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Sustainable. Home. Community. Albuquerque EcoBroker & NM Green Builder
Mold Concerns - by Albuquerque Home Realtor Paul Chavez
Mold in Your HomeMold is everywhere. They are part of our natural world. (Although this does not mean that we want mold to grow inside our home!). And it is basically impossible to rid one's home completely. Molds and other fungi are nature's natural garage disposal, breaking down and consuming dead organic matter. In order for mold to grow, moisture/humidity/water and nutrition (like cellulose) are required. Common household molds are: Penicillium, Fusarium, Aspergillus, Alternaria, Mucor, Cladosporium Not all molds are "toxic". Mold creates problems when spores start reproducing and growing.One of the biggest reasons that mold has become a problem in households today are that most homes built since the 1970s have been built for energy efficiency or air-tight, which means molds have no place to go but to colonize inside (given the right conditions). So it is a fallacy to think that only older home may have potential mold problems. Mold has been linked to dizziness, allergic responses like hay fever, runny noise, irritated eyes, and sneezing, asthma attacks, nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea, fatigue, internal organ damage, cancer, immune system suppression, personality changes, chemical sensitives, and nervous system problems. Some of the more likely places that mold grows are basement, bathrooms, laundry rooms, windowsills, or where ever a flood or leak has occurred (and not cleaned up and dried within 24 hours). Any building material that contains cellulose is a loved target by mold. Carpets, drywall boards, HVAC ductwork, toilets, humidifiers, and any wood products can be breed microbes if the conditions are right. If you discover growing mold in your home, the most important thing to do first is to fix the water leakage problem immediately. (Even if you get "rid" of the mold, if the water problem still exists, the mold will most likely return.) Depending on the magnitude of the mold problem, you then want to clean up the mold with detergent (avoid bleach because of bleach's own toxicity) if the space is less than 10 square ft. Make sure to wear proper protection such as goggles, air mask, and arm length gloves. If you have a known sensitivity to mold, make sure to contact a professional to deal with the problem. If the mold issue is larger than 10 square feet, contact a professional for further advice and/or service. The EPA has published an informative article on mold which can be found at: www.epa.gov/ iaq/molds/ moldguide.html This article is merely the opinion of the writer and claims no expertise in this field. Please contact a certified residential mold inspector for professional advice.
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