Why house has mold?

Mold will grow in places with high humidity, such as around leaks in roofs, windows, or pipes, or where there have been floods. Mold grows well on paper products, cardboard, ceiling plates and wood products. Mold can also grow on dust, paints, wallpaper, insulation, drywall, carpets, fabric, and upholstery. They can grow on almost anything if it's damp enough.

Inside your home, mold grows quickly on damp surfaces, such as bathroom walls, and on surrounding molds. Molds can look like a hairy growth, black spots, or black, white, orange, green, or brown spots. During winter, some homes may experience a buildup of condensation on cold surfaces due to temperature fluctuations. Believe it or not, mold only needs 24 hours to grow and proliferate.

In small quantities, mold spores are usually harmless, but when they fall into a humid place in the house, they can start to grow. When mold grows on a surface, spores can be released into the air, where they can be easily inhaled. If you're sensitive to mold and inhale a lot of spores, you could have health problems. Mold grows in homes where leaks, floods, poor ventilation, moisture, and other sources of moisture have been left unattended.

The key to preventing its growth is, according to Mr. Provitola, to address any water-related problem within 24 to 48 hours of its onset. In some cases, common household ingredients can rescue you in your home. Mix one cup of bleach with one gallon of water and wipe the mold off walls, carpet, or ceiling.

This will remove mold and allow you to repair or repaint the affected area (which you probably need, since the bleach mixture also usually removes paint). This is generally fine for areas where sufficient ventilation has not been allowed; simply remove mold, repaint with moisture- or mold-repellent paint, and remember to open doors and windows to prevent the area from becoming rancid. While it's impossible to completely eradicate the presence of microscopic mold spores in your home, you can certainly prevent mold in your home. The key is to control indoor humidity.

Mold-related problems generally stem from high humidity, uncontrolled condensation, and simple, slow leaks in pipes. But knowing how to prevent mold damage involves much more than calling a plumber. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the most common indoor molds are cladosporium, penicillium, alternaria and aspergillus. Stachybotrys chartarum, often called toxic mold, is rare.

This dense, heavy black mold is usually due to a long-term moisture problem. Foreclosed homes that have been empty for months are often candidates for toxic mold. The mold problem in the Potomac home that Burton was planning to buy was mainly due to neglect. It's not feasible to bathe the entire house with sunlight, but there are types of interior lighting on the market that emulate the sun's wavelengths and can destroy mold from exposure.

During the warm spring and summer months, wet or damp clothing in the house can greatly contribute to an existing mold problem.