Is White Mold Dangerous In My Home?

Do you have white mold growing somewhere in your home?

As a mold removal company in Toronto, we respond to calls for all types of mold.  The most common type we see is black mold, though mold comes in all types of colors.  From a health perspective, white mold shares similar characteristics as other colors of mold and can cause similar health issues.

White mold is a natural fungus that colonizes our homes, when the humidity levels and temperatures match its preferences. Its semi-translucent lighter coloring makes it harder to spot than its dark-green and black cousins. Despite this, it has similar implications for our health if left untreated and allowed to grow and spread throughout the home.

Efflorescence and White Mold

It’s sometimes difficult to discriminate between early efflorescence and white mold, because the two look quite similar. However the former is a crystal found on concrete and masonry structures only, meaning that if the phenomenon appears elsewhere it’s likely to be white mold.

Mold Implications for Our Health

To most people, white mold is no more dangerous than a cashew nut. In fact, many of us could eat it quite safely, although we’re certainly not recommending tasting mold. However, just as nut-allergies can be unpleasant and even dangerous for those sensitive to them, so too can mold have serious implications for those with delicate upper respiratory tracts.  Inhaling mold spores over an extended period of time can possibly have adverse effects on your health.

Mold spores floating in the air may cause chest problems, and even asthma attacks. It’s not uncommon to find family members living in mold-infested homes constantly wheezing and coughing. That’s why it’s advisable to get rid of white mold the instant it begins to colonize our homes.

Removing White Mold From Your Home

Getting rid of mold is a little like sweeping up fine sawdust with a dustpan and a brush. Some of it always seems to end up somewhere else, or gets left behind as a memory on the floor. If sawdust could germinate, our furniture factories would be full of saplings. Unfortunately mold spores sprout as quickly as watercress seeds on wet blotting paper.

The only way to get rid of white mold it to kill it on the spot without disturbing it, which can prove difficult. Keeping your home dry and wiping away mold as soon as you find it will help keep it at bay. If an infestation is advanced, it may become necessary to ask a mold removal company to properly remove the mold.

Depending on how the mold issue started, mold could be covered under your homeowners insurance.

Remaining White-Mold Free

Unfortunately that’s not going to stop the fungus in its tracks. It grows as easily as those annoying weeds on your front lawn, and it will soon be back if you don’t change the conditions under which it thrives. This involves:

• Eliminating dampness caused by leaking pipes and rainwater penetration
• Keeping humidity below 60%
• Ventilating affected rooms by opening doors and windows daily.

Only then, can you begin to bring white mold under control. However once you’ve been under attack, it can prove difficult to keep it away as it may still be lurking in inaccessible places under floors and in attic corners.

Mold Removal Company in Toronto

Restoration Mate offers mold remediation services in Toronto and the surrounding GTA.  You can contact us today to learn more and to schedule a free estimate.