How do you know if your house has mold? (1 Viewer)

[Robert_Z]

I am a renter...been living in the same place about two years now. I pay some attention to current events and realize that homeowners insurance as it relates to mold coverage has been a big issue. How can you tell if your house is "infected"?

My landlord told me when I moved in that the water heater had gushed out a significant amount of water during the previous renter's stay. Add to that the fact that our ceiling leaked significantly during some rain storms a few months ago. The worst thing is my bathroom starts going black out of the faucets and drain and along the tile walls within a few days after cleaning. This does not seem normal to me. Is this mold infestation? How can I find out?

Speaking of which, what is mold, and what are some side effects of long-term exposure to mold? Is it really dangerous to humans, or only to the houses?

 

[Jack Briggs]

It's late, Robert, which means I'm unable to post at length. The descriptions you provide are consistent with mold.

Yes, it's dangerous to inhale or injest mold.

This is one of the major issues in commercial real estate.

Just today, I was editing a story about a new cottage industry that's growing fast: the commercial use of dogs to sniff buildings for mold.

I am not making it up. The story will appear next week.

 

[Evelio Figueroa]

Speaking of which, what is mold, and what are some side effects of long-term exposure to mold?

I was watching Forensic Files on CourtTV one night. There was an episode on black mold and how it affected a family's life.

A healthy three-year-old boy suddenly develops respiratory and neurological problems, and doctors can't explain why. Then his father begins to exhibit signs of Alzheimer's Disease. His mother becomes ill while traveling in an airplane; fortunately, the passenger seated next to her makes his living by removing toxic mold from buildings. When she tells him about her family's health problems, he suspects their home might be making them sick.

They was told to get out ASAP. But they could not bring anything from that house with them. No clothes, furniture, nothing. Thats how bad mold can be. This happened in Dripping Springs, Tx Or was it Big Springs?. Anyways, Black mold is common in TX.

 

[Carl Johnson]

Not all mold is hazardous but it's not worth the risk, the bad stuff can be fatal. A year and a half ago when I was looking for a house to buy I backed out on a deal that was signed, sealed, and all but delivered because the inspector found standing water, mold, and mildew in the crawlspace. I can only assume you wouldn't risk eating a moldy steak. It probably won't do you serious bodily harm but there's too much food in the world to mess with that. Likewise there's too much mold free housing for you to risk living like that. If it were me I'd try to use the mold to label the place as uninhabitable and break the lease.

 

[Dave Morton]

The latest episode of "King of Queens" had a whole mold issue. Quite funny

 

[Leila Dougan]

Just as the others have said, mold is extremely dangerous. So bad, in fact, that my mother's office building had to be demolished because of it. They found it much more expensive to try to fix the building than just to tear it down and build a new one.

There's also a big hoopla about homeowner's insurance and mold. It's so expensive to fix and so common that many insurance companies don't want to cover the repairs.

 

[Dave Poehlman]

They found it much more expensive to try to fix the building than just to tear it down and build a new one.

There's a family locally here that had to tear down their new $500K home due to rather hazardous mold.

With homes becomming more and more energy efficient, air circulation with the outside is decreasing, trapping the stagnant air in the home.

Circulation is the key. Install a bath fan (or service the one you've got), make sure your attic space is well vented or the vents are not blocked with insulation. Put a dehumidifier in the basement... open the windows and run a fan down there as well, on occasion. You want to keep air moving to minimize the chance of spores landing and "taking root". And you want to minimize moisture... however, too little moisture can be harmfull as well. CHANGE YOUR FURNACE FILTER ONCE A MONTH.

 

[Prentice Cotham]

Robert,

I would suggest you ask your landlord to have the area tested or inspected for mold for your safety. We had a home inspection last night that was very thorough. There were some fungi stains in the basement which brought out some lessons in mold. Basically mold needs food, moisture, and time. In your case Robert, you've got all three. The mold will feed off of latex paint, wood, wall paper, or the paper on drywall, etc. There are thousands of colors and types of mold and not all are harmful. Black mold is the hot topic right now and certain forms are extremely lethal as the above posts tell you.

 

[Robert_Z]

I called my landlord. He has always been very nice...hope he still will be as this may cost him, I don't know. He said he would ask his insurance agent how to proceed. Wish me luck.

 

[AviTevet]

Talk about timely information... I just ironed out repair negotiations on a house that I want to buy and we are just about to set a closing date. One of the repairs is dryrot & mold in a bedroom. I'm glad I'm not paying for that repair... but I wonder: the mold is only visible in a small corner of the drywall, and the outside is dryrotted on about 1/4 up the wall because there was a small hole in the gutter downspout that leaked. Is there a chance that just tearing out the dryrotted plywood & studs, wet insulation, and visible molded drywall won't get rid of the mold? I can still back out at no loss to me if there will be a serious recurring health issue.

 

[BrianB]

He said he would ask his insurance agent how to proceed. Wish me luck.

You're in Texas. He's no chance with his insurance.

 

[Evelio Figueroa]

You're in Texas. He's no chance with his insurance.

This may be true. Especially if its with State Farm.

 

[JayV]

Maybe this will help. From an article on Wired.com:

A new do-it-yourself kit, developed by Pure Air Control Services may offer some respite. The kit allows customers to test for the presence of mold at home, work or school.

It's from a company named Pure Air Controls.

And it isn't cheap.

-j

 

[Scooter]

Look for green fuzzy shit!

 

[MikeAlletto]

There's also a big hoopla about homeowner's insurance and mold. It's so expensive to fix and so common that many insurance companies don't want to cover the repairs.

I don't buy it. All of a sudden people start having problems with mold? Is this a new event? People years ago never had these problems. Yeah circulation can increase it but still. The major problem is people not taking care of problems when they happen. Then they turn to the insurance companies and the insurance companies won't pay because the people were negligent. Then they refuse to sign any new customers all because of the 'few' mold houses, and they are extremely few.

If you have stuff growing in your shower try cleaning it more often with bleach. Cleaning once a month doesn't cut it.

 

[Brett_H]

Mike,

I don't buy it. All of a sudden people start having problems with mold? Is this a new event? People years ago never had these problems. Yeah circulation can increase it but still.

The way I understand it, it is a recent phenomenon and here's why: As A/C has become more prevalent in homes, people are spending more and more time with their houses sealed off from the outside world. They end up continually recirculating the same air, which in turn apparently leads to an increase in mold. Humidifiers can also contribute to the problem by keeping the air damp enough for the spores to multiply and thrive.

-Brett.