If your home has been smelly musty, there’s a strong chance it is coming from mold hidden somewhere in your house. The high humidity and lack of airflow and ventilation in bathrooms, kitchens, laundry rooms, and basements make these places ideal for mold growth.

Mold is difficult to detect as it is more likely to grow in dark areas behind wallpapers and furniture. If you enter any house area and notice a foul odor, look for green or brown spots on the walls or the sides of the flooring. Mold growth is common between the tiles and floorings too.

Not only does it harm the aesthetics of the site, but it also poses several health risks, particularly to those who already suffer from respiratory diseases.

However, if the mold damage is extensive, it is not recommended that you attempt to clean it up yourself because you run the risk of spreading it to other areas and into the air. For immediate assistance, contact remediation professionals such as 911 Restoration.

How Mold Affects Your Health and the Health of Your Home

It is not very often that people can detect mold during the early stages of mold; in most cases, mold growth stays hidden and behind walls for a long period. However, if you or the people living with you start experiencing health symptoms while the musty smell is present in your home, know that it is probably mold growth.

Exposure to moldy environments may cause nasal stuffiness, throat irritation, coughing and wheezing, or eye and skin irritation. Those with exiting allergies and health problems may have more severe reactions, especially to people with asthma who are allergic to mold, which can cause asthma attacks.

Find the Source of the Musty Smell

As we have seen, the presence of mold in your home is the most common cause of a musty odor, but a musty smell does not necessarily indicate that there is a lot of mold present. Before you attempt to cover up the odor, take some time to inspect the surrounding area for signs of mold.

However, if you have been experiencing many health symptoms, such as coughing and wheezing, it is best to leave the inspection to the professional mold removal team.

You can find mold in different places around your home, including the following:

Your Bathrooms

Bathrooms are always moist and warm, especially following a shower. Mold spores consider such environments to be “heaven on earth.”

When looking for mold, you will want to start with the most obvious places, such as the shower tiles and the corners of walls and bathtubs. Other areas of the bathroom you should check include the area under the sink, the area around the toilet, and the area in the walls behind the toilet.

The presence of water leaks and leaking faucets may not always be instantly obvious. If you conduct a thorough inspection of your bathrooms, you should be able to determine if there is a moisture problem causing mold growth to grow and spread.

To avoid mold in bathrooms, wipe down the walls and floors when they get wet and keep the bathroom door and windows open to allow ventilation.

The Kitchen

It may seem like your kitchen is mold-free, but there are many places in the kitchen for mold to the hideout. Check the areas underneath and around your refrigerator, underneath your sink, and inside your microwave and stove to inspect for mold. Also, check your trash can; that is another dark place mold cannot resist.

The steam from cooking or water leaks in sink pipes can create moisture in the environment, providing ideal conditions for mold growth. Furthermore, the heat and warmth from cooking help mold grow faster.

To prevent mold growth in the kitchen, clean appliances, and stoves regularly and open the windows and door for ventilation.

In the Bedrooms and Living Room

Mold can grow on sofas and underneath mattresses; hence, check for mold there if you start smelling something musty in either of the rooms. If you have potted plants in these rooms, mold can easily grow in them.

Fireplaces and HVAC vents can also be infected with mold, and through vents, mold spores can easily travel into different rooms.

The Attic, the Basement, and the Garage

These rooms are probably the rooms you spend the least of your time in, which is why it is difficult to spot mold damage during the early stages. The attic, basement, and garage are likely dark, warm, and damp places and perfect for mold growth. You will need to look in quite a few spots in these rooms to spot mold.

Do You Need Help Cleaning Mold in Your Home?

If the mold damage is excessive, your best option is to use professional mold removal services in Central Mississippi. The experienced 911 Restoration will use advanced equipment, appropriate cleaning materials, and efficient cleaning techniques to remove the mold before it spreads further and causes costly damage to your home. Call us now at (601) 501-6119!