Busy Bee: Cleaning Mold

Mold is a common problem, occurring in a majority of houses. According to the Center for Disease and Control, mold is found everywhere and is known to cause various diseases and ailments. While more severe cases of mold are a job for professional mold removal, followed by a professional commercial cleaning business, minor mold problems can be cleaned with household products. Once mold is properly removed, the area must be disinfected and deodorized by cleaning services commercial businesses utilize. If you decide to hire a professional commercial cleaning business, be sure to inform the company of the previous mold problems so that they can take precautions. Just like a cleaning service commercial businesses would use, homeowners should also use gloves, masks, and other protective gear when dealing with mold in their home.

Where to Look for Mold

Mold can grow nearly anywhere that there’s moisture and a food source, including under carpets, behind wallpaper, and in cabinets. If you find mold in your home, it’s important to target the source of the moisture. It’s also essential to hire a commercial cleaning service to thoroughly clean the area once a mold inspection has been performed in the home. Mold can be found in nearly any room of the house, but many homeowners fail to look in certain mold-growing areas. Here are several places you may not have checked for mold.

Forgotten Rooms: Household rooms that are closed-off or rarely used may be a breeding ground for mold. This is especially true if the room is too hot or receives little airflow. Mold and mildew can ruin furniture and create unhealthy indoor air quality. It’s important to leave registers opens in all rooms, even ones you are not using to prevent mold from growing. Cleaning services commercial businesses use may be ideal for cleaning and maintaining extra rooms that are rarely used.

Deck and Lawn: Mold not only grows in moist areas on the inside of your home, but can also be found on the outside. Dirt and debris can feed spores, making it essential to keep it clean. One option is to call a professional commercial cleaning service to schedule regular power deck cleanings. A commercial cleaning service can recommend things like keeping water from flower pots, gutters, and downspouts away from the deck and clean in-between boards where moisture can cling. Water the lawn less during monsoon season to prevent excess evaporation which can cause mold.

Basement and Attic: Even a small amount of water in the basement or attic can rot wood and cause mold and mildew. For this reason, it’s important to keep things in the attic sealed tight. Ensure that the roof is not leaking into the attic and water is not seeping into the basement. Keep humidity to a minimum with the help of a de-humidifier. Keep memorabilia, such as collectables, photographs, or anything made from paper in storage containers with snug-fitted tops. These items can become damaged from exposure to heat and grow yellow or moldy.

Mold Removal Process

Mold can become a major nuisance, blackening the grout lines in your shower and discoloring your drywall. It can also be bad for your health. Nearly every home gets mold infestations, both small and large. Minor infestations can be cleaned with ordinary cleaning products. More severe infections can be highly toxic and are best left up to the professionals. It is usually best to hire a commercial cleaning service to ensure that all is healthy once the mold is eliminated.

Eliminate Moldy Items: Mold can spread from item to item, so it’s essential to discard things of little importance that have become infested. This could include old books, furniture, rugs, or even drywall. Some things may be beyond the point of restoration. If this is the case for your items, consider replacing moldy items with new.

Identify The Problem: Before you begin to clean up the mold problem by yourself or with the help of a commercial cleaning business, it’s best to identify the cause of the mold. Mold requires moisture or water in the surrounding area. Growth of mold means that there is not sufficient ventilation and poor maintenance of the area. This can occur in nearly any room of the house, especially rooms that have constant running water – such as the bathroom or kitchen.

Scrub Mold From Hard Surfaces: A commercial cleaning business can help to sterilize a home once the mold is removed. To do this, spray mold killer on hard surfaces such as glass, concrete, plastic, and metal. Scrub off the mold to restore the look of these surfaces. It’s important to wear a protective mask, as well as work gloves, when performing these tasks.

Disinfect and Deodorize: Soft items in your home, such as rugs, carpets, curtains, and upholstery, require additional care. A commercial cleaning business can aid you in the disinfecting of these items. Soak soft items in a disinfectant solution, as mold can become stuck in-between the fibers of such materials. These items will also need to be deodorized, as mold can leave a musky smell on soft items.

Preventing Mold from Growing

Mold requires moisture and organic materials to thrive. In a normal home, there are many organic materials, such as drywall, wood, and other building materials. While you can’t take away the mold’s source of food, there are ways to keep moisture to a minimum. When moisture is properly controlled, mold and mildew can be prevented. Hiring a commercial building cleaning service to clean difficult-to-clean areas of your home on a regular basis can also prevent mold from growing.

Dry Wet Areas Immediately: Since moisture is a key factor in mold growth, it’s important to tackle wet areas immediately. Water can accumulate from leaky faucets, seepage into a basement after a heavy rainfall, or even a spilled beverage on a carpet. Don’t leave wet items lying around your home, and ensure floors and walls are properly dried after showering. Don’t leave wet clothes in a washing machine or in a laundry basket where mold can quickly spread. Invest in a commercial building cleaning business to help keep your home clean, dry, and free of mold.

Create Proper Ventilation: Poor ventilation in your home can invite mold to grow and spread. Besides having a regular cleaning services commercial business to aid in your home cleaning, it’s important to ensure your activities are not making the problem worse. Simple tasks, such as taking a shower or cooking dinner, can lead to a high-moisture area. Use air conditioning units and dehumidifiers to help solve this problem.

Monitor Indoor Humidity: According to the EPA and many commercial building cleaning businesses, a house’s indoor humidity should be between 30 and 60 percent. Humidity can be easily measured with a moisture meter found at your local hardware store. Excessive humidity can also be visually seen in problem areas of your home, such as condensation on windows, walls, and pipes. If you notice condensation, dry the surface and locate the source of moisture.

Cleaning service commercial businesses are commonly used as a follow-up procedure to mold clean-ups. Using a cleaning service commercial business is a highly effective way to deep clean, disinfectant, and deodorize areas that once housed mold. This is especially important for households that have young children, as mold can lead to numerous health problems. Offices are also prone to mold and may require professional mold removal at one point or another. Once the mold is removed, business owners can look into commercial office cleaning services to thoroughly clean the office. Commercial office cleaning services will clean business locations from top to bottom – which is essential for commercial places. These commercial office cleaning services are also very detailed with their work, ensuring that no mold has been left behind.

• Steps for Cleaning Mold [PDF]
• Mold in Your Home: Cleaning Options
• Mold and Moisture