Mold! Mold! It’s Everywhere! So What?

10/22/2019 (Permalink)

Yes, Mold is Everywhere!

Mold is certainly a problem in many buildings, homes, apartments, condos, offices, factories, warehouses, public buildings. Yes, mold is everywhere. In case you didn’t know, it’s outdoors, as well as indoors. Essentially all molds indoors come from outdoors. The problem occurs when the outdoor mold levels-usually at a level most people can tolerate-finds an ideal growth environment indoors and begins to propagate to where it overwhelms our immune systems. Different molds thrive in different conditions but most like high humidity, warmth, and a food source (mostly wood, paper, foodstuffs, and plant matter).

Conditions for Mold Growth

Different molds like different conditions for propagation. Some thrive in high moisture; some prefer active water infusion. They also have a variety of diets and temperature requirements. Some like the cellulose in sheetrock paper, others like wood in various degrees of decay and water saturation. Some like very warm temperatures, others like lower temperatures. Very few, however, will grow in cool and cold temperatures; if they do it is very slow.  

Adverse Effect on Humans

The important point with molds that may produce some type of adverse effect on humans is the quantity. The quantity on surfaces that can be dislodged by physical contact and air movement, and the quantity of mold, floating free in the air, that can be inhaled.