I apologize if in the past I’ve been a little vague when confronted with questions about how to tell if your mold problem is serious. But give me a break, there’s little research concerning mold inhalation levels and there are a number of variables that decide whether the mold present is dangerous to you.
As we all know, different mold affects different people in different ways to different degrees. If you can see or smell mold in your house, then there is reason to be concerned. If anyone in the home is suffering from a mysterious illness, you should also look into mold as the cause.
With that said, there are still some tests you can do to see how threatening your mold problem is.
Is the indoor airborne mold spore count higher than the outdoor spore count? Use air sampling instead of surface sampling because surface sampling only samples mold on a single surface. Keep in mind that air samples will vary greatly from moment to moment and location, so you must sample multiple times to get a clear picture of your average spore count. Because it does vary, disreputable mold removal companies will sample once when the count is high to prove you need their remediation services. Oppositely, businesses trying to prove they do not have mold for defense in litigation purposes will use air samples when the mold count is shown to be low.
Is the indoor mold spore air count higher than 500 colony forming units per cubic meter? This standard alone is really not a good judgement in determining if you have an unusually high amount of mold, but it’s all we have at the moment. It’s just one thing to consider in testing your mold levels.
Are there types of mold found indoors that are not detected outdoors? This test can tell you if your indoor mold growth has developed a unique environment where different types of mold are growing. This is another indication that mold in your home is abnormal and could possibly be a threat to you and your property.
Are the types of mold found considered to be allergenic or toxic? This may be the most important test you can conduct to determine the threat of your indoor mold growth. Most molds are benign, but some types are very, very dangerous.
The answers to these questions should give you a clearer picture of whether or not you should be worrying about your indoor mold growth. However, it is recommended to be safe rather than sorry. Mold removal from professionals who use modern techniques and equipment is not as expensive as it once was. It is probably worth the expense to just get rid of the stuff.
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