Mold Cleaning Products

Confused About Mold Cleaning Products?

When I first started 25 years ago in the mold removal business as a mold removal or what is known professionally as a mold remediation contractor. There are so many mold removal products and mold killing products, honestly if I weren’t a mold removal contractor I would be confused as well.

Let’s review, examine and understand the mold cleaning products that are available. Due to legal reasons, mold cleaning and mold kill product brand names will not be mentioned. Use the information below as a guide when reading the mold removal products that you see on internet and in the stores.

Bleach and mold- Yes bleach the well known go to mold cleaning product that almost all homes and businesses have. You and everyone else in North America ( maybe everywhere else ) automatically and naturally believes from your mother that if you want to kill mold, bacteria and any other “ bug “ on non porous surfaces, use bleach.

Although most mold products will destroy mold colonies here is one issue that you should investigate before using bleach when cleaning up mold growth. If you read the labels on most bleach containers you will notice that they claim that the product works on hard non porous surfaces. By making this statement , it leaves many other surfaces in question. Surfaces like wood, drywall, and concrete are porous surfaces and therefore not included in many bleach products promises to kill and clean mold. Well if you think about it mold grows mostly on non porous surfaces like drywall and wood ( wood wall studs ). The other issue you need to think about is that mold has roots that will grow into drywall and wood surfaces. Will bleach get to the roots of the mold? I don’t know the exact answer to that question, but most bleach products probably won’t back up that their products will kill the roots. Without the ability to get to the roots of the mold, using bleach may be a waste of time.

Is your mold cleaning product EPA approved: One of the reasons you pay taxes, is to expect the government to protect you and your loved ones. Why would you use a mold removal or mold killing product that’s not EPA approved to be safe for humans and designed for the purpose it was sold for. Now please remember that just because the EPA approves any product doesn’t mean that it’s the best product and you should buy it. The EPA is just there to make sure that companies don’t sell cough medicine to kill mold. Here is a section from the EPA web site that may clarify what I mean,

“ Antimicrobial pesticides are substances or mixtures of substances used to destroy or suppress the growth of harmful microorganisms whether bacteria, viruses, or fungi on inanimate objects and surfaces. Antimicrobial products contain about 275 different active ingredients and are marketed in several formulations: sprays, liquids, concentrated powders, and gases.

Today, approximately one billion dollars each year are spent on a variety of different types of antimicrobial products. More than 5000 antimicrobial products are currently registered with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and sold in the marketplace. Nearly 60% of antimicrobial products are registered to control infectious microorganisms in hospitals and other health care environments. “

If you are looking for the best product in my unbiased opinion ( remember I am a mold removal and mold remediation contractor and I don’t sell products ), I would look for the 60% of the EPA approved products that are used in health care environments.

“ Ok, let’s say I find the best mold cleaning or mold killing product and it still doesn’t work and the mold keeps coming back- Good question and a very popular response. Let’s think about this.

You see what looks like it could be mold and you take out the chemicals and spray. You decide to wait for the chemical to do it’s thing and hang out for 5 minutes ( most users start cleaning right away and that’s not how most mold removal products are designed ). As you clean you notice that the mold has disappeared with maybe some mold staining left behind. Days later you see mold reappear. Here are the reasons:

• Mold spores are always in your home, even in the cleanest hospitals . Once moisture comes back in the form of high humidity, water leaks and bathrooms in general, mold will start to grow.

• Mold roots- Cleaning the surface with any mold removal product, only cleans the surface and maybe a little beneath. The roots are still there ready to continue growing.

The best way to solve the mold issue is to remove the food source and the moisture issue when you see mold. If it’s on drywall, then remove the drywall and make sure that every possible inch is completely dry. If you are in the bathroom, I would suggest keeping the bathroom clean frequently. Soap scum and dirt from your loved ones, is a food source that mold colonies love. Add the normal moisture and the heat and you have the perfect mold growth room.

Please understand that when you clean and remove mold effected materials ( drywall, wood, etc. ) you will be dispersing the mold spores into the air and onto other parts of the room to again start mold growth. The only way to correctly remove mold without spreading it to the remaining parts of the house is to have a certified mold remediator remove the mold using IICRC S520 guidelines.