“The dark streaks, lines, or patches on your ceiling or walls are Ghosts. Yes, but not the haunting kind. These discolorations are caused over time as dirt/dust/soot buildup in a concentrated area..

What Causes Ghosting?

There are many reasons why this can happen. Ghost marks can be caused by any combination of moisture, cold spots, static electricity, air currents, and a supply of dust, soot, and other particulates that can drift with the air.

The colder areas on walls and ceilings get damp from condensation, and air-borne dust clings to the dampness. This usually occurs where there are studs, joists, wall headers, or sheetrock screws. Insulation can not always be fitted into these areas properly where the sheetrock meets the wood where it is attached to. Fixing these cold channels requires carefully determining the exact source of the leak and deciding on the most cost-effective method to plug it.

Putting too much moisture into the air from humidifiers and drying wet clothes on drying racks can encourage this.  Other things to look at are propane log fires and unvented gas ranges create excess moisture. Make sure your home is properly vented and pay attention the indoor humidity to minimize ghosting.

We have a dry climate in Billings. Too little moisture in the air can increase the buildup of static electricity, which charges the dust particles and makes them more likely to cling to walls, ceilings, and everything else.

Hot-air heating systems will also increase static by drying out the air and blowing it through the ducts, where friction causes the electric charge to build up. There’s a balancing act involved, and keeping your furnace cleaned and tuned can help.

Change your air filter more frequently and look into using a stand-alone air filter or purifier to help keep the air in your home cleaner. This will help in removing the soot that can causes ghosting.

What About Painting?
You can paint over the ghosting marks after cleaning. This is only a temporary fix as you will need to get to the root of the problem by implementing some of the solutions in this article. We can Ghostbust for you by giving us a call 697-5135 or scheduling an appointment at the bottom of this page.