How To Get Rid of Mold in a House

Mold. No one wants it in their house, but it is a common problem for many homeowners in our community and across the country. Mold problems can occur in any home, regardless of whether the home is sparkling clean or is tended to carefully. 

All it takes is a few mold spores and the right conditions, and you could be dealing with a full infestation. If you head up into your attic one day to look for an old box or run down to the basement for a tool and discover mold, don’t panic! While unsightly and smelly, mold can be tackled with the right tools and team on your side. 

Want to learn how to get rid of mold in a house? Read below to discover tips and tricks for tackling mold and how to keep it away for good. 

How Does Mold Grow in a House? 

To start, you might be wondering how mold even grows in a house. After all, you keep up with routine cleaning and never leave puddles of water just lying about. Unfortunately, mold is a bit trickier to keep at bay. Mold thrives in moist areas and can grow just about anywhere as long as there is moisture. 

If you recently had a heavy rain and a corner of your basement gets wet, mold can quietly grow under your carpet pad or behind your walls. If you forgot to turn your dehumidifier on during the summer months, your humidity levels could skyrocket in your home, and mold can grow quickly as a result. 

In addition, any space in your home that has water passing through it is at a higher risk of a mold infestation. Bathrooms that never dry out, humid kitchens, or even a leaky pipe in your utility room can spark a mold problem. 

Once the mold settles in, it will grow quickly as long as the conditions don’t change. This can lead to a widespread infestation before you even realize that there is a problem. 

Why Does Mold Need To Be Removed?

If you do discover mold, you must take care of the problem right away. Mold is unsightly, yes, but it can also have adverse effects on your health and the safety of your home. Chronic mold exposure can cause respiratory issues like shortness of breath, itchy eyes, and a runny nose. It can also exacerbate any asthma symptoms, so if you have someone who suffers from asthma or is immunocompromised, they could suffer from a more severe reaction. 

Mold is also a living fungus, and it has to feed in order to grow and multiply. It will break down the organic material that it is growing on, so your drywall, wood, and other building materials are at risk of serious damage. 

Over time, mold can even cause rot, and your home can become unstable or dangerous to be in. All of that should be serious enough to encourage you to take action right away!

Removing Mold From Your Home 

That being said, don’t just grab a rag and some bleach to take care of it yourself. Cleaning up mold without the help of a professional can actually make your problem worse instead of better. Mold colonies are made up of millions of mold spores, and disturbing the colony can release many of them into the air. If you don’t filter the air to capture them, they will float through your home and can settle into a different area. 

Over time, these spores can grow into an entirely new infestation. In addition, using a damp rag to clean up mold will most likely leave some of the infestation behind. You might have cleaned up the visible mold, but there could be some on the other side of the drywall or under your floorboards. The infestation will simply grow back if there are any spores left behind. 

Did you know that bleach doesn’t necessarily kill all mold? It works well on non-porous surfaces like tub surrounds and glass, but it can be ineffective if you spray it on a porous surface like drywall or wood. So even if you do clean it with bleach, there’s a chance that some of the mold was left behind deeper in the surface. 

Signs of a Mold Infestation 

Uncovering a mold infestation can be easy if the mold is growing in an area you can easily see. Unfortunately, that’s not usually where mold likes to grow! It grows best in undisturbed areas, like the corners of your attic or behind storage boxes in the basement. Because of that, it is important to note the other signs that a mold problem is brewing.

Signs of a mold infestation include: 

• Discolored walls 
• Warping or bubbling wallpaper or paint
• Sagging floors or walls 
• Musty or earthy odors
• Humidity issues 

If you see mold or if your home is exhibiting one or more of these issues, it’s time to call for professional help. Letting a professional handle your mold remediation is the best way to ensure your property makes a full recovery while ensuring the mold cannot grow back. 

Steps Of a Professional Mold Remediation 

Once you make your mold discovery, call a licensed mold remediation team right away to schedule your removal and recovery. The mold colony will grow every day that you ignore the problem, so don’t wait!

Your mold remediation team will evaluate your space first to determine the kind of mold. Knowing what they are dealing with will help guide them towards the proper safety gear and the latest remediation techniques. 

After that, your space is secured. Windows are shut, fans are turned off, and your HVAC system is temporarily shut down to prevent any airborne spores from floating to different parts of your home during the removal process. Once the mold is contained, it will be cleaned and removed using industrial equipment like air scrubbers and HEPA vacuums.

Finally, your space is cleaned and deodorized to remove any lingering smells or residue left behind. If the mold damaged your walls or floor, a professional mold remediation team can fix that, too!

Dealing with mold in your home? We can help. Call the team at Exit Mold today at (516) 512-7877 to schedule your quick mold remediation.