Check us out on:

347-464-0189

Here is what you should do before hiring a professional mold testing team

No one wants to see mold growth on their walls, kitchen, and tiles. As much as possible, we want to make mold disappear when we see dark streaks and spots inside our house. In an ideal world, mold is absent. But in the world we live in, mold is everywhere.

We live in a world run by mold

Strictly speaking, we live in a world run by mold. For sure, mold is not in control of everything that happens around us. But it was made to keep the natural cycle of life up and running. Mold will grow on any given surface. It will break down all forms of organic matter. Although it will not get any nutrients from inorganic materials like plastic, glass, and metal, it can colonize these surfaces. Mold growth makes it possible for bacteria, dirt, and other corrosive elements to perform their destructive power.

This does not mean mold is bad. We may not like it, but mold keeps us alive and healthy. We need mold to create fermented food and drink, like cheese, alcohol, condiments, and coffee. At the same time, we need mold to create medicine and antibiotics. We also need mold to break down decaying matter around us so its organic nutrients would replenish the earth again. In other words, mold sustains life on earth.

What to do when you see signs of mold

The role of mold in keeping the cycle of nature is not difficult to understand. But it is a different thing to see mold start colonizing some areas inside your house. The question is, what should you do when you see signs of mold appearing? Do you call for professional mold inspection and mold remediation at once?

An honest take from a mold inspection company

Although we are a professional mold removal company, we’ll be the first ones to tell you that you do not need mold inspection right away. Are we serious? Yes. No doubt, you need professional help when dealing with mold. But there are things you need to do first before any mold inspection procedure.

Do not panic: a mold problem is solvable

Before calling for professional mold remediation, it is important for you not to panic. Whenever people freak out, they lose a ton of critical thinking skills and end up making the wrong choices. It is understandable to feel negative about mold. We know that mold is an irritant. It causes allergies and can lead to respiratory problems.

Still, you don’t need to panic. Why?

Mold is not necessarily toxic and deadly

There is a popular belief that mold exposure leads to critical health problems. This is true for some species of mold that release mycotoxins. Most mold inspection companies will tell you these type of mold are dangerous to human health:

Alternaria
Aspergillus
Chaetomium
Cladosporium
Fusarium
Myrothecium
Penicillium
Stachybotrys
Trichoderma
Thrichothecium

According to the CDC’s report on mold and dampness, however, there is little evidence to prove that the presence of these type of mold inside the house is hazardous. Unless the mold colony is widespread, you don’t need to worry. Even black mold is not necessarily harmful to everybody, although it needs to be controlled to prevent further growth. Yes, people with weak immune systems can get irritated and experience poor health outcomes. But these cases are rare and cannot be used as the norm for everyone.

Control mold with household materials

When you see and type of mold inside your house, do what you can to control its growth before calling for a professional mold inspector. And this will save you time and money. When you hire a company to do mold inspection and they see that you have fixed some factors that contribute to mold already, your initiatives will reduce your mold inspection costs. The good news is you can limit visible mold growth by decreasing humidity inside your house.

Manage levels of humidity

Humidity is the level of moisture in the air. If you have a sensitive nose, humid environments will make you sneezy and get your nose stuffed up. Unfortunately, while you try your best to manage your allergy, mold colonies are all busy releasing mold spores. Mold loves moisture. It makes then release more mold spores into the air. Any surface inside your house will grow mold right away when it is frequently humid and wet.

The solution is improving your home’s atmosphere to limit the moisture mold can consume. Here’s what you can do:

Improve your ventilation to reduce mold spore counts in the air

Humid indoors are the result of poor ventilation. Air is clogged and unable to circulate properly. As a result, mold spores in the air remain inside and find new landing spots. Your basement or storage room, for example, is a mold haven especially for black mold because it has stagnant moist air. When there is good ventilation, on the other hand, it allows fresh air from the outside to replace the polluted air.

Use a dehumidifier decrease air moisture

There are times when more than good ventilation is needed to solve humidity. This happens when the air outside is also humid. The solution is to use dehumidifiers and air purifiers. An air conditioning unit is a dehumidifier because it makes the air cold and dry, making it difficult for mold to multiply. This is why mold growth stops during winter and resumes in spring.

Use an air purifier to reduce mold spores

An air purifier will also help you deal with mold. It cleans the air from these microscopic spores.

Fix your leaking pipes to reduce mold inspection cost

Leaking pipes are one common source of moisture inside your house. Water is essential for any home. But drips are leaks are not. When they run through surfaces and seep into cracks, they give mold the perfect spots to land, root, grow, and create new colonies. Fixing your pipes would reduce wet surfaces and moisture. Making repairs of your own will reduce the potential cost of mold inspection and mold removal.

Clean moldy areas with vinegar and baking soda

Don’t wait for the team of professional mold remover to come before you take action on visible mold. Frankly, there is no assurance that whenever you call for mold removal, a team will come within an hour. If one or two customers have already called ahead of you, chances are you’ll be served the next working day. So, when you see mold growing in easy-to-reach surfaces, clean it at once. If you have kids or elderly members in the family, it is wise to remove mold at once.

You can control mold with vinegar, baking soda, clean water, and a sturdy brush. Follow these instructions:

Take undiluted vinegar and spray it directly on the area infected by mold. Saturate the area with vinegar and leave it for an hour.
Meanwhile, create a solution of baking soda and water. To make this, mix one teaspoon of baking soda with two cups of water. Pour it into an empty spray container. Shake it thoroughly until both are combined well.
Return to the area you have saturated with vinegar for an hour. Spray the baking soda solution directly on the mold and scrub the surface.
Rinse the area with warm water.
Spray the remaining vinegar on the surface one more time.
Leave it for another hour.
Scrub the surface again and rinse it with warm water.
Let the area dry.

It is important to note that before doing this, make sure you have repaired any nearby pipes that leak and drip water. You cannot stop mold growth if the primary sources of moisture were not addressed first.

When to call your local mold removal company for mold inspection

Dealing with mold on your own does not mean you don’t need the help of a professional mold removal company. It is easy to clean mold on surfaces that are easy to reach. But when there is mold growing on your ceiling, inner walls, or on your ducting, there’s a huge chance that your mold problem is beyond your control. In these situations, a professional should come to conduct a comprehensive mold test. Call a local mold testing company should come for visual inspection, surface testing, and air testing. They have all the mold testing tools and techniques to get and evaluate mold samples, and recommend cost-effective solutions.

Conclusion

Don’t panic when you see mold inside your home. Control it by improving your ventilation, using a dehumidifier and air purifier, fixing leaks, and cleaning moldy areas with vinegar and baking soda solution. But when the area colonized by mold is beyond your reach or too big for you to handle, it is time to call a professional mold removal team.

About the Company

Brooklyn Mold Removal is a company dedicated to providing quality service. We work with industrial hygienists and professional engineers to ensure that we deliver reliable, high-quality results to our clients. We understand that people need help with their environmental safety needs, so we prioritize assisting customers in making informed decisions about their situation.