Service Your HVAC To Prevent Mold In Your Home In Springfield Missouri
When mold growth occurs inside a home, most people immediately assume there is some kind of water leak. A busted pipe, leaky refrigerator, hole in the roof, etc. Those assumptions can be accurate in a lot of circumstances, but not always. What if you are dealing with a difficult to diagnose moisture problem? Consider the invisible mold producer called humidity.
Most people don’t realize it, but high humidity inside your home can cause mold growth. When your indoor humidity starts getting above 55%, there is enough moisture present to allow mold to grow and colonize.
One of the common signs of mold growth caused by high humidity is when you start seeing white, fuzzy mold growing up the bottom of your wooden furniture. It starts low and works its way up. Wooden chair and dining room table legs are notorious for easily spotted mold growth. Shine a flashlight on them and if you see that white, fuzzy stuff growing, then you may have a humidity problem.
The majority of times you see that white, fuzzy mold growth on wooden items throughout the home, it’s Penicillium/Aspergillus. Most commonly found growing inside a home when there’s high humidity. It commonly grows on wood items throughout the home, but shine a flashlight at the right angle on your walls and you may see it growing there as well.
Go inside a home that has been vacant for a couple of months and you’ll see exactly the mold growth we are talking about. A vacant home usually has no HVAC running and no air circulation and the humidity gets high really quick.
So, how do you fix a humidity problem that is causing mold in your home in Springfield Missouri? The first thing to check is making sure your HVAC system is running properly. It may be wise to have an HVAC technician check your unit every year or two, to make sure it’s working at max capacity. Definitely once a year if you have an older unit. Your HVAC can help keep the humidity down throughout your home.
If you run your HVAC consistently and the humidity is still high in your home, then you definitely want to get your HVAC checked out by a professional. If your HVAC system is working properly and you still have high humidity, then you are going to need to get a dehumidifier and run it in your home.
Indoor humidity levels should be between 35%-55% and you don’t want them creeping any higher than that. Anything above 55% and you are asking for that unwanted mold in your home, where it does not belong.
There are other things you can do to keep the humidity down, such as running your exhaust fans when taking showers, turning on the exhaust when cooking on the stove, and having properly vented areas around your bathrooms, kitchen, and laundry room. But you should also make sure your HVAC system is functioning properly to help keep your indoor humidity down.
If mold growth has already started, it feels a little muggy inside the home from time to time, and you can’t find another reason like a water leak for moisture to be present, then it’s most likely high humidity.
Take care of your high humidity before it starts causing issues. Call Dog Gone Mold for your moisture and mold prevention needs.