Everything you ever (or never) wanted to know about mold - but you need to know!
The dreaded black mold, Stachybotrys - pretty eh?
Aspergillus Flavus - not so flavorful
Bleach doesn't kill all mold!
Chlorine Bleach (sodium hypochlorite 6%) does not kill mold. Why?
Mold's hyphae (root structures) actually grow into wood and drywall like roots. The hyphae are not killed by bleach because bleach's ion structure prevents chlorine from penetrating into porous materials such as dry wall and wood. It stays on the outside surface, whereas mold has protected enzyme roots growing inside the porous construction materials. When you spray porous surface molds with bleach, the water part of the solution soaks into the wood while the bleach chemical sits atop the surface, gasses off, and thus only partially kills the surface layer of mold while the water penetration of the building materials fosters further mold growth.
Chlorine bleach causes long term breakdown of wood products like studs, sheathing, plywood, OSB, and other building materials over time.[Not to mention the damage it does to carpets, furniture, and clothing (inevitably ruining good clothing)]
Chlorine Bleach is NOT a registered EPA mold killing product.
You can verify it yourself when you are unable to find an EPA registration number for killing mold on the label of any brand of chlorine bleach. Why not? Because it is not effective at killing mold as other EPA approved chemicals.
University Study Discovers Bleach is Ineffective at Killing Mold on Wood and Other Porous Surfaces
"While bleach is often recommended for remediation of surface mold on wood and other porous surfaces, our [university research study] study results illustrate that the treatment does not eliminate the surface microflora," is the conclusion of the Oregon State University study of the effects of chlorine bleach on mold growth on Douglas fir wood [an important timber crop in the state of Oregon]. The research study was conducted by Professor Jeffrey Morrell, Dept. of Wood Science, Oregon State University, as assisted by Adam Taylor [graduate research assistant] and Camille Freitag [Senior Research Associate], as published in Forest Products Journal, 54:4, 2004.
What does the EPA have to say about using bleach to kill mold? "The use of chlorine bleach is not recommended as a routine practice during mold cleanup." from the www.epa.gov website
Is Black Mold or Toxic Mold Making You Sick? Find out now if you have Toxic Mold - To find out if you have a Black Mold problem, you must test your environment. Testing for Toxic Mold is easy, and a must for anyone who suspects the presence of toxic mold in their home, school or office.
JimSalmon.com can recommend Mold Remediation and Testing contractors - they are listed on our site. You can also click here for our Mold Assessment Unit!
What are the Top 2 Mycotoxins in the home?
Stachybotrys chartarum is cosmopolitan and grows naturally on straw and other cellulose containing materials in soil. In the indoor environment, this mould is commonly found together with Stachybotrys chlorohalonata on cellulose containing materials including paper, canvas and jute which are wetted to a water activity > 0.98. In a study conducted in Denmark, Stachybotrys chartarum was found to produce a number of mycotoxins inclduding macrocyclic trichothecenes, satratoxins and roridins when growing on building materials. 35% of the isolates from buildings produce SUPER TOXIC cytotoxic mycotoxins, the satratoxins. This led to the conclusion that idiopathic pulmonary hemosiderosis in infants is possibly not caused by satratoxins but by other S. chartarum mycotoxins. The optimum temperature for growth for Stachybotrys chartarum is 23 oC with a minimum and maximum temperature of 2 and 37 oC respectively.
Aspergillus flavus is widely distributed in soil. It is associated with a wide range of stored products such as maize and nuts. In indoor environment it is commonly found on damp walls, wallpaper, floor and carpet dust, tarred wooden flooring, humidifiers and HVAC fans, bakeries, shoes, leather, and bird droppings. Strains of this mold may produce aflatoxin, a class 1 carcinogen.
The minimum and maximum temperature for growth are 6 and 45 oC, with an optimum at 40 oC. The minimum water activity is 0.78 and an optimum at 0.98. There are over 1000 types of mold in the world and 200+ native to a home or office environment.
Only testing and analysis will allow you to be sure what strain and type of mold you are dealing with.
JimSalmon.com can recommend Mold Remediation and Testing contractors - they are listed on our site, and you can contact us!