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Mold Assessments - The Basics Most people who suspect they have a mold
problem in their home or business are not very knowledgeable about
fungal growth. They don't know what analyses are recommended and
don't know what may be causing the mold growth. 1) What is Mold? 2) What does mold need to grow? 3) What are the potential health effects of
mold? 4) What are the warning signs of a mold
problem? 5) Do I need a mold inspection? 6) Do I need to take air samples? 7) Do I need to take surface samples? 8) What do I need to do about the mold in my
home?
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What is mold ? |
Molds are small biological organisms that
produce airborne spores to reproduce. They thrive in damp areas,
and have been linked to various health effects. |
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What does mold need to
grow? |
Molds require water, food (a growth medium such as
sheetrock, or wallpaper), oxygen, appropriate temperatures, and
time. Most of these necessities are present in your
building all the time. The best way to limit mold growth is to
eliminate the water source. |
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What are the potential health
effects of mold? |
Potential health effects and
symptoms associated with mold exposures include allergic reactions,
asthma, and other respiratory complaints. |
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What are the warning signs of a mold
problem? |
Many people identify a musty
odor in certain areas of their building. Often there has been a known or
suspected water problem. On occasion, people have seen suspect mold. |
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Do I need a mold
inspection? |
If you have identified any of the warning
signs identified above, you may want to have a mold inspection
conducted on your building. If you, your family, or your workers have
experienced any of the health effects identified above, you
may want to have a mold inspection conducted on your
building. If you have had a long term water intrusion
problem (plumbing leak, leaky roof, leaky basement), or a short
term water event (flood, broken pipe) where the water was not
cleaned up quickly you may want to have a mold inspection conducted
on your building. A mold inspection will identify areas of
visible and suspect mold growth, as well as identify the water
source contributing to the fungal growth. |
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Do I need to take air
samples? |
Air samples tell you two things: what mold is
in the air you are breathing, and at what concentrations. If you have identified mold in the building,
then air samples are not necessary to confirm that there is mold in
the air. Mold in a building will naturally release spores into the
air. If you suspect that there is mold in
your building, you may want to have air samples collected to
evaluate whether there are higher concentrations of mold inside the
suspect area than in non-suspect areas, or in the outside
air. |
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Do I need to take surface
samples? |
If you can see visible mold growth, you
probably don't need to take surface samples. If you suspect mold growth (soot and dust may
be mistaken for mold) you may want to have surface samples
collected to assess whether mold spores are present. |
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What do I do about mold in my
building? |
Without a water source, mold growth will
discontinue. So the first step is to correct the water intrusion
problem. A homeowner can conduct small scale
residential cleaning. For larger projects, AQS recommends hiring a
mold remediation company to perform cleanup activities in a
negative air containment, according to a remedial
plan. Please contact AQS for a list of recommended
mold abatement companies. |
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