Mold: Be Concerned in Asheville or Anywhere

Submitted by margaret on Mon, 05/02/2011 - 14:53

I show a lot of homes, and I am constantly amazed at how many of them have a mold problem. This can be a minor issue of concentrated mold from a leak, but often it is a larger problem with a pricey result. That result can be professional remediation or if ignored, severe health issues.

Some of you know that I have a dramatic history with mold, and since it is my Kyptonite, I am pretty cautious about it and biased against it. But I want to try to give you some good and reasonable insight about this growing (no pun intended) problem.

First, some misconceptions:

Only Black Mold is dangerous to your health. Yeah, that one made me really, really sick. There are several "toxic" molds that give off myotoxins that are seriously bad for your health. These include aspergillis and penecillium, as well as the big bad boy, stachybotrys. They aren't all black!
The worst that can happen is that I have an allergic reaction. Yeah, that one, too, got me really sick. Mold is a subversive little fungus, and it can invade your body and take up residence on a cellular level. It is unsure what all the results of this can be, and it is nearly impossible to test for, but it is speculated that mold actually changes your cellular structure and can lead to cancer and other diseases. You never know that mold started the whole train wreck!
You can clean mold with bleach. Well, you can, but it is a bad, bad idea. Touching mold causes the spores to be released into the air. Once they are disturbed and airborne, they can invade you HVAC system and your whole house. NOW you have a much bigger problem on your hands. Call a professional mold remediator before you do ANYTHING to mold. Really.

Second, find out what is causing the problem.

Mold is everywhere, to some extent, but you shouldn't smell it or see it growing in your home. IF you do, then find out what is causing it. Having it cleaned won't do any good if you still have the root of the problem, and that root is always moisture or water. Often, stopped up gutters (or no gutters) or a leak somewhere is the problem. Fix that , but consult with a professional mold remediator before you do anything so that you don't make the problem worse.

Most mold issues can be remediated so that a home or office is safe again. Others are beyond help or cost-effectiveness to treat.

But most importantly, if you are living in a moldy home, GET OUT. Don't mess with this stuff, and particularly, don't expose childrent to it.

Here is a link to a pretty good site on the mold and health issues: http://www.weather.com/activities/health/allergies/mold/health_effects.html

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Mold: Be Concerned in Asheville or Anywhere

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