The importance of protecting yourself from exposure during mold cleaning, removal and remediation cannot be overstated.

Exposure to living or dead fungi and their spores (seeds) can cause a variety of health problems, and if you're dealing with toxic mold, the problems can get very serious.

Before attempting to test, clean or remove any type of mold, make sure you are wearing personal protective equipment.

Trask Research researched the marketplace to bring you the best and safest personal protection equipment for mold remediation safety:

• P-100 Half Mask Respirator - Protects against particulates (dust, mold spores). Trask Research’s basic P100 is the North Safety brand 5500 half mask with two P100 filters. This is the absolute minimum of respiratory protection which should be worn when operating inside an area that’s contaminated with mold spores.
• Full Mask P-100 Respirator as approved by the EPA - This is the same North Safety 5500 half mask, but it comes accompanied with much stronger filter cartridges. They’re P100 so they’ll protect against spores, but they’re also excellent protection against many chemical fumes. They’re designed to protect against the fumes of Borate and Quat based fungicides, among others. Whenever spraying or fogging indoors with chemicals this is the respirator that’s required. This is the ultimate protection as far as respirators go. With a full face respirator you won’t need to worry about wearing goggles and you can be sure that neither mold spores nor chemical fumes will get into the eyes, nose or mouth. A full face respirator is strongly recommended when doing mold remediation indoors in any small or poorly ventilated places.
• Respirator Replacement Cartridges
• Safety Goggles - If you’re not wearing a full face respirator, then goggles are essential. Excessive exposure to mold spores can turn eyes red and itchy, possibly leading to infection. Never enter an area infested with spores without full eye protection.
• Safety Protective Coveralls with Hood (Large) - It’s important to limit skin exposure to mold and mold spores on your skin, body, hair, etc.
• Safety Gloves - Imperative when working with mold or chemicals is either rubber or nitrile gloves. Certain species of mold can cause different types of dermatitis, and thousands of species are capable of causing infections.

Using personal protective equipment is the most important step in any mold remediation project. It's much more important to be safe than sorry.