6 Common Types of Mold in Your Home

TYPES OF MOLD & HOW THEY ARE AFFECTING YOUR HOME

Mold is present all around us. Some forms pose no threat to humans, while others like the dreaded black mold can cause serious health effects like chronic fatigue or coughing. It’s essential to always be on the lookout for mold to protect the health of you and your family, as well as to avoid costly mold removal. Always check for mold in your bathrooms, cellars and other moist places, and make sure your home is well-ventilated with controlled humidity levels.

MOLD REMEDIATION COMPANY IN SOUTH CAROLINA

If you think that you already have mold in your home, it may be time to contact a mold remediation expert from ServiceMaster of the Upstate, especially if you notice any that match the descriptions of the dangerous molds recorded above. Small, closed-off spaces such as attics and basements are particularly susceptible to the damp conditions that attract mold. For mold inspections or mold remediation, look up a trusted mold remediation company in South Carolina like ServiceMaster of the Upstate and get them tended to as soon as possible.

TYPES OF MOLD AND HOW TO IDENTIFY THEM

Mold comes in a variety of colors and varieties and can be present in almost every space of your home.

Six common types of mold you may find include:

Acremonium:

Acremonium mold is a toxigenic mold type that evolves in its appearance over time.

It first starts out as a small moist mold that turns into a fine powdery substance.

Acremonium mold is often pink, grey, orange, or white in color.

Acremonium typically grows in household systems and areas such as condensation from humidifiers, cooling coils, drain pans, and window sealants.

Aspergillus

With a black or green ground pepper-like appearance, you can often find aspergillus around toilets, painted surfaces, or around air ducts.

If inhaled, Aspergillus can cause allergic reactions that cause asthma attacks, fever, and a mucus cough.

These commonly found molds should be checked frequently.

Aureobasidium:

Aureobasidium is an allergenic mold that can sometimes be found growing behind wallpaper or on painted or wooden surfaces.

Aureobasidium usually develops in pink, brown, or black color. As it ages, aureobasidium typically turns a darker brown color.

The primary health risk of aureobasidium is its ability to cause infections of eye, skin, and nails. Because of its potential to cause dermatitis (skin rash), it should never be touched directly with bare skin.

Alternaria:

Alternaria is black with a velvet-like texture. Although it is a common type of outdoor mold, it is easily airborne, traveling for a warm, wet place to multiply. This is when it will cause an issue for your home.

It will cling to plants, furniture, and in damp areas like under sinks, showers, or window frames.

The health risks of this mold include a runny nose, sore throat, hives, and rashes on the skin. Babies and those with asthma should be especially careful around this mold.

Cladosporium:

Cladosporium is olive or black color and found in wood and textiles. This is another mold that is more commonly seen outside, although it can also find its way into your home.

Attaching itself to damp areas of the home like the basement, attic, and bathrooms. Similar to other molds, it can cause allergic reactions like watery or itchy eyes, coughing, sneezing, and other common cold symptoms

Trichoderma:

This green and white mold can feel almost wool-like and thrives in a variety of environments. These can include wood, paint, carpet, and filters.

Its adaptability is due to its strong metabolism, so almost anywhere can be a potential living space.

Potential Health Risks: Most Trichoderma species aren’t amongst highly dangerous forms of mold, but it can trigger allergies as well as asthma.

HARMFUL EFFECTS OF MOLD

Some mold types can produce minor health effects like allergy symptoms, while others are highly toxic to humans, which can cause:

Chronic coughing and fatigue

Dizziness

Nausea and vomiting

Rashes

Internal bleeding in the lungs

Damage to internal organs

Brain damage like memory loss and tremors

Implementing consistent home checks in places like the bathroom, attic, and basement can help to catch the growth of mold before a loved one begins to feel these symptoms. Have a professional mold expert, like ServiceMaster of the Upstate, come into your home when an outbreak of mold is found. An expert will know how to tackle the issue so it does not return.

WHAT DO WHEN YOU HAVE MOLD IN YOUR HOME?

Water penetration can occur anywhere in your home. In addition to the bathroom and basement, to avoid extensive damages and mold growth, it’s important always to be looking at the following areas for the signs of water damage:

Ceilings and Walls: In the ceiling, water damage can either be the result of water leaking in through the roof or, if there’s a bathroom on the floor above, from a leaking pipe in the bathroom. For walls, you’ll want to check for the same sources of water damage, as well as areas around doors and windows.

Floors: Many things can be the cause of water damaged floors, including overflowing sinks and tubs or leaky appliances.

Exterior Walls: Improper drainage or gutters that don’t whisk water away from your house are common causes of exterior wall damage.

Attic: Stains, mold, and swollen insulation are the common signs your attic has damages.

Appliances: Check under or behind your refrigerator, washer and dryer, water heater and toilets and sinks for signs of pooling or leaks.

THE MOLD DAMAGE EXPERTS AT SERVICEMASTER OF THE UPSTATE

At ServiceMaster of the Upstate, we pride ourselves on offering fast and friendly mold removal and water cleanup services to all of the residents of the Greenville, Saluda, Spartanburg, Newberry, and Lawrence area. We’ve been trusted to help homeowners clean their homes and remove mold and pride ourselves on doing your job right the first time. We also offer emergency 24-hour services, so you’re not displaced for too long. For your cleanup needs, give us a call today at (864) 310-7891 or complete our online contact form.

Four Events That Need Professional Clean up Services

Life is loaded with exciting bends in the road. Some major life events are expected, while others happen instantaneously and unexpectedly. Some of these life events could have a significant impact on your home, and that impact could mean you need professional home cleaning. While many people enlist the help of a professional restoration company after a flood, storm, or fire, the truth is that you could use professional help after plenty of other events as well. Here are some of them.

Moving

You might have waited for this moment all your life. Searching endlessly until you found the right one. What an exciting feeling! But wait… are you aware of what that home has been through? While inspections and history reports can tell you about foundation work or a collapsed roof, they don’t really tell you about other things such as how many times the seller’s dog soiled the carpet in the den or all the times their child accidentally threw up in the living room. That home could have a ton of germs and bacteria that you are not aware of.

Moving is a great time to call for professional home cleaning, particularly before you start moving in. Have the professional carpet cleaner work on the carpet and disinfect it, the bathroom areas thoroughly scrubbed, and other high-traffic areas wiped down until you can be confident that your new home is thoroughly clean and bacteria-free. That way you’ll move into a home that looks its best, is safe, and what you can really be sure that’s free from those unwanted germs.

Construction, Renovations, or Remodeling

Some time has passed in your home, and you really want a new environment. So you thought of updating that old, outdated kitchen to make it more of a modern masterpiece. Weeks later and your contractors have finished installing your countertops and plumbing fixtures, and you’ve just about gotten clear to start moving your appliances back in. But then you realize that your contractors have left behind a lot of dust and debris from that renovation. There are crumbled drywall on your new floor, dust all over your countertops, and even sawdust in a room and all over the house. Just imagine the chaos.

While you might think a vacuum and mop can take care of this, you really should have professional cleaning experts come in and conduct a construction cleanup service. Construction often involves the use of chemicals and substances that are hard to remove, that you certainly don’t want in an area like your bathroom or shower, so it’s best to have the professionals scrub the area down for good and make sure all traces of these things are removed.

Serious Illness

We are all aware how COVID-19 changed the world and it likely will never be the same. People everywhere have been infected, and many of the less-severe cases have been treated at home to avoid overcrowding hospitals. However, that might mean that most homes have to deal with the possibility that the virus might still linger on the surfaces of furniture or in flooring. Once everyone in your home has recovered from the disease and are symptom-free, it’s time to call home disinfecting experts in Greenville. This will help ensure the virus is removed for good and that your home will be safe and properly sanitized and disinfected.

Sewage Leaks or Spills

A sewage leak can happen for any number of reasons: a leaking pipe, an overflowing septic tank, or even a total sewer line failure resulting in sewage seeping up through your foundation from below. All of these issues have one thing in common: they can be extremely dangerous to anyone inside. Raw sewage contains millions of bacteria and diseases, and even a small amount of contact with the inside of your home could be dangerous. On top of that, most homeowners don’t have the tools to properly and adequately clean up after one of these spills happens.

These events are unavoidable. That’s why you have to know who to call when you experience these.

Call ServiceMaster of the Upstate at (864) 310-7891 for a 24-hour emergency service in South Carolina. We are serving Greenville, Spartanburg, Laurens, Newberry, Saluda, and surrounding areas and counties.

What to Do If Your Home Floods While You're Away

One of the most destructive and devastating things you can ever experience as a homeowner is a flood. 

There are many causes of household flooding including:

• Heavy rains
• Storm
• Sewer back-up
• Malfunctioning sump-pump
• Burst pipes
• Leaked pipes

No matter what the cause, you must still know what you should do if your house floods, especially when you are away. The moment you get home, taking care of the problem earlier will help reduce the amount of water damage after and will make clean-up and repair easier.

1. Safety First

• You must know how to keep safe when you return to your home to begin dealing with the aftermath of the flood. This may include turning off the power, as water and electricity obviously do not go well together. 
• Be sure to wear protective gear such as rubber boots and gloves. When you enter your home, check that you are fully protected and not touch any things that can pose a potential danger to you. Not only will you be dealing with the water itself, but also whatever else the water has been in contact with such as debris or even sewage.
• Be sure to never eat food that has been exposed to floodwaters, or even near the water for an extended period. If the water was high enough to reach your refrigerator or any of your pantry cabinets, it is the safest practice to throw the food away for safety reasons. 
• Be sure to thoroughly wash any glasses, utensils, and flatware that might have been caught in the house flood before you use it again. You will never know the germs and bacteria present in those.

2. Stopping and Water Removal

One of the first things you should do when your house floods is to stop the source of water coming in if at all possible. However, if you were not around when the flood happens, this could be a problem. It would be best if you can prepare ahead of time instead.

• If your sump-pump is broken or stopped running, replacing it will help keep up with any continuing rains and may prevent further damage to your basement, garage, crawl space, or the main floor. 
• If your flooded home was caused by a burst pipe, have the plumbing fixed as soon as you get home to lessen the water damage. The sooner you stop the water, the sooner you can start cleaning up and repairing any damages.
• If you don’t know what to do, it’s best to ask help from water removal experts instead.

3. Drying Out Your Home

• Even if you are successful in removing all of the standing water from your home, everything will remain wet, especially if heavy rains have increased the humidity in your area. If you have electricity, use your air conditioning and portable fans to help dry the wet areas of your home.
• Dehumidifiers are also a big help, especially in closed-off spaces such as basements, garage, or crawl spaces. However, in the case of a house flood, dehumidifiers are only supplemental and you are likely to need different methods of structural drying. 

4. Clean Up and Repairs

Once the water is gone and you have settled with your insurance company, it’s time to begin post-flood care. Since this is too big of a task, you can call in professional water damage services. They would know what to do in situations like this.

Call ServiceMaster of the Upstate at (864) 310-7891 for a 24-hour emergency service in South Carolina. We are serving Greenville, Spartanburg, Laurens, Newberry, Saluda, and surrounding areas and counties.

Four Events that Need Professional Cleanup Services

Life is loaded with exciting bends in the road. Some major life events are expected, while others happen instantaneously and unexpectedly. Some of these life events could have a significant impact on your home, and that impact could mean you need professional home cleaning. 

While many people enlist the help of a professional restoration company after a flood, storm, or fire, the truth is that you could use professional help after plenty of other events as well. Here are some of them.

Moving 

You might have waited for this moment all your life. Searching endlessly until you found the right one. What an exciting feeling! But wait… are you aware of what that home has been through? 

While inspections and history reports can tell you about foundation work or a collapsed roof, they don’t really tell you about other things such as how many times the seller’s dog soiled the carpet in the den or all the times their child accidentally threw up in the living room. That home could have a ton of germs and bacteria that you are not aware of.

Moving is a great time to call for professional home cleaning, particularly before you start moving in. Have the professional carpet cleaner work on the carpet and disinfect it, the bathroom areas thoroughly scrubbed, and other high-traffic areas wiped down until you can be confident that your new home is thoroughly clean and bacteria-free. That way you’ll move into a home that looks its best, is safe, and what you can really be sure that’s free from those unwanted germs.

Construction, Renovations, or Remodeling

Some time has passed in your home, and you really want a new environment. So you thought of updating that old, outdated kitchen to make it more of a modern masterpiece. Weeks later and your contractors have finished installing your countertops and plumbing fixtures, and you’ve just about gotten the clear to start moving your appliances back in. But then you realize that your contractors have left behind a lot of dust and debris from that renovation. There’s crumbled drywall on your new floor, dust all over your countertops, and even sawdust in a room and all over the house. Just imagine the chaos.

While you might think a vacuum and mop can take care of this, you really should have professional cleaning experts come in and conduct a construction cleanup service. Construction often involves the use of chemicals and substances that are hard to remove, that you certainly don’t want in an area like your bathroom or shower, so it’s best to have the professionals scrub the area down for good and make sure all traces of these things are removed. 

Serious Illness

We are all aware how COVID-19 changed the world and it likely will never be the same. People everywhere have been infected, and many of the less-severe cases have been treated at home to avoid overcrowding hospitals. However, that might mean that most homes have to deal with the possibility that the virus might still linger on the surfaces of furniture or in flooring. Once everyone in your home has recovered from the disease and are symptom-free, it’s time to call home disinfecting experts in Greenville. This will help ensure the virus is removed for good and that your home will be safe and properly sanitized and disinfected.

Sewage Leaks or Spills

A sewage leak can happen for any number of reasons: a leaking pipe, an overflowing septic tank, or even a total sewer line failure resulting in sewage seeping up through your foundation from below. All of these issues have one thing in common: they can be extremely dangerous to anyone inside. Raw sewage contains millions of bacteria and diseases, and even a small amount of contact with the inside of your home could be dangerous. On top of that, most homeowners don’t have the tools to properly and adequately clean up after one of these spills happens.

These events are unavoidable. That’s why you have to know who to call when you experience these. 

Call ServiceMaster of the Upstate at (864) 310-7891 for a 24-hour emergency service in South Carolina. We are serving Greenville, Spartanburg, Laurens, Newberry, Saluda, and surrounding areas and counties.