Mold can become a big problem for your family, especially if you or your family members are allergic to it. Mold can be found everywhere, so you may not even realize that there are molds in your home. For instance, mold can grow in the bathroom, your basement, the laundry room, or any other damp place.
When you’re dealing with a problem like this one, you may think about hiring a professional mold inspector to come out and check your home. An inspection by a professional will tell you which kinds of molds you have, how much mold you have, and where they’re growing. If you’re looking into hiring a professional to get rid of the mold, there are lot of services online where you can learn more about what they could do. Meanwhile, this article will give you some useful tips on preventing mold growth in your home.
How Does Mold Grow?
What begins as a bit of patch of mildew under the sink or on the bathroom shower wall soon becomes a large, growing patch of mold all over your house. Molds are part of the natural environment, and you can see a lot of them outdoors. Molds are spread through tiny spores that are invisible to the naked eye. These spores float through the aid and stick to wet surfaces from which they could grow.
Molds grow with the presence of moisture. So if you have molds in your home, it’s probably because of these culprits:
- Leaks: One of the most commonly known causes of mold in homes are leaks from plumbing or roofing. These leaks can lead to the entrance of excess moisture into the air. This moisture will often cause the growth of black mold spores, which can be extremely harmful to the members of the home and those who cannot get away from it fast enough.
- Standing Water: Another of the most common causes of mold growth is standing water in a home. Sometimes, the standing water can lead to excess moisture, and this will also make some of the surfaces in the home damp.
- Cold Surfaces: One of the other most common causes of these health concerns is the presence of freezing temperatures. This can be caused by the condensation that builds upon the windows and heating units of buildings. When this happens, the warm air trapped inside becomes trapped as well.
When left untreated, molds have the potential to cause health issues. Mold can produce allergens and can trigger allergic reactions in many people. Some of the allergic responses include sneezing, red eyes, skin rashes, and runny noses. Some of these reactions can be immediate, and some can develop over time.
How Do You Prevent Mold From Growing?
To prevent any health issues from maligning your household, you need to ensure that you prevent mold from growing in many of the damp areas in your home. Here are some of the simple ways you can do to prevent the spread and growth of mold at home:
- Control The Humidity In Your Home
Warm temperatures, humidity, and food sources create the ideal environment for mold to grow. That’s why the very first thing you should do to prevent molds from growing is to control the humidity in your home.
Several different things can cause humidity. This can be caused by using a carpet that hasn’t been adequately cleaned or furniture that hasn’t been cared for. It can also be caused by just having a lot of moisture in the air from cooking or taking a shower.
One of the ways to control the humidity in your home is to use humidifiers. Humidifiers work by pulling water out of the air and replacing it with moisture from the air. This will, in turn, lower the humidity of the air in your home.
- Ensure Your Spaces Are Properly Ventilated
Another way to ensure that you control the humidity in your home is to have proper ventilation, especially in closed spaces like your basement. When it comes to learning how to ventilate home spaces, it’s also important to be aware that there are two main ways you can accomplish this task—by opening up the doors and windows or by using fans or forced-air units.
Having a ventilation system in your home is ideal so you won’t have to air out your spaces, especially during cold seasons. The best ventilation system for home use is a gas or electric-powered indoor air cleaner. An indoor air cleaner will remove contaminants from the air, which can help you improve indoor air quality. These systems are usually very effective at removing dust particles, airborne pathogens, and mold spores from the air.
- Fix Leaks Immediately
Leaks in the home will lead to humidity and will cause mold growth. But how do you fix a leak in your basement or house? You’ll need to determine if it’s coming from the outside or inside the home. In most cases, the water coming from outside comes from a roof or gutter. You’ll need to check the roof if there are holes and need to address them immediately. For leaks coming from inside the house, you’ll need to check the condition of your pipes.
To ensure that you’ve covered every water source, you can hire a professional plumber to check your house’s pipes. If water damages are coming from these leaks or flooding, you should hire a water damage restoration service to make sure everything’s cleaned up.
- Keep All Areas In Your Home Dry
Mold needs moisture, so aside from ensuring that you don’t have water or moisture leaks in your home, it’s essential to keep all closed spaces dry. Also, when you see wet areas or items in your household, you’ll need to tackle them right away. Water accumulation from a leaky pipe or seepage in the basement must be cleaned within 24 hours to prevent mold formation.
If you have water-damaged items like carpets, beddings, and furniture, you need to remove them in the house to be dried entirely outside. Lastly, make cleaning up wet spots in every room a habit. You should dry your kitchen counters, floors, and bathroom walls. And if you see any spilled liquids, wipe them off right away.
Summary
Prevent molds from growing in dark and damp spaces in your home is essential to keeping a clean home because spores from these molds can cause adverse effects on one’s health. There are many simple ways you can prevent molds from growing like using a humidifier and ensuring that your home is well ventilated. A dehumidifier won’t only lower the humidity levels inside your house but also helps in removing excess moisture from the air and your clothes. Lastly, you need to keep your space dry by immediately fixing leaks and addressing spills or drying out wet furniture.
