Mold Detection

Many homeowners ask, “How can I determine if mold is in my home”. Molds occur naturally. In the outdoors, molds play an important role in nature as they break down organic matter such as dead trees. However, you don’t want them performing this natural process inside your home! Molds reproduce using tiny spores and when these spores lodge inside of a moist area inside your home, mold may develop. The important thing to understand is the molds will not grow unless they have access to water.

It is important to remove mold from your home when it develops. All molds have the potential to produce allergic reactions, especially to sensitive people, and some species of mold release irritants and deadly toxins. Molds can cause such allergic symptoms as sneezing, runny nose, burning or red eyes and skin rash. People who have asthma can have an attack brought on by exposure to mold. Therefore, it is quite important to detect mold in your home and have it removed by a professional.

To determine if there is mold growing in your home you should begin by identifying areas of the home where moisture may be present. Finding these areas is the important part of detecting and preventing mold growth inside of your home. Unfortunately, detecting these areas isn’t always easy. To insure finding potential moisture trouble areas you will need to hire a professional mold detection company who will use state-of-the-art infrared thermal imaging technology. By using a combination of modern technology, such as thermal detectors and moisture meters, and skilled visual inspections the mold detection professional has a much better chance of locating potential mold trouble areas than the average homeowner does.

You must understand that indoor mold growth has to be controlled by controlling the amount of moisture in your home. If mold growth is present in your home you must not only clean out the mold but you must also correct the water problem as well. Cleaning up the mold alone is not enough because if you do not fix the water problem the mold will almost certainly return.

You may be wondering who should do the mold clean-up. Some people try the do-it-yourself route but this is rarely effective. You should instead contract with a professional mold remediation company who can use EPA approved methods and American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists methods to remove the mold from your home.