What is mold?
Mold is a term used to describe fibrous spore producing fungi which can be found growing indoors and outdoors including in water damaged homes and workplaces. However spore producing house mold growths that causes health problems are not the only fungi around.
Some helpful fungi
Some not so harmful or even helpful fungi include, yeast that causes bread to rise, and still other yeasts that has helped man make beer since the time of the ancient Egyptians. Fungi living intertwined in the roots of plants enabling them to take in nutrients. Other fungi include edible mushrooms, and of course wood decay fungi that are one of the only organisms that can break down and recycle dead trees in our forests.
A few interesting facts about spores
The fungi we are concerned with in this article are the household molds that release spores. They develop spores which are capable of traveling through the air on the weakest of currents thereby enabling the growths to spread to new locations.
a. Spores are invisible because they are so tiny, yet when many spores are produced by mold growth the combined masses of green, black, brown, tan, or yellow spores are what often impart color to mold colonies. This is why mold colonies will often start out white in a Petri dish when the growth is young and not yet producing spores. Thus, not in every case but in many cases it is not the mold that is green, black or some other color, what we often see as color on a mold colony is sometimes numerous tiny colorful spores being produced like tiny colorful flowers on top of a plant.
b. Molds contain potent allergens that cause adverse health effects in humans and the highest concentrations of these allergens are in the spores.
c. Spores can remain dormant for many years when dry, and spores regardless of if they are live, dormant, or even dead, can contain allerge ns that can result in health problems.
d. Most molds do not grow well at warm temperatures such are found in the human body. Some mold including various infections yeasts, as well as Aspergillus fumigatus and several other molds can grow quite well at high temperatures thus are common pathogens causing infections in humans. Most molds only grow in humans with immune system problems. Not only humans are affected by Aspergillus but parrots are also very susceptible to aspergillosis causes by Aspergillus mold.
e. Mold spores do not only germinate in water damaged buildings and in persons with immune system problems, molds can grow from spores perfectly well in the absence of water and leaks. They often grow in humid areas such as in homes where the AC is turned off, or inside AC ducts where the coldness causes humidity levels to rise, sometimes to the point of forming condensation in our ducts. With or without condensation, mold can grow in areas where humidity is above 60 to 65%RH.
f. Did you know that mold can also cause rashes? When humidity related molds such as the very common Penicillium chrysogenum grows unnoticed as white powdery spots on clothes in humid closets skin rashes may develop. I have seen this connection with skin rashes and the above specific mold species on clothes first hand during many mold inspections where Penicillium chrysogenum was on clothes and the clients had doctor diagnosed fungal dermatitis. Given enough water and time this mold turns from powdery white spots to green patches and produces spores with a difference microscopic appearance. In a labs Petri dish the transformation takes days. This mold consultant has observed first hand that in humid foreclosure homes that have been empty for two or three years prior to the inspection the transformation from white to green often take years. In homes with humidity problems that have likely existed a one year roughly or where the moisture levels are not quite as high the mold remains white.
Mold and your health
Molds should not be allowed to survive in our homes since they affect the Indoor Air Quality to a great extend, thereby leading to certain common but serious health problems. Molds commonly causes or triggers ailments such as asthma and allergy including breathing difficulties, wheezing and sinus congestion, watery eyes, runny nose, and itchy throat. Most sinus infections are the result of fungi according to a Mayo clinic study. Common house old molds such as Alternaria and Curvularia are often causes of such infections.
Certain molds are known to be more prone to producing poisonous chemicals called mycotoxins, such molds are commonly known as the toxic molds, as you know toxic black mold is the most infamous. It appears that any mold can release odors and spores that cause allergy reactions. Thus toxic or not, molds should not be allowed to grow indoors. Many people have been poisoned by toxic mold by consuming contaminated foods. It is not certain to most scientists that breathing in toxic spores causes the same reactions as consuming foods contaminated with toxic molds. Many homeowners remain convinced that toxic mold is toxic when breathed in. Research is still going into the adverse health effects of indoor mold growth.
About mold inspections
mold testing and inspections can be done by licensed professionals to diagnose the cause of a mold problem and to detect the presence or absence of elevated spore levels. Mold inspectors can advise in a written report what preventive or corrective measures can be taken to help control such issues. The simple rule of thumb for investigating molds is to look for the physical appearance of mold growth visibly around the furniture, walls, ceilings, etc, which may look like black, white, brown, or green spots or fuzzy or powdery marks or spots. Secondly, the air-conditioning units are to be investiga ted for mold growths. A good measure for an inspector to take is to open the AC unit up, or at a minimum to remove the filter and look at the bottom of the coils as the interior of AC units especially the coils one of the most common growth sites for molds. Some mold inspectors do not even think to look inside your AC, they are focused on testing your air only, and testing only will almost always fail to pick up spores from fungi growing inside AC units even if the AC is moldy inside and turned on. Other fungal investigators are very familiar with AC systems and will inspect inside them properly. Another good tip is to check for the foul odor of mold emanating from AC ducts and the interior of buildings in general. Mold odors have been found to cause health problems similar to those caused by spores.
Mold Control
An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. Thus The best way to deal with the disgusting smell and appearances of mold is to k eep it from starting in the first place by maintaining our homes free from humidity above 60RH for extended periods, and have professional dry out companies remove moisture after any leaks.
Normally, when any signs of minor mold appears on hard cleanable surfaces its is sometimes possible to clean at once using mold cleaner or soapy water. In more serious cases with several square foot of mold, or when it is growing on porous surfaces such as drywall, mold may be unstoppable by typical simple home maintenance methods. In such cases seek the help of mold inspectors who will conduct a complete mold inspection to diagnose the cause and origin of the problem and who will then advise appropriate measures to be taken by professional licensed mold remediators.
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