Mold can cause serious damage to a home and wreak havoc on the health of occupants. Mold problems in a home should never be ignored – as a homeowner, it’s important to recognize how mold grows indoors and take action to eliminate it as well as prevent its regrowth. Grove Heating & Cooling explains how to get rid of mold in your home using helpful HVAC equipment.
Why Does Mold Grow Indoors?
Before you can understand how to eliminate dangerous mold, you first need to learn why it can grow inside. Mold spores are always present in the air, no matter what you do. When these spores come into contact with the conditions they need to grow and thrive, they become a problem.
As mold spores naturally circulate through the air in a home, spores can settle on wet surfaces and grow. As mold grows, new spores are released into the air and they circulate to other areas of the house, where they can continue to grow and reproduce if they come into contact with the moisture they need to thrive.
Mold always needs water or moisture to survive. In a home, it’s fairly normal to spot some minor surface mold or mildew growth in areas that are frequently wet, such as in showers or around bathtubs. Eliminating mold growth in these spots is fairly simple by cleaning with a bleach solution and keeping the areas dry.
Indoor mold can get out of hand in homes with moisture problems. Unresolved plumbing or roof leaks can cause an abundance of moisture in the home, leading to mold growth problems. Excessive humidity in the indoor air is another issue that causes high moisture levels throughout the home that are conducive to mold growth. If humidity levels are left unchecked, a serious mold problem is likely to develop over time.
How to Kill Mold in Your Home
If you find mold growing in your home, cleanup is necessary for mold removal. Eliminating mold in your home that is minor and doesn’t cover large areas can typically be done yourself using a bleach and water solution. Larger mold issues should be treated by a mold remediation specialist to ensure all harmful mold is eliminated from the home.
In addition to cleaning, getting rid of mold in your house involves fixing the source of excess moisture. Depending on the cause of the moisture issue, this may involve repairing a leaky roof, fixing plumbing leaks, or treating airborne humidity.
Anytime you find mold in your home, you need to move fast in removing mold. Allowing mold to linger can provide further time for it to spread and reproduce, causing considerably more damage to your home.
How to Prevent Future Mold Issues
Humidity issues are common contributors to mold growth. A home’s air can hold more moisture depending on several factors such as the outdoor environment, construction materials, insulation, design of the home, and the air tightness of the structure. Eliminating mold in your home and preventing its reoccurrence involves addressing your humidity issue directly.
The best way to combat indoor humidity problems is by using a whole home dehumidifier. A whole home dehumidifier is a type of indoor air quality product that is installed to work with the main heating and cooling system. Installed on the return side of the system, air circulating through ducts back to the HVAC system will first pass through the dehumidifier. Here, air is cooled to lower its temperature, forcing extra airborne moisture to condense and fall out of circulation before air passes into the heating or cooling system for temperature treatment. Additional indoor air quality products like media air cleaners can remove mold spores from circulation or UV light air purifiers can neutralize spores in circulation, limiting your risk of future issues.
Contact Grove for Home Humidity Control in Maryland
If you have an indoor humidity problem, eliminating mold in your home and stopping future mold growth involve the installation of a whole home dehumidifier. Turn to Grove Heating & Cooling for installation of dehumidifiers and other indoor air quality equipment that can help you combat indoor mold. Call us today to learn more.
