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How To Test Your Home For Mold



When To Suspect Mold In Your Environment


  • There is a distinct musty odor. It may come and go or be constant. It may be in the basement or in a particular room.

  • Since moving into your new home your (or family members) health has taken a turn for the worse.

  • You have unexplainable heath symptoms that do not seem to correlate and that baffle physicians.

  • You have dark colored stains/ spots on your ceiling where there was once water intrusion.

  • Your yard slopes towards the house and the ground around it remains saturated for long periods of time.

  • The humidity in your home is consistently above 50% on any given day.

  • Windows have visible black mold growth lining the edges.

  • You see visible mold growth in various places, especially your register vents and window sills.


 

How To Test For Mold In Your Home



  • Tap test carpet, couches, chairs, clothing, and curtains you can purchase EC3 mold plates found online here. These are a great inexpensive option.

  • Hire a professional mold inspector. Want to know what credentials to look for in a mold inspector? I created a Ebook that gives you all the important info. This is not a hire you want to get wrong!! The average mold inspector is out to make a profit and knows very little about the health effects on your body and what to look out for in an environment. You can purchase my popular Ebook here.

  • Purchase and use an ERMI or HRTSMI test kit from Mycometrics or Envirobiomics that will be mailed to your home/business for testing and instructions. These tests are considered the "gold standard" in mold testing.These tests give you a history of mold in your residence. This is both good and bad. While it gives a long history it may not give an accurate reading of what is currently going on. I suggest using this test initially and retesting after several months have passed when remediation and clean up has taken place.

  • Hire a mold dog. This option is helpful to know where exactly the mold problems are located in your home. It's often hard to know that you have a mold issue without the knowledge of where it it.

  • Hire a mold consultant to guide you. I like Megan Carson with The Guided Well


 

How To Prevent Mold In Your Home



  • Use dehumidifiers. You can purchase stand alone units or HVAC attachments. Either way this is important (especially if you live in a humid region.)

  • Purchase a humidistat to monitor the humidity inside your home/basement and aim to keep it between 30-45%.

  • Have a basement? You need to regulate the temperature. A dehumidifier (or several) is necessary. Having a significant portion underground where the surrounding areas have naturally wet conditions ensures high humidity within the walls.

  • Heat and cool your basement so as to prevent elevated humidity year round.

  • Regularly dust you home and use your vacuum to clean floors (mold feeds off dust and debris). Sweeping your floors just sends mold on an airborne roller coaster ride.

  • Clean up moisture and water spills quickly.

  • Repair leaks immediately and replace drywall if necessary. Don't take the wait and see approach. Mold needs only a water source, humidity and 48 hours to begin to grow.

  • Regularly burn EC3 candles and clean with EC3 Mold Spray. Available for purchase here

  • Avoid carpeting and opt for hardwood floors instead.

  • Regularly clean your bathroom tiles and grout and spray with a mold preventative.

  • Bury outdoor drains

  • Ensure outdoor ground is graded away from your house

  • Bury outdoor drains.ows are sealed (common place for water to sneak in).

  • Seal tile grout & clean regularly

  • Purify your air! Each floor of your home should have an air purifier that takes into account the square footage.

  • Immediately fix leaks. Remove all soaked drywall (mold growth occurs in less than 48 hours).

  • Leave your dishwasher and washing machine open when not in use. Spray Homebiotic spray on both regularly.

  • Ensure outdoor ground is graded away from your house.ity is elevated...

  • Purchase a moisture detector that alerts you to leaks.

  • Keep air vents open (closing vents cause condensation to build up & cause HVAC to work harder).

  • Keep your exhaust fan on for 30 minutes after showering.

  • Change out your air filter regularly using Merv13 filters

  • Place plastic bins under each sink in your house to catch leaks before they cause damage.

Curious to read more on mold? You can read my blog post Moldy Facts & Could Your Home Be Making You Sick

 

Stefanie<