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There are 5 common misconceptions about molds. And if you can understand these, then you're
going to know more than 95% of the people in the world out there.
The number one question that we get asked is "Is it black mold?" Well, the answer is,
it could be black, could be orange, could be green or yellow. There's actually over
ten thousand different types of molds and they come in all different colors.
So, is it black mold? Well, the question's kind of irrelevant because there are hundreds
if not thousands of molds that are black in color. But why do they ask that? And that
brings us to the second point. They want to know, "Is the mold dangerous?" Well, mold
can really be categorized into one of two categories in regards to how it might be dangerous
to you.
First, there are toxic molds. There are a hundred molds that are nationally listed as
toxic to everyone. They have what's called a "micro-toxin" that gets distributed out
on the spores of the mold, and those micro-toxins are dangerous to everyone that they come in
contact to. Then you have the other nine thousand nine hundred or so molds. And those actually
have an allergic reaction. So such as someone may be allergic to B pollen or to peanut butter
or to cut-grass. People have different reactions- allergic reactions to the different types
of mold spores.
So, the answer at the end of the day is "How does it relate to you?" All molds are taken
cared of the same way- regardless of its type. With some of the really toxic molds, they
might be a little more stringent. We might go an extra step. But in general, they are
all taken cared of exactly the same way.
So, "Is the mold dangerous?" The only way to know is to have a hygienist come in and
test it, give you the lab results then you can categorize it. But they are all going
to get taken cared of the same way.
Now the next question that a lot of people ask is "Can I just wipe it with bleach?" When
I ask this question to people at their home "Is it valid to wipe it with bleach?" they
would probably say "Sure, no problem." But when I ask them in a public environment with
about 50 people, everyone shakes their head "No."
Well, the answer is: there is a time and place that molds can just be wiped. And there's
a time and place where it needs to be dealt with professionally.
Let's use an example: You have mold that's growing in your shower, on top of the tile
and the tile grout. That just needs to be topically dealt with.ت We do NOT recommend
the use of bleach. Bleach is very caustic and can be very dangerous. But there are other
fungicides that can be used to clean that off and that would be a very correct application
for its use. Of course, you would want to open up the windows and exchange the air out
of that bathroom, for any spores that might have been stirred up.
Take that same bathroom and put a water-loss situation, where water has penetrated into
the walls. Now, you have mold that's growing on porous surfaces. And that mold has gotten
into the walls. If you were just to " surface-wipe" the mold off the surface, then if its still
wet, it'll grow back. But either way you're going to continue to have mold inside the
walls. And when those walls breathe, as all walls do, and exchange air with the inside
of the house, you're going to have those mold spores coming out into your air, and you're
going to have all the negative effects of having molds.
So, anytime that its not a non-porous surface or anytime there's a really large amount of
molds even if it wasn't on porous surface, those are situations where you want to make
sure its professionally removed.