Mold can make a negative impact on your health, as most people know, however, what many people do not realize, is that the pungent, unsightly splotches are causing significant harm to your home. To avoid extreme damages, at the first sign of mold, you need to act immediately. Today, we at American Hometown Services would like to discuss the damage to your home that mold can do.

Can Mold Destroy a Home?

Organic materials, like many fabrics, wood, paper, and even some types of glue, among other things, is fed on by mold. Mold can eat through this material, leading them to rot, deteriorate, and fall apart. Ceiling tiles, drywall, floorboards, wallpaper, carpet, wooden studs in walls, and other structures inside the home can be eaten though in little time from mold. The caving in of floorboards, collapse of ceilings, and falling down of walls are likely to occur from unchecked mold damage. Though it can take some time for the mold to completely obliterate your home, some materials may not be repairable and quickly destroyed. Fortunately, this gives you time to take the right action to get the mold removed from your home or business.

Mold in HVAC System

Mold is commonly discovered in basements, bathrooms, laundry rooms, and attics, but it is commonly hidden in the HVAC system. Because it is difficult to remove mold from inside ductwork and mold inside a home’s air ducts can quickly spread to other areas of the home, any mold in your HVAC system can be particularly damaging to your home. Throughout the entire home, air blowing through moldy ducts easily disperses mold. If you think there might be mold in your HVAC system, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) recommends against turning on your heating or air conditioning. Before turning it on in order to prevent greater mold damage to your home, have system inspected, and cleaned if necessary. To make sure the job is done correctly and safely, the Environmental Protection Agency recommends having a professional clean your HVAC ducts, if you do find mold in them.

Mold on Furniture, Carpet & Walls

Mold damage is challenging to repair, depending on the extent of the damage. Things like carpet, wallpaper, insulation, mattresses, and plush furniture like sofas, cannot be adequately cleaned or repaired after being contaminated with mold, unfortunately. They likely need to be replaced after proper disposal. Also, moldy drywall must be removed and replaced as well. Since mold can be inadvertently spread to other areas of the home during the removal process, care must be taken when removing moldy materials. Hundreds of thousands of mold spores can go flying into the air by pulling up moldy carpet or cutting into moldy drywall to remove it, for example. The spores land on other surfaces ant take root.

Can Mold Live on Dry, Hard Surfaces?

If a mold problem is caught and addressed early, wooden surfaces, including wall studs and floorboards, can sometimes be cleaned and repaired. It may be impossible to completely remove mold from wooden surface if the mold problem has progressed. Floorboard replacing may need to occur. in order to remove as much mold as possible, wall stud may need to be sanded. Any residual mold can potentially be encapsulated, or sealed in, with special sealant and done by a mold removing expert to ensure is done safely and efficiently. Metal, glass, tile and concrete as well as similar materials are easier to clean. However, cleaning the mold from anywhere is labor-intensive and labor-intensive. Also, if proper safety measures are not taken, mold can cause severe health problems.

Mold Remediation Services & More in Quincy, Macomb, Hamilton, Warsaw & East Alton Illinois | Hannibal, Missouri

If you have mold, call in the experts of American Hometown Services and let our experts take care of the mold issue safely and efficiently.