Mold and mold spores occur naturally in the environment. They can enter a home or other building from the outside through open doorways and windows as well as through the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning system’s outdoor air intakes.
Spores in the outside air can also attach themselves to people, making clothing, shoes, bags, and even pets all convenient vehicles for carrying mold into an indoor environment.
When mold spores land on places where there is moisture, such as where leaks may have occurred in roofs, pipes, walls, or where there has been flooding or excessive humidity, they can begin to grow in as short as 24 to 48 hours.
Many building materials and household belongings provide suitable nutrients that encourage mold to grow when moisture is present. Wet cellulose materials, including paper and paper products, cardboard, ceiling tiles, wood, and wood products, are particularly conducive for the growth of some types of mold. Other materials such as dust, paint, wallpaper, insulation, drywall, carpet, fabric, and upholstery, also commonly support mold growth. Mold may even be on or in many building materials before they are ever used to construct a home or other type of building.
So, how do you keep mold out of your home? Unfortunately, it is virtually impossible to prevent some mold from entering a building, but there are steps that can be taken to prevent it from growing indoors.
High efficiency air filtration can help remove mold from the air, but a key step to preventing its growth indoors is to perform routine building maintenance and inspections. Homes should be regularly checked for any evidence of water damage, excessive humidity, condensation and visible mold growth. Moisture is a key ingredient (such as water leaks, condensation, infiltration, or flooding) and should be corrected quickly to prevent mold from growing indoors.
These are just a few things to know about how mold enters a home, to learn more about this or other indoor air quality, and environmental, health and safety issues, please call us to schedule an inspection and consultation. Our phone number is (804) 529-7697 or (800) 828-4398.