Mold inside the walls is a serious threat that not only damages the structure of the home but may cause different health issues. The weather-changing effect creates a great effect on mold. A humid or damp environment provides the ideal conditions for mold growth. In California, the average humidity is 65%. The mold concealed behind the walls is not easy for homeowners to find, and its spores float with the air and cause different health issues. Therefore, it is necessary to know how to test for mold inside walls to protect the home’s structure and well-being.
Sometimes, you can see the dark green, black, or brown spots on the walls or ceilings. These are the signs of mold that damage your home’s indoor air quality, if you spend a lot of time in this environment.
In this blog, we will discuss how to test for mold in walls using three easy steps. Whether you are worrying about your health or protecting your hard-earned money that you invest in property, following these steps will help you to detect mold at the early stage and take the action before it becomes severe health issues.
Step 1: Identifying Signs of Mold Inside Walls
Mold inside walls may go unnoticed until it’s too late, but there are some suitable signs that indicate that your home is affected by mold. For that reason, start by looking for visual clues and explore the home thoroughly. The common visual signs of mold are discoloration of walls, peeling off or bubbling the wall paint, water stains, and the earthy smell. The musty odor can be noticed in the basement, attics, kitchen, and bathroom when they have poor ventilation. These damp or humid areas provide the ideal environment for mold growth in the presence of poor ventilation.
So, with identifying the visible signs of mold, it is necessary to get to know the mold in the walls. To detect mold inside walls, consider using tools such as a moisture meter or infrared camera. The moisture meter will identify the water content behind the walls and identify the areas which are more suitable for mold. On the other hand, the infrared camera identifies the temperature difference and indicates the presence of mold that may provide the ideal condition for mold. Therefore, these tools will be helpful for Californians to identify the mold and take good action before it may turn into costly repairs.
With the help of identifying the mold at its early stage, you can protect the hard-earned money that you invest in the property and can protect yourself and your belongings from facing severe health issues. Additionally, with the regular mold inspection, you can prevent yourself from legal matters and the high cost of remediations.
Step 2: Testing for Mold Inside Walls with DIY Methods
Once you have identified the mold signs, it’s time for testing, especially in the hidden areas that play a great role in damaging the home’s air quality. Fortunately, you can use DIY test kits, which are available at home improvement stores or at well-reputed online stores. With these kits you will test the mold without professional help. These kits are designed for the homeowners in a budget-friendly so that they can check the mold without any professional help.
Here’s the step-by-step guide on how to use these kits to get effective results.
Choose the Kit
Mold test kits come with supplies for air sampling, surface sampling, or both. So, choose the kit that you need to test. Air sampling will be helpful to get to know the amount of spores that are suspended in the air and the mold inside the walls that you can’t see by the naked eye.
Surface Sampling
If you want to assess where the mold is growing, surface sampling is straightforward. In the surface sampling test kit, you need to swab the surface from the suspected moldy area. The spaces like basements, attics, bathrooms, kitchens, and other damp spots. Follow the given instructions and collect the surface sample in the given container. After collecting the surface sample, send it to the laboratory for getting the scientific report that will describe how much mold is in the baseboards, windowsills, or behind the appliances.
Air Sampling
If you suspect the mold inside the walls but cannot identify the visible signs, then air sampling will be helpful to approach. Mold spores are light in weight and can float with air, and there is a maximum chance it settles behind the walls. Follow the given instructions and collect an air sample. Seal the sample and send to the lab for results.
These DIY methods will help homeowners take the initial step to get to know the mold presence in their homes. Especially in California, mold tends to grow due to the high humidity or water damage.
Step 3: Professional Mold Inspection and Testing
Whether DIY testing is helpful for homeowners if they follow the given instructions, but due to a lack of experience, they will not get the accurate results of mold that a professional can do. Signs like discoloration of walls, peeling off-the-wall paint, and musty odors are common, but dealing with these mold signs is not an easy task, especially inside the walls. The certified mold inspector has an updated tool, which may be impossible for every homeowner to buy.
Professionals in California use advanced techniques to get accurate results for mold. Here’s the breakdown of the methods that they use.
Borescope Inspections
The areas behind the walls or ceiling are critical spaces where checking the mold presence is not easy. The professionals follow the borescope, a small camera is inserted through a tiny hole in the walls. This strategy will provide the visual results of the mold without causing major damage. The borescope inspection is very effective in California’s homes due to high humidity and water leakage problems.
Air Quality Testing
The professional mold inspector adjusts the equipment to detect the mold spores suspended in the air. These suspended mold spores not only damage the home’s structure but may also cause different health issues, such as shortness of breath, continuous headaches, dizziness, and skin allergies.
During air quality testing, the certified mold inspector continuously monitors and provides the accurate result of how much mold is present in the home.
Moisture Mapping
With the thermal imaging cameras, the professional mold inspector conducts moisture mapping. These devices detect the temperature difference between the walls, ceiling, and floors. With this help, the inspector will identify the areas that are suitable for mold growth.
This method is important in the coastal areas of California, where humidity and condensation are common for mold triggers.
Conclusion
In California, the mold presence is common, therefore homeowners should prepare for it and get regular mold inspections from certified mold inspectors. The mold spores are airborne and can cause severe health issues. Therefore, it is necessary for the homeowners to make their home healthy and protect themselves from facing costly issues. In this way no one is better than Orange and South Coast Property Services.
So, don’t waste your time; visit our website or call to hire certified mold inspectors.