No one enjoys finding mold in their home. If this unwanted visitor takes up residence in your basement, crawl space, or foundation, you’ll want to act quickly and with the help of the professionals in your area to clear it out ASAP
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Common Molds To Find In Your Home
There are more types of molds in the world than there are animals, and not all of them are bad. Some, like the mold that appears on your bread, are harmless unless ingested. Others can have a long-term effect on your health if you live in the same space as them.
Some of the molds that are most likely to appear in your home when moisture levels start to rise include:
- Cladosporium
- Penicillium
- Alternaria
- Stachybotrys chartarum
While all of these molds are bad for your health, some have a more significant effect than others. Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Alternaria, for example, can have a long-term impact on your respiratory health if they’re left unchecked in your home. They aren’t immediately deadly, and if you catch them quickly, you can respond accordingly.
Stachybotrys chartarum, or black mold, is a much more serious matter. This mold has been known to drive people out of their homes due to the mere threat of its impact on people’s health. If you’ve found yourself exposed to black mold for an extended period of time, you may be vulnerable to severe health conditions and should see a medical practitioner as well as a local contractor.
Clearing Mold Out Of Your Home
You don’t have to wait for professional guidance to start getting mold out of your home. While it’s often a good idea to bring in a professional for a home inspection after you’ve cleared the mold away, it is possible to thoroughly sanitize your home in advance.
Again, molds like Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Alternaria are safe to interact with in the short term. You’ll want to have gloves on hand while you clean, but you can scrape the mold off of your walls and throw it away without too much trouble. You will immediately need to scrub your walls with soapy water or commercial mold remover if you want the mold out of your home entirely.
Note that this effort will only be effective if the mold spores haven’t moved into other materials, like nearby carpeting or furniture. If it turns out mold is migrating through your home, you may need to make more significant steps toward removing it.
Black mold, however, requires both a delicate touch and more significant protective equipment to be removed from your home. If you believe you have black mold in your joints, walls, or foundation, you need to reach out to a mold removal specialist as soon as possible. At a minimum, you’ll want a mask and gloves on hand if you try to remove it on your own. It is much safer, however, to rely on a professional for this kind of removal.
Preventing Mold From Taking Root In Your Home
The good news is that you can work to keep mold out of your home. Preventive measures can include:
- Moving air through your home
- Keeping the air vents in your home clean
- Getting rid of excess moisture with a dehumidifier
- Not letting leaks go untreated
- Investing in waterproofing measures for your home
As mentioned, mold also loves to make itself at home in porous materials. You should try to keep carpeting, furniture, or unfinished wood away from the damper parts of your home until you’ve invested in repairs or applicable waterproofing measures. This way, the mold will be less likely to spread, and you won’t have to scrap any projects you were in the middle of working on.
What Does The Presence Of Mold In Your Home Mean?
Mold is often as much of a symptom of a problem as it is a problem in its own right. The presence of mold in your basement or crawl space often means you have a leak to deal with somewhere. Luckily, you can work with the professional contractors in the Cleveland, OH, area to determine where that leak may be. A foundation and basement repair expert from Ohio Basement Systems can inspect your home for mold and damage both before providing you with a free personalized quote to reference when considering the cost of repairs.
