Household Mold

Whenever I think of mold I think of old bread with green fuzz growing on it or black mold growing on drywall that had been exposed to moisture and not properly dried. Mold is not all bad though, cheese is a type of mold and it's tasty and safe to eat.

Image from: Piak's Mold Botany Photos by: Boo. Datum March 25, 2005

Mold comes in a variety of colours including white, grey, green, brown, black, and everything in between. Some molds can be different colours even if they are the same species.  There are over 270 species of mold know to be living in Canadian homes. Seven common types of household mold include Cladosporium, Aspergillus, Penicillium, Ulocladium, Acremonium, Stachybotrys ('stack-ee-bot-riss'), and Alternaria. Effluorescence is the name of substance that is often mistaken for mold but is actually precipitate salts coming out of concrete after the concrete has been exposed to moisture.

"Mold: informal term for a fungus that grows as a filamentous fungus, producing haploid spores by mitosis and forming a visible mycelium" (Campbell et al, 2008, p. 637).

Mold spores that are released can change the air quality of an environment as they can be inhaled or come into contact with our skin. Mold is reported to be associated with respiratory health concerns.

There are 3 hazard classes of molds that group them into their associated health risks. Hazard Class A consists of molds that are "directly hazardous to health due to risk of infection or creation of toxins." Hazard Class B molds may cause some allergy symptoms over prolonged periods of time. Hazard Class C molds are molds that are not often associated with health concerns but can cause structural damage on the material that they are growing on. All molds in these classification systems should be  removed from your home as they can cause negative health effects and structural damage.

If you find mold in your home or workplace the safest thing to do is call a mold removal company who will safely and quickly remove the mold. If you find a small amount of mold growing in your home or workplace that you feel you can remove yourself, here is an informative video of how to remove small amounts of non-toxic mold safely.

Reference cited:

Campbell, N.A., Reece, J.B., Urry, L.A., Cain, M.L.. Wassermann, S.A., Minorsky, P.V., Jackson, R.B. (2008). Biology (8th edition). San Fransisco, California: Pearson Education, Inc. 639