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HIDDEN MOLD - AMI JOB SITE PHOTOS |
A Mold Inspection can reveal hidden mold conditions.
The worst mold is the mold you don't see, lurking under carpets,
spreading unnoticed inside walls and deep in heating and air
conditioning vents. |
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After experiencing several physical symptoms commonly associated
with toxic mold exposure, one Escondido, California family called
AMI to inspect their one year old upscale home. Even though there
was no visible evidence of mold, using industry specific moisture
detection equipment the inspector was able to determine that the
drywall next to the tub was holding an excessive amount of moisture. |
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Closer examination of the immediate area revealed that the shower
door frame had been caulked with silicone. In spite of a valiant
effort to prevent water from leaking through, caulking the areas
where the shower door frame meets the wall would not have prevented
this particular problem because the water was actually leaking
through a defective rubber door seal. |
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Prying back the base board and lifting the carpet revealed extensive
water damage and a significant amount of mold growth on the wall,
inside the wall and under the sub-flooring. It was determined that
water had been leaking through the door seal and under the carpet
where it soaked into the sub-flooring and into the walls. |
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A surface sample confirmed that the mold growing on and in the wall
was Stachybotrys, a confirmed toxic mold associated with many
adverse health effects (see below). Air samples further revealed
that the total indoor spore count 72,000 spores per cubic meter of
air. The outdoor count was 780. The family of five spent six weeks
in a hotel while the builder remediated the mold and reconstructed
the entire master bath area. [RETURN
TO INSPECTIONS & TESTING] |
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STACHYBOTRYS:
THIS FUNGUS MAY PRODUCE A TRICHOTHECENE MYCOTOXIN- SATRATOXIN H -
WHICH IS POISONOUS BY INHALATION. THE TOXINS ARE PRESENT ON THE
FUNGAL SPORES. THIS IS A SLOW GROWING FUNGUS ON MEDIA. IT DOES NOT
COMPETE WELL WITH OTHER RAPIDLY GROWING FUNGI. THE DARK COLORED
FUNGI GROWS ON BUILDING MATERIAL WITH A HIGH CELLULOSE CONTENT AND A
LOW NITROGEN CONTENT. INDIVIDUALS WITH CHRONIC EXPOSURE TO THE TOXIN
PRODUCED BY THIS FUNGUS REPORTED COLD AND FLU SYMPTOMS, SORE
THROATS, DIARRHEA, HEADACHES, FATIGUE, DERMATITIS, INTERMITTENT
LOCAL HAIR LOSS, AND GENERALIZED MALAISE. THE TOXINS PRODUCED BY
THIS FUNGUS WILL SUPPRESS THE IMMUNE SYSTEM AFFECTING THE LYMPHOID
TISSUE AND THE BONE MARROW. THE MYCOTOXIN IS ALSO REPORTED TO BE A
LIVER AND KIDNEY CARCINOGEN. EFFECTS BY ABSORPTION OF THE TOXIN IN
THE HUMAN LUNG ARE KNOWN AS PNEUMOMYCOSIS. THIS ORGANISM IS RARELY
FOUND IN OUTDOOR SAMPLES. IT IS USUALLY DIFFICULT TO FIND IN INDOOR
AIR SAMPLE S UNLESS IT IS PHYSICALLY DISTURBED. THE SPORES ARE IN A
GELATINOUS MASS. THE SPORES WILL DIE READILY AFTER RELEASE. THE DEAD
SPORES ARE STILL ALLERGENIC AND TOXIGENIC.
For a complete Mold Glossary click
here. |
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