Testing for Mold
Black mold or what is termed as as stachybotrys chartarum which has received much press attention in recent years due to the fact that is a much greater health risk than other species found in an indoor environment. Testing for mold procedures and black mold test are not very different from one another.
It is important to note, however, that those basic testing kits available in the market may not provide sufficient details on how to identify specific types of mold. To date, there is no standards set currently to measure indoor mold contamination, hence giving rise to undue urgency, fear or otherwise, complacency. The testing for mold removal products sold is only able to identify the type of mold and often not the quantity in existence.
You also need to understand that there is no indoor environment which is totally free from the existence of mold. Indoor environment has an extensive number of items like air conditioners, cabinets, bathrooms, ceilings, walls, and insulation panels which are all potential incubators of toxic black mold. It is a matter of the degree of mold infestation that you should be concerned with.
Basements, bathrooms and attics are the key areas you should be testing for mold. They are often damp and humid which are the main criteria for the hot bed and incubator for toxic black mold. That said, black mold can grow anywhere with these two key factors, on cement, tiles, counter tops, walls, drywalls, corners of leaking ceilings or anywhere that are not kept dry and clean. Testing for mold is not difficult with the many type of testing kits easily available, in addition to effective black mold removal products in the market.
Testing for mold requires an attentive eye as more than half of them are not visible, hiding behind insulation panels, on the insides of bathroom cabinets, under the flooring of your living room, on the reverse side of your carpets etc. When testing for mold or conducting black mold test, you should be using you sense of smell as well, in testing the air quality. If you sense musky and moldy stench around your home, mold spores have already become airborne.
Once you have confirmed the existence of toxic black mold, you can start with black mold removal. If the mold infestation is contained within a small area, you can easily clean it with mold removal products. Contrary to common belief, most Clorox bleach cleaners are not suitable for mold removal as bleach are never the best cleanser to use.
Do You Need Professional Help In Testing For Mold Infestation?
When the mold infestation is widespread and extensive in many areas within your home, it might be a good idea to enlist professional help from mold removal companies.
In order to identify the existence of a mold infestation you will need to measure and assess key factors like relative humidity, the location where mold spore populate, the types of mold as well as the extent of infestation. These require some professional equipment to do a thorough job. And when you find the task a tad daunting and challenging, you should be enlisting the help of the mold removal companies to manage on your behalf as the results form the preliminary assessment of the extent of toxic mold infestation and the basis of the type of removal methods that mold removal companies will choose.