Water Stain on Garage Floor
 

Just looking for advice from anyone who has encountered this situation or who has construction knowledge.

10 year old Lantana (block/stucco). The floor in the garage has water stains extending from the wall inward about 6-8 inches. Floor is original concrete, never been sealed or painted. There are no cracks in the floor. The water stain is permanent, never feels wet and things placed on top of it are not water damaged. The stain stops at the end of the wall that abuts the interior dining room. The stain is on both side walls at varying degrees. When closed up, the garage has a 'wet concrete' or musty smell to me (Mr 07 can't smell it).

Is this something we should be concerned about...either structurally or health-wise? Who would be best to bring in to give us an honest evaluation...a home inspector like Frank D, a concrete contractor, or ?? I can deal with the aesthetics...I just want some assurance it's not a problem. If it is a problem (we have no plans to sell) I do want to fix it.

Thanks, in advance, for your suggestions, wisdom, and advice. TOTV'ers never disappoint me with their breadth of experience and knowledge.

See photo below:

Definitely use Frank, he has a lot of experience, and a dampness meter that MIGHT work on concrete. I agree that you should be concerned about the musty smell. Double check the walls, as you may have dampness and mold there. Also, is this the common wall to the laundry, if so, there might be a small leak.
Hope this helps, and let us know what you find out (so we know what to look for).

Wow....that is strange and unique. So...the best way to start looking into this is to try to determine if it is moisture intrusion or not. It appears to be.

So....assuming it is....is it coming from the slab, or is it coming from the wall? Is there any pipes in that adjacent wall? Is that wall drywall or block? Any water pipes or vent pipes? What is above the wall? On some models the top of this wall may be where the roof hits against the front entry wall.

My guess is that the water (if it is a leak, etc) is coming from above.....either from a pipe or from a breach in the roof or flashing.

Does it dry out or get worse after a rain? Is there laundry on the other side? Does putting a fan overnight on this change the appearance at all?

Of course it is difficult to speculate with just one picture. I'm just trying to help by asking some questions. Of course, it could be a leak or I've even seen concrete be different shades with no problem at all......although this does look like it may be as you suspect. Hope this helps! Moisture meters and Thermal imaging cameras may tell us more.

Respectfully,

Frank

Frank and Tinker...thanks for your replies and insight. This picture is the east wall of the garage, near the garage door. It is a block wall. On the other side of this wall, our entry sidewalk was fully concreted with pavers on top. Garage roof with full gutters above. There is an irrigation pipe that runs along this wall, but, no abnormal water use. At the north end of this wall, where the other side is our inside foyer, the floor is completely dry and stain free.

We had half inch of rain last night...seems no wetter or drier than before.

But, the other wall, on the west side of the garage also has similar, but less intense, staining. It has landscape on the other side.

No laundry or inside water pipes near the staining ...and, as I said, it is on both sides of the garage, not just one wall.

Any other thoughts?

Frank ...I will send you a pm.

Thanks again....


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If the landscaping (including the pavers) is above the original foundation, you might have water trapped and it is seeping through the block wall. Try running your sprinklers with some paper towels on the floor and see if they get wet.