Understanding Molds Is The First Step Towards Mold Remediation

You suspect, or know, you have molds in your house. What steps can you take to deal with it? The first step, of course, mold remediation, is understanding the nature of molds. Unless you live in a totally controlled antiseptic environment (which most of us don't), chances are you have molds in, and outside, your house. For the most part, in mild doses, molds do not pose a serious threat. Molds have co-existed with mankind from the dawn of time. They have their practical uses in the general order of things.

Indeed, we need molds because they help break down dead materials and recycle them into other forms of nutrients for our environment. However, when they begin to multiply prodigiously and they start to threaten your health and overrun your house, then they become a problem. Then you have to consider a program of mold remediation to solve the problem.

Molds are microscopic organisms that thrive under certain conditions: high humidity and relative heat. In other words, they prefer areas where there is always a high content of water or moisture in the air, such as the bathrooms, kitchens, crawling space under kitchen sinks, dank closets, spaces under beds. In other words, places not ordinarily exposed to a periodic good airing and strong sunlight, or places where there is water damage. Molds grow on organic materials like garbage, wood, fibers, paper, leaves, lint, dead skin, etc. The human body is not spared from molds since the body is also an organic material.

Molds produce spores or minute seeds, millions of them, which are released into the air and are air-borne to other spots where they eventually grow into adult molds. That's how they multiply so fast. When the mold infestation is heavy, they produce a greenish-blackish slimy layer and even emit toxins or poisonous chemicals, depending on the species of the mold concerned.

The immediate effects of a serious mold infestation in your house are twofold. First, you have these unsightly and smelly slimy spots and blotches and discolorations growing on the affected areas. Perhaps, you don't see them immediately but you smell that dank unpleasant smell hanging in the air, like a wet towel that has been left on the bathroom floor too long. Second, depending on your tolerance or resistance to molds, you may have certain reactions like skin rashes, coughing, eye irritation, body aches, headaches, nasal congestion, and allergies.

Mold remediation starts with correcting the conditions that encourage mold infestation. If the source of excessive moisture is a water leak or flooding, then stop it. Then eliminate the moisture in and around the affected areas by thoroughly airing and wiping them dry. Use exhaust fans if necessary to speed up the drying. Dispose of the materials that serve as the 'food' of molds by bagging them and throwing them in the trash. Wash the affected areas with soap and a solution of 10% household bleach in order to kill the remaining molds and spores.

Make sure that you protect yourself in the process of mold remediation by wearing a mask and gloves. Also be sure that there is adequate ventilation while doing your mold remediation. Even while bending over and scrubbing the affected area, you are invariably inhaling spores and toxins and bleach fumes and this can be dangerous. Particularly if you have a respiratory condition, engaging in this sort of intervention may pose as a serious

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Osmund Aft is a homeowner advocate on water damage for Water Removal Service Purdys, NY and Mold Remediation

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