Mold

                                                              

                                                                            

WATER DAMAGE PREVENTION

 

                                                                                      

 

                                            

                                                                                                                                                         

Text Box: FREE ESTIMATES  PHONE 1-800-342-9559 Los Angeles  ●  Torrance  ●  Long Beach  ●  All Southern California

Text Box: WHY IS MOLD IMPORTANT TO YOU?

Text Box: There are over 100,000 species of mold and mold is everywhere on this planet. Mold is indoors, outdoors, in the air, on surfaces, and in the soil. Mold eats organic materials. If mold did not exist our planet would be covered miles deep with leaves, wood, and debris. Mold spores (seeds) are as small as 2-millionths of a meter. They are so small, you need a microscope to see them. Mold spores travel through the air and can stay suspended inside your home for five days or longer. Meanwhile, as  mold spores float in the air, they are inhaled into our lungs. Several species of mold produce Mycotoxins that are responsible for a wide range of illnesses. Aspergillus Versicolor is a species of mold that sends out air-borne spores so small they penetrate deep between the fibers in our lungs. Aspergillus Versicolor causes a disease knows as Aspergillosis, an infection that can lead to death. Stachybotrys is another well-known mold that is responsible for several serious illnesses. You cannot determine the toxicity of a mold by the amount of mold on a surface nor by the color of the mold. Visible mold growth is only one of the signs that a mold problem exists. Mold  is often hidden inside walls, under carpets, underneath homes, in attics, behind furniture, behind plumbing fixtures, inside furnaces and air ducts, between wood moldings and drywall, and underneath wallpaper. Even invisible mold growth sends toxic spores through the air. Three good rules to follow are; if you smell a musty odor, you probably have mold growth; when you see, even a small patch of mold on an outside wall, there may be larger colonies of mold inside the wall; and if you are not sure, call someone professional. Any time clean water or waste water has flooded even a small portion of your home or its contents, the water must be dried immediately to prevent mold growth. To grow, mold needs only  water or high humidity, a food source like drywall paper or wood, and only 24 hours. Bleach (Chlorine), biocides, and over-the-counter mold killers are not effective for solving mold problems.  After applying mold killers the mold spores remain toxic. In fact, spraying or touching the mold growth in any way, without proper training, will increase the number of mold spores in the air to dangerous levels. The only way to solve a mold problem is; repair the water problem that caused the mold, isolate the contaminated area, and remove the mold with a controlled environment. Improper handling of mold can caused the air-borne spore count to increase to dangerous levels. Mold must be treated and removed by professionals.