As the weather gets warmer, the humidity rises, and more rainstorms pass through, it’s important to be watchful for mold growth in your home. Mold can present many serious health risks for residents, not to mention it’s unsafe for a home and can cause damage to wood and other materials.
Ensuring that the air in your home is purified can help improve the quality of your home, but while we know air purifiers can remove dust, can an air purifier remove mold?
What Is Mold And Why Is It Dangerous?
Mold is a form of fungi, though unlike a lot of fungi, mold tends to be small and dangerous. Mold can bond to practically any surface and it reproduces quickly. That’s a big reason why having mold in your home is so dangerous since it can spread fast and take over before you know it, causing damage to your health, home, and wallet.
Mold in general is a huge part of having a healthy outdoor environment since it plays a massive role in the break-down of organic substances. This is helpful for recycling and removing dead things, but when mold spores get into our home, become airborne and are inhaled, they present serious health concerns. Mold in your home can cause mild to severe allergic reactions, or even death.
While mold is a normal part of our world, it’s undesirable in a home. It only needs moisture to grow, and since there are so many different areas of the home that create moisture, there are many opportunities for mold to persist in a home.
How Does Mold Grow In A Home?
Mold thrives in a wet, moist, or humid environment, so anywhere in your home that presents moisture is susceptible to mold growth. Here are several points that could be the cause of mold growth in your home.
Condensation
After a gas matter transforms into its liquid form, it will wet a surface (such as a wall, ceiling, or floor) and then remain wet for a period of time. That moist spot becomes the perfect invitation for mold growth.
Leaks
Water leaks are a problem in and of themselves, but they are also a huge problem in the area of mold growth. If the leak isn’t noticed and immediately resolved, the pool of water becomes a feeding ground for mold spores. The longer it is left unaddressed, the worse the mold situation could become.
Poor Air Circulation
Keeping your home clean and the moisture levels balanced is one of the best ways to prevent mold growth. If there is bad air circulation in your home, then moist or humid areas won’t be able to get the ventilation they need, making it easier for mold to grow.
Where Does Mold Grow In A Home?
Think of mold spores as dandelion seed: the dry mold spores float through the air, even into a building, and grow when they’re able to land in a place with a high humidity level. Once they’re able to do that, they grow, repopulate, and spread more spores. Here are a few places in your home to check regularly for mold growth:
Bathrooms
Look in and around your bathroom for signs of mold, especially in the shower or bathtub, toilet, and sink. Since everyone in your home likely takes showers, uses the toilet, and washes their hands, the repeated use creates one of the dampest areas of the home. Mold spores can thrive here, and it’s not always around the cracks of the tiling. Check your shampoo bottles, washcloths, shower curtain, shower head, toilet, under the sink, and more for mold. Be sure to check the walls and ceiling (especially above the shower) for signs of mold.
Kitchen
A lot of moisture is created in the kitchen, and this goes beyond the kitchen sink. The dishwasher, refrigerator, and even oven and stove create moisture and invite mold to grow. Try not to let dirty dishes pile up, clean up water spills around and behind the sink, get rid of old smelly sponges, and pay close attention to anything else that could invite mold growth.
Bedrooms
You’d be surprised at how easily mold can grow in your bedroom. Do you hang your towel up to dry there? Do you have potted plants? Does your room have windows? Do you drink water on your mattress ever and spill? Any of these things are capable of creating excess moisture and inviting mold growth. Check them regularly to prevent mold growth in your bedroom.
Other Areas
Be sure to check your air vents, couches, curtains, fireplace and chimney, attic, garage, basement, laundry room, and anywhere else you can think of where moisture might be.
Can An Air Purifier Remove Mold?
So, does an air purifier remove mold? Yes, an air purifier can remove mold spores from your home’s air and they do a much better job than most air scrubbers.
To remove mold spores, an air purifier must have a HEPA filter to trap airborne mold spores and prevent them from reentering the home, an Activated Carbon filter to eliminate mold odor, and a germicidal UV-C light to eliminate mold spore reproduction.
But if you’re interested in an air scrubber, we’re offering air scrubber installations for $1,295.
What’s The Best Air Purifier To Remove Mold?
The Air Knight UV whole house air purifier is one of the best air purifiers that does remove mold spores and may work for your air purification needs. However, the better question is “can air purifiers remove mold spores?”
Keep in mind that an air purifier won’t necessarily remove the presence of mold once it’s grown, but air purifiers can remove mold spores and prevent the growth of more mold in the future. Finding the best air purifier for you and your home depends a lot on your current needs, budget, and goals. Check with the air purifier experts at John C. Flood for answers to all your installation questions.
Looking for an Air Purifier that Removes Mold?
With more than 115 years of expertise, the John C. Flood team is committed to ensuring your indoor air quality is free of mold spores To install a whole-home air purifier or learn more information call 703-214-5611 now.
