Mold is good for nature, but it is harmful to humans. When you are exposed to mold, you can have serious health issues. For example, nausea, headache, sore throat, and several respiratory diseases. Also, when there is mold in your house, it can degrade your house environment. For example, due to excess mold in your home, your house will be filled with a foul odor, which will degrade the IAQ. However, you can ditch these issues by preventing mold growth. But for this, at first, you will have to know the common place where mold grows.
5 Most Common Places Mold Grows in Your House & Ways to Eradicate It
1. Bathroom
As bathrooms and showers are used every day, they remain damp. Besides, if there is a lack of ventilation in these places, moisture will get trapped and increase the humidity. But should you care?
High humidity and damp places are perfect conditions for mold to grow. And as the bathroom fulfills these criteria, you can expect mold in your bathroom or shower area, particularly in the bathroom sink and walls.
To prevent mold growth in the bathroom, you must keep the bathroom and the shower area dry. Also, to keep the bathroom's moisture in control, ensure that there is no water leakage and enough ventilation in the bathroom. For example, over time, water taps and pipes start to form leaks, and if you don’t replace them ASAP, they will cause exponential mold growth in the bathroom.
Apart from these, you can use an anti-mold cleaning agent while cleaning the bathroom and shower area. Thus, if there is any mold in the bathroom, you can eradicate them.
Still, if you cannot eliminate the mold in the bathroom, you must hire a professional cleaning expert to eradicate mold from your bathroom.
2. Kitchen
After the bathroom and the shower area, the most common place where mold grows is in the kitchen. You can find mold in the refrigerator, oven, pantries, and stove. Because these areas are usually filled with moisture, and if not fully dried after the usage, mold will thrive in these places.
To prevent mold growth in the kitchen, you will have to dry the cutting board after the usage. Besides, you will have to clean the trash bins regularly. Otherwise, you can see mold growth in the trash cans as well. Also, look for leaks in the refrigerator, and as soon as you find them, you must repair them ASAP.
Don’t forget to check the kitchen sink and kitchen water pipes. If you find any leaks here, you must call a plumber.
And if there is already mold in the kitchen utensil, you can use a vinegar solution to eradicate them.
3. Living Room
Although the living room doesn’t have any water source, still, it can have mold formation. For example, you can find mold in the books, potted plants, mattresses, etc.
Papers are made of wood pulp, and if the books somehow become damp, mold will grow exponentially in them. To prevent mold formation in your books, you will have to ensure that the books are not damp. For this, you can take all your books from the bookshelf and put them under the sunlight. Thus, you can prevent the dampness from the books or other documents in your living room.
Many homeowners like to have cacti or orchids in their living rooms. But sometimes, they overwater these plants, which can lead to mold growth on the surface of these pots. So, if you have cactus or other plants in your living room, don’t overwater them.
And to eradicate mold from your plant pot, you will have to use a detergent with anti-mold agents.
4. HVAC Unit
Your home heating and cooling unit deal with moisture every day, and if it is maintained properly, you will notice mold in it. And when there is mold inside your HVAC unit, your home environment will get worse. Your house will get filled with a foul odor, and indoor air quality will decrease. Besides, when there is mold inside the HVAC unit, it will spread various respiratory diseases.
To prevent mold formation inside the HVAC unit, first, clean the air ducts regularly. Then you will have to look for leaks in the HVAC unit. As soon as you find any leak in the HVAC system, you must turn off the system and call a professional HVAC expert. Also, you must change the AC filter regularly.
The best way to do all these is by annual HVAC maintenance checkups. During an AC maintenance checkup, an expert technician will check your cooling unit thoroughly, and if he finds any fault, he will fix it on the spot. Thus, your HVAC system will be in good condition, and you can prevent mold formation.
If you notice mold in the air duct, you must call a professional air duct cleaning expert.
5. Basement
The basement and attic lack ventilation, and fungi and mold take advantage of it and grow rapidly. Also, due to pipe leakage, the mold gets its desired environment and increases its colony exponentially. To prevent this, you must ensure ventilation in the basement. And for mold eradication in your basement, you should call a mold cleaning expert.
Conclusion
Mold can be very hazardous. So, as soon as you notice mold in your house, you must act fast and ask for professional help.