Mold Management in Marlton, NJ; Symptoms of Mold Exposure & Tips for Prevention

Being told that your home has mold can be a frightening experience. Concerns about mold continue to increase due to the health effects and symptoms of being exposed to it. Mold spores can grow just about anywhere and will grow on any organic substance if there is oxygen, moisture and temperature ranges that are favorable.

Symptoms of Mold Exposure

Symptoms of mold exposure affect multiple systems in the body and include headaches, light sensitivity, poor memory, fatigue and weakness, difficulty in concentrating, morning stiffness and joint pain, tingling and numbness of the skin and shortness of breath accompanied with sinus congestion or chronic cough. Many of these symptoms are associated with so many other illnesses that mold growth can go undetected for quite some time.

Prevention of Mold in Housing

Moisture is the biggest aspect of mold prevention that you have control over. So it’s important to keep the risk low inside your home. Any material that mold is able to grow on that remains wet for more than 24 hours runs the risk of mold growth. Areas in your home that can cause moisture problems are leaking walls and roofs as well as leaking pipes, faucets and shower heads. Any leaks within your home need to be repaired as soon as possible. It a good idea to do routine inspections in and around your home to find any water issues. Moisture is caused by condensation. You can find condensation on concrete walls, metal pipes and on windows. You may need to keep the areas of your room that are prone to condensation issues a bit warmer. You can also insulate the metal pipes themselves to prevent condensation. It’s not a good idea to leave wet clothes lying around or inside your dryer. Wet clothes should be dried as quickly as possible to prevent mold growth.

Mold Clean Up & Removal

There are many products at your disposal to kill mold. These products include bleach, borax, ammonia, vinegar, detergent, hydrogen peroxide, baking soda, grapefruit seed extract and tea tree oil. Bleach is the powerhouse as it kills almost every type of indoor mold it comes into contact with and will leave surfaces sanitized. It will also help prevent future growth of mold. The only problem here is that bleach will only kill mold growing on non-porous surfaces like bathtubs, tiles, countertops and glass. Bleach will not totally kill mold growing in porous materials. This is because the bleach can’t penetrate into porous materials like wood or drywall. This can be bad as the water portion of the bleach will seep into the wood or drywall adding more moisture and leaving the chlorine part of the bleach on the surface. Surface mold will be killed but the roots of the mold remain.

Mold Management Services

Any home or business can quickly become infested with mold. Mold only needs 24-48 hours to completely spread throughout a property. Allergens can be produced as well as irritants that will potentially cause health problems. Call Ross Environmental Solutions if you suspect you’re having a mold problem.