To find out what type of infestation you're dealing with, how widespread it is, what your best remediation options and approaches should be, and what type of protection and containment is indicated when cleaning and removing mold and mildew, the smartest first step is to do some mold testing like the professionals do before they attempt any clean up.

Choose from:

• E-Z Mold Test Kit
• E-Z Mold Test Kit with Lab Analysis

Why and How To Test For Mold

There are more than a million different species of fungi across the world. Molds themselves come in many colors, ranging the full length of the spectrum. While Aureobasidium can be pale yellow or pink, Chaetomium is usually gray or olive colored, and Stachybotrys appears dark brown or black. In texture they can range from silky or velvety to slimy or cottony. Also, depending upon the food source that’s sustaining it, their colors and textures may vary; therefore, the only possible way to be absolutely sure just what type of mold one has is to have a laboratory analyze a sample of the growth under a microscope.

Mold testing is an important beginning and ending step to the remediation and cleaning process.In many cases it’s important to know what type of fungi one has just to know if it’s safe to remain living or working in the house or building. Some heavier infestations can be severe allergy problems for residents even if you don't have toxic mold.Health wise, it’s always in one’s favor to know just what species of fungi they’re dealing with. This applies to pretty much everybody; one doesn’t have to live in an unhealthy environment!

When actually performing remediation (killing, cleaning, and prevention), testing takes on several other levels of importance. Swab tests can tell the type of fungi, whether mold spores have landed on certain surfaces where they haven’t started to grow yet.Air testing can give one the facts about what spores are contaminating the air, and what rooms or other areas are contaminated. Testing can allow one to understand the full scope of an infestation, and thus shed light upon the possible cost of a full scale remediation project, if it’s needed.

Mold testing is essential; there’s no point in cleaning one section of a building and stopping when spores may contaminate the air of another room. A musty, damp, moldy smell should suggest that physical growth is present somewhere in the building, and should thus be located in order to be killed and cleaned.

Testing can also help to locate the source of the moisture problem or the mold growth.