Mold has been showing up in random spots of my house for several months now. It’s a green dust-like mold. It’s appeared in all of my downstairs rooms, which are very spaced apart – on the baseboards, on my shoes, on the surface of the wood floor, on window seals, on blinds, on electronics, and various other surfaces. I’ve only lived in my home for about one year, and know of no water damage that would have caused this.
A mold inspector came out yesterday to survey my home for the source. He tested the humidity and the moisture around the areas where the mold was showing up. He said the humidity in my home is actually below normal, and he could find no high contents of moisture. He could not find the source or offer an explanation for the mold. He did give me a referal to a company that tests mold samples – if I get the sample myself and drive it to their facility, he told me the cost will start around $1,000.00 – and that’s just to tell me what kind of mold it is. It will cost significantly more for them to try to find the source. My insurance company does not cover any type of mold inspection or damage.
I’m at a loss now. The inspector said because he didn’t "smell" mold damage or see too much (even though I told him that was because I clean it up on a regular basis), I shouldn’t be too concerned. However, I am constantly cleaning up these spots. I’ve had to throw away many clothing items that have been ruined by it. One of my roommates has a one year old son that I’m concerned about, and my other roommate has severe allergies to dust and mold.
I guess my question is – what would you do? I’m especially interested in answers from people who have mold knowledge and can offer some educated insight. I’ve recently had many other costly financial surprises, and it will be difficult to scrap up funds for this.
Thanks in advance.
More details:
I own the house. It was built in 1942 – it’s about about 1700 square feet. Crawl space. Central AC/heat – a new unit which was replaced about 10 months ago. We live in the Tidewater region of VA. It was bought out of foreclosure, don’t know previous owner. It had been vacant for at least a year before we moved in. Home inspection found no water damage issues either.
First, $1,000 for analysis of a mold sample is outrageous. Buy a $99 Got Mold? Test Kit and use all 6 samples (3 air, 3 surface) and you’ll only spend $249 total, plus you’ll get useful information.
Second, you don’t say what the relative humidity is, per the inspector. So, you need to know the RH and keep it below 50%. Buy a good dehumidifier (not a WalMart unit). Look at Indoor Health Solutions (dot com) for the best.
If your crawl space has a dirt floor, that’s probably where your moisture is coming from. It needs to be sealed with plastic, or ideally have concrete poured over a vapor barrier.
Your "water event" was the year of vacancy. You need to have the whole house cleaned with HEPA vacs, after you beat the moisture problem.
And please don’t throw bleach at mold. Bleach is 95% water. As soon as the chlorine evaporates, the water is feeding the mold again. Mold has to be removed physically. Biocides just don’t work.
Lots more free information is available at gotmoldtestkit.com/fmg3 where you can get a free ebook about how to find mold and moisture problems in your home.
mold dies with temperatures below freezing, i would start with checking behind the oven, water heater, microwave, and refrigerator. There would obviously be mold in these places too. get rid of all mold all at once. if it continues to show up, then the mold is airborne and you will have to get your house treated which could cost thousands of dollars. your best bet would be to go ahead and take a sample to the company.
References :
you really don’t mention enough about the house, is it a new house, do you own or rent, what type of furnace/heating system, where is it located ,by water my suggestion would be to contact former owner/bank and ask if this has a past history; contact landlord and tell him to fix it; some colleges will send students out to investigate source; if it new construction: when they were building your house they may not have applied vapor barrier correctly if at all need a contractor to check; there are many other sources that may be causing the mold good luck
References :
My home is on a slab. I too have experienced this type of mold in one room that must have had higher humidity though there was no particular reason for that and there were no wall or roof leaks.
I found clothes and a couple of other items in the closet in the room in question with the green mold on them. Had to actually throw them out too.
What I did for the problem was to use a dehumidifier in the hallway near this room. The dehumidifier was able to remove moisture from most of my home very well. I keep it set at 40-50%. My 1 story home is 1500 sq’. I place the machine in the hallway outside the 3 bedrooms.
I have not had mold since.
I do not have to use the machine all year though. In the Winter here in Michigan when the furnace runs and the air is drier, the humidity stays low but as soon as Spring gets close, I will run the machine. It has been a life saver.
Costs anywhere from $150. – $175. for a medium size unit.
Of course, if you live in a more humid state, you may have to run it all year or at least more often than Michigan.
Home Depot, Lowes, Walmart all sell them.
Do some online research to decide what size unit you want which will depend on the size of your home and how many areas seem to be getting the mold problem.
You can also place a dehumidifier in your basement to stop moisture there from getting into the rest of the house.
Buy a humidistat to place in your home to get accurate readings of the everyday humidity levels in different areas of your home.http://www.amazon.com/Honeywell-TM005X-Wireless-Outdoor-Thermo-Hygrometer/dp/B000EX83RU/ref=tag_stp_st_edpp_url
Also, always run your bathroom fans during baths and showers. Continue to run the fan for a good 15-20 mins after the shower is done to remove all moisture.
Same in the kitchen if you have an exhaust fan. Use it during cooking.
http://wize.com/dehumidifiers
Good Luck with this.
References :
I have the same problem in my bedroom closet. It is caused by running a portable humidifier in my bedroom. I had the same problem a few years ago when my mother had the humidifier running in my room then. It was placed too close to the closet. My dad fixed the problem by washing the walls and ceiling down with bleach, priming it with oil-based KILZ, then repainting it white with regular paint. All the carpets in the house were professionally cleaned the following spring. I didn’t have the problem again till now, and my dad fixed it again the same way. My mom moved the humidifer away from the closet, and no problems.
References :
Mold requires moisture to grow. Your mold inspector missed something. Is your home on a conventional foundation? Did the inspector crawl underneath?
References :
Hurricane Katrina survivor……mold and all…..
First, $1,000 for analysis of a mold sample is outrageous. Buy a $99 Got Mold? Test Kit and use all 6 samples (3 air, 3 surface) and you’ll only spend $249 total, plus you’ll get useful information.
Second, you don’t say what the relative humidity is, per the inspector. So, you need to know the RH and keep it below 50%. Buy a good dehumidifier (not a WalMart unit). Look at Indoor Health Solutions (dot com) for the best.
If your crawl space has a dirt floor, that’s probably where your moisture is coming from. It needs to be sealed with plastic, or ideally have concrete poured over a vapor barrier.
Your "water event" was the year of vacancy. You need to have the whole house cleaned with HEPA vacs, after you beat the moisture problem.
And please don’t throw bleach at mold. Bleach is 95% water. As soon as the chlorine evaporates, the water is feeding the mold again. Mold has to be removed physically. Biocides just don’t work.
Lots more free information is available at gotmoldtestkit.com/fmg3 where you can get a free ebook about how to find mold and moisture problems in your home.
References :
http://www.gotmoldtestkit.com
http://www.indoorhealthsolutions.com
i had the mold inspected and tested in my home, the total was $200 and that included the testing samples for species identity. please call around for a better price
References :
I own a restoration company and we specialize in water damage & mold removal. We don’t perform the mold pre-test or clearance test because it’s a conflict of interest as we get rid of the mold. I agree with the prior comments about the price – it sounds like they are ripping you off. You shouldn’t have to pay more than a couple of hundred bucks to find out the type of mold (and that includes a written report). Although I have to say that if you can see the mold on the sheetrock it doesn’t really matter what type it is, you should just go ahead and have it taken care of by a professional. Call up a few restoration companies and have them come out and give you a free estimate and then go from there. It’s also important to find the source of the moisture so have them take a look for that too. It could be as simple as your clothes dryer vent not being connected properly.
References :
http://www.waterdamageout.com/mold_removal_dangerous_mold.htm