Mold may well be the most unpleasant ̶ and undesirable ̶ contaminant to find in your home or your office. The problem is that this fungus occurs almost anywhere: in schools, day care centers, retirement homes, dormitories, factories. You name it, and that place can be host to a wide variety of molds. Read on to learn more about where mold grows and how to get rid of it.
One thing all types of mold share is a love of warm, damp and humid conditions. And since these conditions are so ubiquitous, mold seems to run rampant. Hence the Old Wives' Tale that mold can grow anywhere, regardless of the conditions, although mold in the basement is a particularly common problem. While it does feel like this, there is one unequivocal prerequisite to mold: moisture.
The reason it seems like mold can grow absolutely anywhere is because the sources of moisture can be so varied:
Washing and bathroom facilities
Cooking areas
Condensation on windows or glass
Leaks from pipes, walls, roofs or basements
Humidifiers
Inadequate ventilation can also contribute to higher humidity levels, which in turn leads to the kind of condensation levels that also allow for mold growth.
Why Mold Can Sometimes Be Dangerous
Most types of molds emit small spores into the air. Outdoors, these emissions don’t pose much of a threat to humans, but when mold flourishes indoors, the number of spores it releases is usually higher. Add to that the fact that these spores are minute enough that people can inhale them unknowingly, and it’s easy to see why they can contribute to respiratory problems
If you, or any member of your family (or fellow workers), suffer from allergies, asthma, or compromised immune systems the presence of mold may make them more susceptible to inflammatory and toxic responses to mold spores. Allergic reactions are the most common response to mold spores, but they can also contribute to such respiratory problems as:
Respiratory infections
The exacerbation of asthma
Hypersensitivity pneumonitis
Chronic rhinosinusitis
Allergic fungal sinusitis
Allergic alveolitis
At the risk of scare mongering, you should be aware that some molds also produce mycotoxins, which can pose serious health risks to humans and animals alike. A mycotoxin, by the way, is a poisonous substance that can lead to neurological disorders and in some cases death.
Where to Find Mold
Mold can be found in virtually any building, where it often looks like stains ̶ and not just the black-to-dark-grey you’re used to seeing in bathrooms. In fact, mold can appear in an assortment of colors.
When it comes to having mold in your house you’ll most likely to find it in:
Damp, dark or steamy areas (e.g. bathrooms or kitchens)
Cluttered storage areas
Recently flooded sites
Basements
Plumbing spaces
Places with poor ventilation.
Sometimes mold might even be hidden, in ducts, in overhead light fixtures, or behind cabinets and other hard-to-reach places. If you detect a musty smell then chances are good that hidden away, somewhere, is the guilty microbial growth.
There are many methods for removing mold; some are fairly effective, others less so. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) also offers some tips and guidelines for cleaning up mold problems.
However, our experience has shown that Sterifab is one of the easiest and most effective ways to eradicate mold - plus it also kills viruses, bacteria and bugs without leaving a trace or a scent. After over 50 years on the market, Sterifab is the only product that is pecisely engineered to:
Destroy micro-organisms
Kill fungus
Kill viruses
Kill mold and mildew
Kill germs and disinfects
Eradicate pathogenic odors
Most important for present purposes, Sterifab not only reduces the level of micro-organisms from a wide range of locations, but also works as a bacteriostatic ̶ inhibiting bacterial growth, and as a highly effective fungistatic, preventing otherwise hard-to-control fungal growth.
A Word About Treating Mold with Bleach
Whether you’re cleaning an office or your home, don’t make the mistake of tackling a mold problem with bleach. Yes, it’s relatively cheap, but using a product such as, say Clorox, has very strong odors. But more important, while bleach is can remove mold stains, it won’t necessarily eradicate the spores themselves.
Preventing Future Mold Problems in Home or Office
If you’ve recently rid yourself of mold in your home, there are a number of practical steps you can take to help prevent mold in your house (or office, or store, or wherever else you might find it).
Here are some recommendations:
Keep the humidity levels in your home, or office, etc, as low as possible.
Check the humidity levels more than once a day.
Make sure that your home/office has ample ventilation.
Clean bathrooms with mold killing products, i.e. Sterifab.
While mold can appear in almost anywhere, certain areas that seem to be particularly susceptible to high mold exposures, including antique shops, greenhouses, saunas, farms, mills and construction sites.
Protect Your Family from Mold and Its Effects
For all the reasons we’ve listed above, it really is important to make sure you don’t have mold in your home or office. You want to keep your family safe from the effects of mold. Innocuous as they may seem, molds can also produce allergens (substances that can cause allergic reactions) and other irritants. Inhaling or touching mold or mold spores can give rise to a variety of symptoms, including nasal and sinus congestion, respiratory problems, throat irritation and sneezing.
To get rid of mold right away, on your own, try Sterifab. (Hey, why not?)