Mold isn’t always a bad word. Every home has mold and without it the world wouldn’t be habitable for
humans or animals.
Mold only becomes a problem when there is too much of it, when it causes problems for your health, or when it is unsightly and causing damage to property. This is where mold testing comes in. Excessive mold can be an air quality hazard, its effects can range from allergy irritation, to asthma, to severe respiratory illnesses, even requiring hospitalization.
Potential health effects:
- Asthma
- Runny nose and nasal congestion
- Difficulty of breathing, shortness of breath
- Coughing
- Sneezing
- Irritation (eyes, nose, throat and skin)
- Skin infection
- Lung infection
- Lung bleeding
Mold growth is the breakdown of organic material by fungi. This means there is nearly always some mold. It also means that of it goes totally unchecked, the organic material breakdown can eventually be the house. We’ve seen mold actually rotting the floor structure in crawlspaces. So, in addition to the air quality, potential rot can be a concern.
REPORTING TO YOU
The results of mold testing are summarized in an
easy to read report with clear determinations that
you can understand and act on if a problem exists.
If a mold problem does not exist the InspectorLab
mold report will ease your mind.
Your mold testing professional will help you determine the
number of air samples that will be taken inside the
home, along with an outdoor sample to compare
the inside samples to as a baseline or control
sample.
Air samples can tell you if you have hidden
moisture or leaks that are producing spores that
may represent a health risk to you and your family.
When you should consider an Indoor Air
Quality Test:
» When a recent or past water event is
suspected.
» A “musty” smell is noticed.
» An occupant of the home is
predisposed to respiratory distress.
» Recent mold remediation took place
and you want to verify the
effectiveness.
Mold is a fungus, and homes with elevated mold levels can have a compromised indoor air quality. Poor air quality from mold can lead to many respiratory and health issues. This can be from as mild as allergy irritation or potentially as severe as life threatening illness depending on the species and amount that is present.
In Rhode Island, mold testing is not a licensed profession. We are IAC2 certified. You should choose someone with training and experience in inspecting and testing for mold in your home. We recommend you consider a company like us, one that doesn’t perform remediation as well. We have no vested interest in a mold remedy job if it fails.
During our standard buyer home inspection, we do a visual mold inspection. If we see biological or fungal growth, we will note it in your report. But taking lab samples is not. We can certainly do it in site if the client wants. There is a lab fee per sample taken. We do also offer mold inspection as a stand alone service with a flat fee plus lab fees depending on how many samples the client wants us to send to our lab.
There is likely some mold in every home. The key is, are the levels excessive and dangerous. If air quality testing is part of your inspection, the inspector will perform an exterior test as a control sample and an interior test to determine if the levels in your home are elevated from the ambient area.
The visual mold inspection is an inspector visually looking for signs of biological growth, and conditions that could cause biological growth or mold. Mold air samples can be part of the process. Air samples are taken in various locations throughout the home. Either suspect areas or areas of concern based on client needs. Minimum 2 samples need to be taken, the exterior control sample and the interior sample. Samples are sent to the lab for review. Our lab produces easy to understand clear reports.
Acremonium
What does it look like? It’s often in powder form when it’s reached its final form. You can identify it more by looking at its color. It’s commonly white or gray. Although sometimes, it can be orange or pink.
The thing with Acremonium is it’s usually full-blown already once you see it. This is because it grows and thrives in hidden systems in your home like in your humidifier or drain pans. It also thrives alongside Stachybotrys (more on this later), making it double trouble.
Speaking of trouble, Acremonium is considered to be dangerous and toxic. It can weaken your immune system. It can also affect your brain and bone marrow.
Fusarium
It grows on fabrics like wallpaper and carpets. It’s known to move fast. It’s white in color but sometimes it’s red or pink.
Some people tend to underestimate it as an allergenic. After all, its most common health effects include symptoms of an allergic reaction. However, this doesn’t mean that you can simply disregard it as an allergenic. It can be deadly if you don’t do something about it. It can infect your bones and even create an abscess in your brain.
Stachybotrys
More popularly (notoriously?) known as black mold, you just know that it’s up to no good. It’s black and looks slimy, although it can also be dark green in color. It grows on wood that has been wet for a few weeks. This is why it’s recommended that you treat water damage immediately.
Its notoriety is not uncalled for. While it also leads to minor health issues like sinusitis, it can also lead to difficulty breathing. It’s also very risky for babies and children since it can affect their neurological and pulmonary systems.
It can even cause depression, believe it or not.
Ulocladium
It’s also black in color. Just like Stachybotrys, it grows on areas suffering from extreme and long-term water damage. It can only grow in the kitchen, basement, bathroom and areas that have a high level of condensation.
It can lead to a skin infection. It will also lead to you suffering from asthma-like symptoms. You will also have difficulty breathing. Worst case scenario is hay fever.
Here are the non-dangerous ones:
Note: While generally classified as non-dangerous, they can still cause serious health issues to those already suffering from respiratory issues, allergies or a compromised immune system:
Alternaria
It has a smooth and silky texture. It’s somewhat feathery with small hairs that are brown or dark green in color. It hides and grows in areas that have water damage. You can also find it under the sink or in the shower.
Being an allergenic, you can exhibit allergic reactions with prolonged exposure.
Aspergillus
There are close to 200 species of this type so it comes in a wide variety of colors. It’s characterized by spores that are long and come together to cover a big and thick area.
It leads to an allergic reaction just like Alternaria. Its main difference is it can be dangerous since it can inflame your lungs. Some species also release aflatoxins which can cause cancer.
Aureobasidium
It’s color brown if it’s been left to grow for a long time. But typically, it starts off as black, brown or pink. It hides underneath the wallpaper. As an allergenic, it can lead to irritation and even infections of the skin, nail and eyes. This makes it one of the more dangerous among the allergenics.
Chaetomium
It starts off as white in color. It’s cottony and almost fluffy. Leave it alone and it will eventually darken until it becomes black.
You’ll usually smell it before you find it. It usually hits you with a musty smell as soon as you enter the basement or attic where it usually thrives.
It will infect your nail and skin.
Cladosporium
It’s almost like suede to the touch. It’s usually brown or olive green in color. You can find it hiding in fabrics like carpets. It can also grow in your wooden floor.
It affects the respiratory system. This is why you’ll usually find yourself having difficulty breathing.
Mucor
This gray or white type grows in dense clumps and it does so quickly. It grows in HVAC systems and in damp areas of air conditioning units.
It can lead to asthma. Exposure to it can also lead to the manifestation of flu-like symptoms. Touching it can also lead to a condition called mucormycosis which can infect your eyes and nose. Worse cases can infect your brain and lungs.
Bipolaris
It’s dark olive in color when it matures. It starts off as whitish, grayish or brownish in color. It naturally grows on soil and grass outdoors. Water damage inside a home can lead to it growing inside your home, leading to asthmatic reactions.
Penicillium
It’s smooth to the touch, not that we recommend that you touch it. It’s either green or blue in color. It’s fast-spreading across water-damaged areas although it favors carpets, mattresses and ducts.
It will lead to respiratory issues which is a problem considering how effective it is at moving about while airborne.
Trichoderma
It’s either green or white and feels like wool to the touch. It can grow virtually anywhere moisture or condensation is present.
It can lead to an allergic reaction. Most sufferers complain of sinusitis due to exposure.
