Is Mold in Your Buffalo Grove Home a Side Effect of Winter Colds and Flu?

1/16/2019 (Permalink)

Added humidity in your home increases the chance of mold growth.

Winter Flu And Colds And Their Connection to Lake Zurich Mold Damage

In the Lake Zurich region, we close up our homes against the wintry blasts, keeping things warm and cozy inside. This practice, plus the occasional influx of cold, dry outdoor air, can reduce indoor humidity to desert-like levels. Adding moisture to the air through humidifiers, free-standing or built into the HVAC system, is a common practice. A balance should be struck to make sure the increase in water vapor does not promote mold growth.

Health care practitioners sometimes unwittingly spur mold damage in Lake Zurich when they suggest a vaporizer in your home. Young children or the elderly struggling with a cold or influenza can gain relief from symptoms when the humidity increases. Unfortunately, a spike in humidity levels might be enough to cause the invisible mold spores always on surfaces or in the air to grow and multiply. If the balance tips, our mold remediation crew can respond and help restore the equilibrium.

SERVPRO IICRC-trained technicians know what can stun a loving caregiver. The moist air from a vaporizer or humidifier eases a cough or sniffle as it feeds a microbial outbreak. We can remediate the mold outbreak and share with you the humidity readings that allow for comfort while avoiding mold growth -- experts advise a range from 30 to no more than 45 to 50 percent.

Our experienced remediation crew realizes you need fast and reliable help for this unintended consequence. We work with you, so you understand our EPA-developed methods. First, we contain the mold-afflicted area, using physical barriers or an air scrubber that seals the space with negative pressure and vents the contaminated air through filters outside. SERVPRO technicians ensure the safety of your family and themselves by wearing personal protective gear, preventing the tracking of moldy debris through other rooms of your home.

We use proven techniques to remove the mold entirely by scraping and brushing off nonporous surfaces. Methods such as soda blasting immobilize the mold growth and clear the residue from porous materials. SERVPRO crews bag up the debris and discard according to local hazardous waste regulations. Then we move on to disinfection with EPA-registered antimicrobials to inhibit rebound mold growth.

SERVPRO of Buffalo Grove / Lake Zurich is familiar with the stress of mold damage in a home, made even more troubling when the homeowner might feel personal error might be the cause. Give us a call at (847) 279-1940 for an evaluation and remediation plan.

Buffalo Grove was first settled by New Englanders in the 1840’s.  Read more here.