Mold: Questions & Answers
- What is mold?
- What causes mold?
- Are the health risks of mold exposure greater for some people?
- Can mold damage my home and personal property?
- If we have mold, can’t we just kill it with bleach?
- Isn’t mold and mold spores all around us?
- Are some species of mold more dangerous than other molds?
- If we have mold on drywall, why don’t we just tear it out? Do we need a mold inspection?
- We have a new house. Do we really need to have an indoor air quality inspection?
- We live in Atlanta. Do we need to worry about radon?
- Our windows have condensation in the winter. Should we replace the windows?
- Water leaks underneath the shower glass door in our master bathroom onto the floor outside the shower. We have noticed mold along the bottom of the baseboard below the glass shower door. Should we be worried about a mold problem?
1. What is mold?
Mold is a fungus. Both harmless and dangerous molds are found almost everywhere and can live in indoor and outdoor environments. Certain types of molds and fungi release extremely toxic mycotoxins that can cause severe health problems for those who breathe them.
2. What causes mold?
To grow and multiply, mold needs moisture, air, and a source of food, such as construction material, previously treated “dead mold colonies,” and nutrient water/air. Controlling excess moisture is critical in preventing and stopping mold growth inside your home.
3. Are the health risks of mold exposure greater for some people?
There is a wide range of variability in regard to how people are affected by mold exposure. Some family members living in the same house may experience no ill health problems, while other family members may experience severe health problems. Regardless, the long-term presence of indoor mold growth may eventually become unhealthy for anyone. Certain individuals may be affected more severely and sooner than others. They are: children, the elderly, individuals with HIV infection, and people with respiratory conditions, sensitivity to allergies, and weakened immune systems, such as chemotherapy patients and organ transplant recipients.
4. Can mold damage my home and personal property?
Absolutely! If mold is growing inside or under a structure, it will not go away on its own. Mold will grow, spread, and release new mold spores, producing new mold colonies as time passes. In fact, mold spores produced by a single mold colony can settle and contaminate the interior property and structure of an entire house or building. It is the spores produced by mold that infect other areas in the structure by producing new generations of mold colonies, and that also compromise the health of the individuals that breathe the mold spores produced by mold.
5. If we have mold, can’t we just kill it with bleach?
No! Killing established mold growth with bleach, a biocide, ultraviolet lights, or ozone is not recommended by leading industry associations. It is a complete waste of time and money. Killing mold will retard mold growth only for a short time. Dead mold spores can be just as toxic as living mold spores, and they can have the same health effect on the occupants of the building. Mold does not behave the same way as bacteria, and killing it should not be mistaken as clean-up or removal.
6. Isn’t mold and mold spores all around us?
Yes. However, the genus and species of mold growing indoors are not usually found in large numbers in the outside air. Also, the mold that grows indoors tends to be more toxic than mold found outdoors. If you have a mold problem indoors, you may be breathing in tens of thousands (or more) mold spores than you would in a normal environment or outdoors. All indoor molds should be removed promptly, no matter what type(s) of mold is present, or whether or not the mold can produce mycotoxins.
7. Are some species of mold more dangerous than other molds?
Yes. Some types of mold can produce mycotoxins, although they do not always do so. It depends on the type of mold that is present. Molds that reproduce indoors tend to be more hazardous than molds that grow outdoors.
8. If we have mold on drywall, why don’t we just tear it out? Do we need a mold inspection?
It depends on how the mold got there, and how serious the mold issue is. A small area of mold growth (less than one square foot) growing on concrete in a cold cellar can be cleaned up without a mold assessment. Mold growing on drywall, however, could be an indicator of a more serious mold issue inside the wall. If the wall is opened without protecting the rest of the area from traveling mold spores, you may be making the problem worse and more expensive to rectify.
9. We have a new house. Do we really need to have an indoor air quality inspection?
Yes. The age of the building has no bearing on whether there could be mold, radon, poor air quality, etc. Newer buildings have more indoor air quality (IAQ) problems, such as VOC (volatile organic compound) chemical off gassing, and can also have mold due to poor building design and construction.
10. We live in Atlanta. Do we need to worry about radon?
Yes. We are finding elevated radon levels in many homes in Georgia. Radon has been linked to lung cancer, and, at low levels, is equivalent to smoking 1.5 packs of cigarettes a day. Radon does not produce any odor or any visible effects.
11. Our windows have condensation in the winter. Should we replace the windows?
In some cases, the windows will need replacing if they are old and allowing water to intrude into the building. However, we have found in numerous cases that the problem is actually not the window itself. If the ventilation in the house is not adequate, replacing the windows may not solve the issue. In fact, it may make no difference at all. An air quality assessment can provide better solutions.
12. Water leaks underneath the shower glass door in our master bathroom onto the floor outside the shower. We have noticed mold along the bottom of the baseboard below the glass shower door. Should we be worried about a mold problem?
Yes you should. Water may have leaked under and behind the baseboard and there could be substantial mold growth behind the wall. The interior of walls are not air tight and if there is mold growth there, the mold spores can possibly circulate into the air inside the home. The only way to know for sure is to have a certified mold inspector check for mold.
Do not remove the baseboard to see for yourself! You could be releasing millions of mold spores throughout your home and creating a much larger future mold problem as the released spores can be hazardous to breathe and can create new mold colonies if the released mold spores recolonize a new place in the home with moisture such as your HVAC system, plumbing, etc.
A certified mold inspector would drill a small hole through the baseboard and insert a borascope that is attached to an air sampling pump. A sample of air behind the wall would be collected and analyzed for mold spores, which are a reproductive byproduct of mold.
