Viable mold is mold that is alive, spreading, and has a food and moisture source. This is typically regarded as the most urgent type of mold because it can quickly spread throughout a home. Non-viable mold is the opposite. It is not alive, not spreading, and it does not have a food or moisture source. However, that doesn’t mean it doesn’t pose a threat to you. Non-viable mold releases mold spores into the air when it dries out which can still cause mold to spread through your home and expose you to harmful mold spores.

Cleaning or removing surface mold doesn’t always get rid of the mold problem. 95% of the time if you have visible mold on the surface of something, you also have mold that has rooted inside that same something. This means that you need to discard the moldy item (like a moldy end table) or replace the moldy building materials (like a moldy under-sink cabinet). Surface mold is the tip of a very dangerous iceberg. In addition to that, if you have visible mold you most likely have airborne mold spores floating around. So you need to “scrub the air” in your entire home using HEPA air purifiers. Your air ducts will need to be cleaned. A good rule of thumb is that you must remove mold and the source AND eliminate the water source that is feeding it. 

Mold can be caused by a large number of different sources. However, the most common culprit of mold in the home is poor ventilation. When a home doesn’t ventilate air properly, moisture and other contaminants tend to build up in the air. This leads to prime conditions for mold to grow and spread. One example of this is in your bathroom. If you fail to use the exhaust fan in your bathroom to keep moisture at bay you will likely have mold in your bathroom sooner rather than later. This same concept applies to your entire Long Beach Township home. 

There’s a lot to know about mold! While the facts above don’t even come close to addressing all there is to know about mold, they do provide some helpful information to build on and prevent mold damage. Nonetheless, if you do ever deal with mold damage in your home don’t hesitate to give us a call at MasterTeach for help.