Some climates are just more susceptible to mold growth. It doesn’t matter if your house is always clean. It doesn’t matter if your house is old or new. It doesn’t matter if you’ve never had a problem with mold in the past.
In other words, it can happen to anyone. And in certain places, dealing with a mold problem is basically a right of passage for homeowners.
But that doesn’t mean that there aren’t things that you can do prevent mold growth in your home. Actually, there are quite a few changes that you can make, some small and some more intensive, that will reduce your risk for the development of a mold problem.
Before We Begin, Some Mold Basics
If you’ve been following our blog, you probably know by now that mold exists all around us. These small spores float around in the air until they find just the right environment to settle down and take root. That environment includes humidity and organic matter, although things like heat can also encourage the development of a colony.
The preventative measures on this list, then, have to do with limiting mold’s access to the key ingredients it needs to survive and thrive. As you’ll see, sometimes it’s easy to disrupt the infestation. Other times, you’ll need to be a bit more involved.
So, Let’s Start Small
These are tips that you can incorporate into your daily routine that will have tremendous impacts on mold’s ability to take root:
Keep and eye on humidity levels
There’s plenty of technology out there that you can use to track humidity in your house as well as outside. These apps and devices are great for deciding whether it’s a good day to open the windows and get a cool breeze or if you’re better off shutting the house up and turning on a dehumidifier. By keeping the humidity in your house below 60%, you can reduce the risk of mold growth.Open windows
Natural airflow is a great way to release trapped moisture and increase ventilation. This is especially important in high-humidity rooms of your house like the bathroom, laundry room, and kitchen.Natural light is powerful
As much as you can, open the blinds and let the light in. Mold colonies survive best in cool, dark, damp places, so bathing your house in sunshine is a surefire way to prevent mold growth.Wipe down any standing water
This could be on the shower walls and mirrors after you shower, or on the kitchen counter after you wash dishes.Never forget those ventilation fans, or really, any fans
Whether you’re boiling water for tea or will only be in the bathroom for a few minutes, it’s a good idea to turn on any ventilation fans you have in your house. Or, if you have other fans, like ceiling fans or swamp coolers, you can turn those on during especially humid seasons.Check for standing water
It’s a good idea to get in the habit of checking for standing water in places that you normally wouldn’t look. Underneath plants, for instance, in windowsills, under the fridge, etc. Just keep an eye out. And, you can also take a peak at the pipes under your sinks to make sure nothing is dripping.Pay attention to damp clothing
When doing laundry, you shouldn’t allow damp clothes to sit in the washer. And, if you hang your clothes to dry, make sure they’re being hung up outside.
Considering some bigger projects? Make them mold-proof!
If you’re ready to take on more intensive home-improvement projects around the house, here are a few things that you can do to prevent mold growth:
When planning anything, make sure to invest in mold-resistant materials
For most of the projects listed below, you’ll find mold-resistant versions of the materials you need.Check and, if necessary, replace your insulation
Insulation is a popular feeding ground for mold because there is plenty of food and no ventilation. So, you can make sure to check for any discoloration and, if your insulation isn’t mold-resistant, replace it completely.Improve drainage on the outside of your home
If you live in a particularly rainy part of the country, you know how valuable gutters are to preventing water from entering the home. That said, they need to be checked periodically and sometimes replaced. Make sure that your drainage system is channeling water away from your home as much as possible.If you’re planning a landscaping project, be strategic about water
Make sure there’s a buffer of space between your garden and your home so that watering your plants doesn’t lead to water leaking into the house. Experts also suggest, if possible, to slope outdoor spaces away from the house. That way, during rainy seasons, the water won’t be tempted to pool in your basement.Speaking of basements, give yours some attention
Basements are one of those high-risk rooms, so make it your focus. You can start by ripping out any carpet if you have it, and replacing it with removable rugs, or better yet, leaving the floor bare. You can also invest in a sump pump to ensure that any water that does get into your basement is drained off quickly. Some homeowners decide to give their basements a finished look, but we would discourage this. Drywall is a prime food source for mold, which isn’t great in a room that is already dark and damp.
Dealing With Spills, Leaks, or Other Disasters
Often, when something significant happens in the house like a burst water pipe or water damage after the fire department was called in to put out a fire, we think more about dealing with the event than we do about possible long-term damage. Here are some things to do in the wake of a more serious situation:
Remove water-damaged furniture from the scene
If you feel that you can salvage water-logged furniture, try putting it out on the back patio, driveway, or garage to dry. If it’s not savable, get rid of it quickly. This will allow you to tackle the floor without anything in the way.Bring in the shop vac, quickly
Even if the flooding wasn’t too severe, mold can take root and start to grow within 24 hours of a major incident in your home. It’s important to get ahead of it by removing all water from the floors with the heavy-duty equipment. You can do this either by renting a wet vac or calling in some professionals.Don’t forget the heavy-duty fans
Unfortunately, even your more powerful revolving fans aren’t going to cut it for a serious water leak in your home. You’ll most likely need to use the powerful fans used for carpet cleaning and probably a dehumidifier to fully deal with the problem.Check the area even after it seems dry
Even if your carpet and walls may feel dry to the touch, there could still be moisture trapped under the surface. To make sure that you don’t have mold growth, it’s important to check the area for visible signs in the following days or weeks after the flood. Or, you can call in a mold tester within a few weeks of the incident to check for mold growth, just to be sure.
How to Prevent Mold Growth - The Takeaways
Clearly, there are a lot of things you can do to prevent mold growth in your home. Some are on the smaller scale and can be done daily or weekly. Others will take some more time but should be considered extremely valuable because they can save you time and stress later on. Most homeowners make sure that they take on at least one mold-prevention project per season to spread out the work while also committing to continually reducing the risk for mold growth.
And, of course, for more pressing situations like flooding or natural disasters, it’s important to act quickly and remove the threat before mold becomes another problem to deal with. The warning signs of mold are usually pretty easy to spot, so as long as you stay on top of it, you should be able to prevent mold with ease.
We hope that you find these steps to a mold-free home accessible and simple. After all, even if you live in the perfect conditions for mold growth, there are many things you can do to prevent a full-blown problem.