How to get rid of mold in the house? Some proven tips

Even if your basement appears clean and dry, mold can grow in hidden areas of the basement, behind false walls and under decorative flooring, causing damage to your home and your health. Mold is a fungus that grows in damp areas, both indoors and outdoors. It reproduces by dispersing mold spores, which then spread not only in the basement, but throughout the house, through vents, windows and doors. They can also be attached to clothing and accessories.

Mold growing in basements and other parts of your home can cause illnesses, allergies and infections of various types, which is why it is extremely important not only to detect it, but also to prevent it from appearing again.

Why do the corners of my house get moldy?

• the presence of external cracks leads to moisture penetration deep into the wall, mold comes out in the corners of the interior;
• non-compliance with thermal insulation of walls;
• lack of exhaust hood in the bathroom and kitchen; insufficient ventilation and heating of the premises;
• mold in the corner of a panel house appears due to holes in the concrete floors.

How to get rid of mold in the corners of an apartment? Of course, it is difficult to clean the corners well, but in this case, available tools will help, for example, a soft sponge, toothbrush, washcloth or even a piece of gauze. With their help, you can try to deliver the disinfectant to a hard-to-reach place.

The ideal option for treating corners is to spray them with a spray bottle, that is, the solution is injected into the very corner and you can be sure that the antiseptic will achieve its purpose and all the fungus will be destroyed.

How to treat mold in the corners of the house? Both folk remedies and potent solutions are suitable as a remedy for fungus. Read more about them below. And to easily clean a corner from a disinfectant, it is enough to also spray a large amount of water, which will wash away the detergent along with mold residues.

After treatment, the corner should be thoroughly dried. In summer this will happen naturally and quite quickly, but in cool weather you can help the process by additionally heating the room or using a hairdryer.

How to deal with mold in a private home? A private house has several additional factors for the development of fungus - a damp attic, flooding in the basement. In this case, improve the insulation of the ceiling and floor joists, especially in the corners. Also make sure that the roof is well waterproofed, and carefully seal all the cracks in the basement, cellar or basement, otherwise the risk of groundwater leakage increases significantly.

How to get rid of mold in a panel house? The main reason for the appearance of fungal colonies in the living quarters of a panel house is insufficient insulation of panel floors, too thin walls, and insufficient heating. We recommend taking certain measures to additionally insulate the walls.

What is mold?

Mold is a type of fungus that grows in multicellular structures called hyphae. These hyphae produce mold spores that are found indoors and outdoors. Although mold spores are found everywhere, they require moisture to grow. Therefore, mildew and mold can be especially common in underground or basement areas. There are thousands of different types of mold, all of which are harmful to both the building and the person.

A few basic facts about mold:

• Mold is a fungus.
• Mold grows on concrete, wood, fabric, plaster, drywall, floors, ceilings, soil, plants and food.
• Mold produces microscopic spores that germinate where moisture has accumulated.
• Mold growth threatens the structural integrity of a building.
• Exposure to mold can lead to serious health problems.

Individual colonies of fungi and spores are very small and cannot be seen without a microscope, but once a colony of mold appears, it can form visible spots on various surfaces and locations. Mold typically comes in the following colors: black, blue or green. Its color is determined by various factors such as type, nutrient source, age of the colony, etc. Of all the types of mold, black mold (officially called Stachybotrys) is considered the most harmful to the health of living things.

The type of mold will determine the remediation method.

Mold

Various types of mold

Unfortunately, not all types are the same, but we can roughly divide them into 3 main ones:

1. Allergenic – This type of mold is the least harmful of all types of mold; however, it can cause problems for people with mold allergies or asthma. Allergenic mold is usually not life-threatening.
2. Pathogenic – This species is often harmful not only to people with asthma or mold allergies, but also to healthy people. For example, this type of mold can cause hypersensitivity pneumonitis, which resembles bacterial pneumonia.
3. Toxigenic Mold – This type of mold can actually cause serious health problems, both temporary (eye irritation or coughing) and permanent (such as immunosuppression, neurological disorders or cancer). Toxigenic mold produces mycotoxins, a toxic chemical present within or on the surface of the mold spore that can be inhaled, ingested, or touched.

Why is black mold dangerous in the house?

So, when the walls, floor, and ceiling are affected by black mold, unpleasant dark spots appear in the corners of the room, which gradually take over more and more territories. If measures are not taken to remove it in a timely manner, the wallpaper begins to peel off, the wooden parts of the interior rot, the paint falls off in whole pieces, even concrete floors can crumble and become unusable.

Aspergillus nigra spores (black mold fungus) are one of the possible causes of the development or exacerbation of diseases such as:

• myocarditis;
• rhinitis (allergic);
• meningitis;
• asthma;
• pneumonia.

When contaminated air is inhaled, the fungus enters the respiratory system and enters the bloodstream through the lungs. The blood vessels carry the spores throughout the body. A weakened immune system reacts to mold with symptoms of severe intoxication.

What types are there and why are they dangerous?

Another fact that you need to know in order to remove mold from the walls is its type. The most common are:

1. Black mold. The affected areas are covered with dark spores of various sizes: these are the ones most often found in residential areas. The Aspergillius Niger fungus feeds on organic matter and thrives in high humidity: it can grow on plaster, brick, concrete, wallpaper, even on plastic panels.
2. Green mold. Penicillium not only loves bread and other food products; its spores can often be found on plastered, painted surfaces.
3. Blue mold. The most dangerous for natural wood and particleboard materials (chipboard, laminated chipboard, fiberboard). Most often found in wooden houses.
4. House mushroom. Another pest of log houses differs from previous species not only in appearance, but also in impact. Serpula lacrymans is aggressive - by destroying wood from the inside it can destroy the structure itself.

If you think that mold removal can wait, we are in a hurry to convince you otherwise. Removing mold from the walls of an apartment is necessary not only to restore an aesthetic appearance, but also to take care of the health of household members. After all, constant inhalation of microorganisms leads to many unpleasant diseases - allergies or even asthma.

Reducing humidity

If walls often get wet in interior rooms with high moisture (bathhouse, bathroom), then the problem is most likely in the ventilation system. Therefore, first of all, you should check the ventilation openings for the presence of unnecessary objects that may interfere with air circulation.

It’s easy to check how clogged the ventilation channels are: hold a burning candle to the vent and watch how the flame reacts: if it reaches towards the grate, then the channels are not clogged and there is a draft. When there is no flame response to ventilation, additional devices need to be installed in order to establish air circulation.

When the holes are not clogged, but the draft is still weak, additional slots can be made at the bottom of the door for air intake. If this does not help, a forced exhaust is installed in the ventilation duct. Such fans are turned on only when there are no people in the room, as they can seriously harm your health.

Experts advise installing fans with a built-in humidity controller in the bathroom. When humidity rises, the fan operates automatically, eliminating air oversaturated with dampness.

Fungus under the wallpaper, how to remove mold from wallpaper

If mold has formed on the wallpaper or under the wallpaper, it is necessary to clean its surface from black spots and stains using one of the solutions:

• 1-2 tbsp. spoons of whiteness, 30-50 g of washing powder, 3 liters of water;
• 100 g of laundry soap, 100 g of soda, 5 liters of water.

Using sponges and rags, we clean the walls and dry them using a household heater or hairdryer, then apply an antifungal drug, for example, furatsilin or nystatin (4-6 tablets are diluted in a small amount of hot water, then another 3 liters of cool water is added).

Everything is done carefully so that the wallpaper does not get wet or tear. Most often, this makes it possible to remove the fungus for a while, but then the problem will arise again. The method is suitable if there is no opportunity or time to immediately deal with the causes of dampness and mold in the apartment. In severe cases, you will definitely have to remove the damaged wallpaper and even rip off the plaster.

How to get rid of dampness on walls

In order to kill fungus on the walls once and for all, you need to determine the cause of its appearance. Once you have located the affected areas, moisten them with water. This is necessary to prevent further spread of spores.

All mold removal work must be carried out wearing protective gloves and a respirator.

Next, special chemical and biological preparations are applied to the moldy areas to destroy the mold. All surfaces must be treated. This is done at least 2-3 times with breaks for each layer to dry completely. As a rule, follow the instructions for use of the drug.

Take a metal brush, scraper, spatula and clean the surface of the fungus. During the cleaning process, the layer of finishing material is removed and scraped out to the entire depth of penetration of the fungus. Wooden and stone surfaces are also treated.

If a material or individual structural element is unsuitable, it is completely replaced. The affected fragments are burned, and the walls are dried and treated with durable protective drugs and coatings.

How to get rid of fungus in an apartment - video

Cleanliness of ventilation grilles and ducts.

Ventilation duct grilles in apartments or houses must always be kept clean and tidy. This is necessary for the unimpeded movement of air exchange flows in the room through them.

What is important here is, first of all, timely, at least 2 times a year, cleaning of ventilation grilles and ducts mechanically to remove dust and dirt that has settled there.

Processing protection measures

To protect yourself from the harmful effects of the products used, as well as the fungus itself, you should prepare for the procedure in advance:

• wear gloves, goggles, a respirator;
• Use a rag, sponge, sandpaper, brush, water container, or garbage bag while working.

When using any product described in the publication, be extremely careful not to spread mold spores throughout the house and prevent re-contamination of surfaces.

Causes of fungus

In order for mold to appear on the walls of a house, fungal spores need a trigger, which consists of 2 factors:

• high humidity;
• poor air circulation.

In an excessively humid environment with insufficient ventilation, spores settle on surfaces and begin to create their own colony.

There are many causes for takeoff conditions, including:

• closed windows, doors;
• mess;
• condensation;
• pipe and sewer leaks;
• abundance of moisture-loving plants;
• poor heating;
• poor-quality repairs (without antifungal coating);
• frequent rains, flooding by neighbors or leaks from the roof.

Sometimes one reason or a combination of several reasons may be sufficient.

Base for laying tiles

When covering the walls and surfaces of showers, bathrooms and swimming pool rooms with ceramic tiles, experts recommend using moisture-resistant gypsum boards (GCP) as the basis for this.

Moisture-resistant gypsum boards differ from ordinary plasterboard boards in that they contain antifungal and hydrophobic special additives.

How to determine the presence of fungus

A bluish-green fungus can appear on wood materials, fiberboard, and chipboard.

In cases where visible mold spots have not yet appeared or are hidden (behind furniture, under wallpaper), a symptom may be the presence of settled mold spores:

• specific musty smell;
• increased incidence of respiratory diseases,
• the occurrence of allergic reactions in residents.

Recommendation! The quality of your home is worth checking through a chemical air analysis, environmental impact assessment, or home inspection. To do this, contact a specialized disinfection service or a chemical laboratory.

Home remedies to combat fungus and dampness indoors

There are many industrial compositions for combating fungus, and how to choose them and how to use them, check with specialists. We offer inexpensive, but quite effective home-made products made from scrap materials:

• Bleach will eliminate almost all types of fungi along with their spores. We must remember that under its influence some things may deteriorate. To treat the surface, use a mixture consisting of 10 parts water and 1 part bleach.
• Hydrogen peroxide 3% solution, which is applied to moldy surfaces by spraying, and after 10 minutes of exposure, all covered areas are thoroughly cleaned mechanically.
• Vinegar and soda: the affected areas are first covered with a layer of dry baking soda, and then filled with vinegar. At the end of the chemical reaction, all defects can be easily removed or washed off with water.
• A mixture of water and laundry soap can also act as a natural antiseptic and be used to combat mold.
• Tea tree oil, as well as soap solution, is used for minor problems. The method is to apply a mixture of oil and water in a ratio of 1:50 with a spray bottle and leave to dry naturally.

Types of black mold

Several types (strains) of mold grow especially freely in homes, each of which turns black at a certain stage of its development. Therefore, the name “black mold” is collective.

Table: black mold strains and their potential dangers

Drying clothes

To avoid dampness in your home or apartment, do not dry your washed clothes in a room where the ventilation is poor and the heating is low.

If there is still a need to dry clothes in the house, then this drying place should be well heated and located near places with exhaust ventilation.

How to remove the smell of mold?

After the house has been cleaned of fungus, an unpleasant musty smell may remain. You can often deal with it indoors using ventilation: open all windows and doors wide, create additional air movement by turning on hoods and fans.

If the smell persists, try the following:

• You can sprinkle baking soda in an even layer on horizontal surfaces, as it absorbs odors perfectly. After a few hours it needs to be collected;
• You can place containers with activated carbon in the room and leave them for a day;
• the source of the unpleasant odor can be wiped with a solution consisting of table vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, boric acid and clean water in a ratio of 2:2:1:4.

Fungus on the floor and mold under linoleum, laminate

Often unwanted moisture accumulates under linoleum. It is there that all the conditions are created for the development of mold, which is almost impossible to get rid of completely and the coating has to be changed.

In this case, it is advisable to observe the following:

• Under no circumstances should old materials be laid on floors affected by mold.
• The fungus often spreads to the walls, so you should cut off the lower part of the wallpaper adjacent to the baseboards;
• When installing a new coating, it must be treated with antifungal drugs.

Some nuances of sealing joints

If the tightness of the seams is broken and cracks appear in the walls, the corners in the room begin to become damp. In this state of affairs, there is only one way out: the waterproofing of the joints between the panels needs to be repaired, and microcracks in the walls need to be repaired.

After high-quality sealing, the walls should not gain moisture. They can become damp and leak only when the technology for sealing the seams is broken.

The main mistakes are applying sealant without prior repair or using a low-quality sealant.

This should also be taken into account: if waterproofing of joints is carried out in one apartment, and not in the whole house, then the problem of dampness will not disappear. Moisture will penetrate into poorly sealed seams in an apartment on the floor above or on the technical floor, so although more slowly, it will find its way into the desired room.