Black Spots On Siding

Removing spots from vinyl siding.

Black spots on siding.

Its adhesion properties are legendary and the spots can be. It s on the porch my windows but it is worse on the siding. It is sphaerobolus a common fungus that sticks firmly to light or white colored surfaces and resembles spots of tar. Dirt and insect secretion stains however can adhere to vinyl siding attracting molds mildews and algae.

The only way i have found to remove them thus far is by scraping the windows with a razor blade. What is artillery fungus. Vinyl siding is very popular due to its durability and simple maintenance. Those annoying black spots that creep up your siding or splash along the side of your car may not be mud spatters but artillery fungus.

Also known as artillery or cannonball fungus sphaerobolus it uses internal water pressure to forcefully fire its spores similar to seeds up to 20 feet away the fungus sets its sights on bright areas so that means it will aim for any pale surface that reflects light such as the siding on your house. Insect stains and other debris can be removed by simply cleaning vinyl siding with household cleaners. I am getting small dark spots on windows and the white siding of my house. It goes all the way up to my second story windows and is even under my soffit and on my gutters.

Click to enlarge any image small gray or darker round spots on siding that are about 1 16 in individual diameter particularly if the spots are slightly raised may be artillery fungus a mold spore. The photo at above left shows green algae on vinyl siding. We have thousands of tiny black spots pin head size all over the siding of our house. The black tar like spots that are all over your vinyl siding are more than likely a fungus called sphaerobolus stellatus better known as artillery or shotgun fungus although it s most often found on the east coast it can grow anywhere and especially thrives in areas that have cool damp springs or rainy fall weather conditions.

If you notice lots of tiny black or dark brown spots developing on your siding above a landscaped area of your yard as seen below it is most likely artillery otherwise known as shotgun fungus. We have these small black spots that look like specks of tar all over our white vinyl siding of our house. It s hard to see shotgun fungus itself because it s only 2 millimeters wide. Artillery fungus is a wood dwelling fungus commonly found in mulch.

Some tell us it s from spiders. Others have said it s a fungus from mulch.