One of our friends recently called us up to tell us they thought they had black mold in their home.  I immediately asked this homeowner a couple of questions:

1. Can you see evidence of black mold? – “yes, and there seems to be mushroom growth in one spot.”
2. Can you smell a musty moldy smell?  “Yes, it also feels musty and the house is only 4 years old.”
3. How long have you noticed this?  “We noticed the mushroom growth over two years ago but thought we could spray some bleach on the spot and it would go away.”
   1. And has it gone away?  “Well….no.”
4. Is anyone in your home feeling slightly sick lately?  “No.”

There are many red flags that this homeowner missed.  They could smell and see the mold and even had mushroom growth but thought bleach would help…..if there is a musty smell and mold/mushrooms growing out of a soft spot in the wall, then bleach will not help!  This homeowner later realized that the shower was installed wrong.  Instead of just replacing this shower, this homeowner might have to rip out the floor under the shower and replace some of the wall.  This is a tragic example of how what could have been a simple solution became a complicated and expensive solution because they wasted time avoiding having a professional come in to analyze what the issue was right away.  So the biggest tip to keep mold under control is to call in a professional right away!  Even if you just think there might be a problem, it doesn’t hurt to have an expert come in and use the proper equipment to fully remove ALL mold.  

Question number 5 is an interesting one to think about.  Mold growth can be hazardous and this mold is most likely the hazardous kind.  The homeowners might be sick and might just be attributing it to allergies.  There are long-term health hazardous to constantly breathing in hazardous mold.  This homeowner might think they are fine now but could face health problems in the future.

This homeowner has a long road of remediation and restoration ahead of them because they let the mold growth get out of control.  If you think you have mold in your home, call the certified mold removal experts at Pacific Dryforce 208-687-6553.