What is Black Mold?

No homeowner wants black mold, but what is it? Black mold (also known as Stachybotrys) grows in damp environments and is most commonly found around condensation or where there's been water damage. Spores enter the home via doors, small entrances or brought in on shoes and clothing. While most molds around your home aren't dangerous, black mold causes health problems after years of exposure.

Risks Behind Black Mold Exposure

Black mold is a poisonous mold with airborne toxins. Symptoms include chronic coughing, irritation to the eyes, mucus membranes of the nose and throat and rashes. Other symptoms include chronic fatigue and persistent headaches. Especially severe occurances of prolonged contact to black mold are more life threatening. Often compounded by allergic reaction to the black mold spores, these symptoms can include nausea, vomiting, and bleeding in the lungs and nose.

Information about Mold

Mold quickly spread across walls, floors and ceilings. Whenever your home experiences water damage, you should have a professional check the walls for mold infestations. They can go unnoticed for weeks, and then spring up essentially overnight. Once mold forms colonies in your living space, it immediately breeds and releases toxins that make life miserable for residents:

  • Mold emanates a pungent, musty scent that stops rooms from smelling fresh.
  • Mold causes problems for allergy-sensitive individuals, as well as those with asthma, making symptoms flare up.
  • A black mold infestation can cause coughing, wheezing, chest tightness, and trouble breathing.
  • Mold toxins can cause chronic inflammation and constant cold-like symptoms.
  • People with compromised immune systems can get systemic infections of the lungs, skin, or digestive tract.
  • In rare cases, mold toxins can cause neurological concerns or even death.
  • The more prolonged the exposure, the greater the danger.
Exceptionally humid homes and offices can be subject to mold infestations even if no water damage has happened. If you see or smell something that could be mold, get a skillful opinion right away. To get rid of mold, the atmosphere where it prospers must first be removed. Water sources have to be dealt with, and any residual moisture must be thoroughly dried out. Only then can mold elimination and remediation start. Whether a leaky roof, burst pipe, or other opening, it isn't enough to curtail the tide. Moisture can drench out-of-sight areas of your home. Without proper cleanup processes, mold will keep coming back to these areas. Call Paul Davis now if your home contains black mold. Our team inspects for presence of black mold before removal. Depend on our contractors to eliminate black mold quickly. Keep your family safe, request a black mold inspection now.