And, it seems to be sensitive to heat and low humidity.
Can you cut off the water supply, close all the windows, crank up the furnace, and cook the house for a few days?
Definitely dry rot, damn it!
I think it’s cool. It must die though. Good luck, and if you find more of the fungus photograph it for us?
Here you go. 
What’s the damage? The captions say it hasn’t spread far, but I can imagine you’ll be nervously poking into nooks and crannies of that house for the foreseeable future, hoping that it hasn’t snuck off somewhere out of sight.
It’s being looked at professionally. Basically, it’s all along the front of the house, but hasn’t spread far back. I’ve started a seperate thread in IMHO.