6 Home Improvements To Prevent Mold Growth

Cleveland OH Mold Inspection The very thought of mold is enough to make you want to change how you do things. If you’ve been looking for home improvement tips to help you prevent mold growth, read the advice below from our Cleveland mold inspection company.

Mold grows where it’s humid. Here in Cleveland, the average humidity outside is around 71% over a year’s time but it can get much higher and our homes can be more humid inside than it is outside. Opening up the windows to get a little fresh air isn’t always an option unless you don’t mind getting your sheets and upholstery damp!

Sometimes it’s all about decreasing the humidity level with a dehumidifier and sometimes it’s not. Therefore, our first tip is to advise you to get a mold inspection test done so you can determine which home improvements you need to make to prevent mold growth and which aren’t necessary.

The test will determine the humidity level inside your house to see if you need a dehumidifier. It will also identify where you need to make other home improvements to prevent mold growth.

Install Dehumidifiers

Not all homes will need a dehumidifier but it is a good home improvement to make if there’s too much humidity inside your home.

Dehumidifiers can be installed directly into your HVAC system. These whole-home dehumidifiers work automatically to adjust the humidity level in every room of your house.

Get Air Duct Cleaning Service

You wouldn’t believe what’s found inside air ducts in homes but what you don’t want in your air ducts is mold because the spores will spread throughout your house every time your HVAC system turns on. Air duct cleaning should be done as often as you need it to help improve the indoor air quality.

Not all air duct cleaning services are the same. Some companies include the mold treatment and air duct sanitation while others only vacuum the ventilation system out. Be sure you ask about sanitizing them in order to kill any mold, mildew, viruses, and germs so they don’t continue to contaminate your house.

UV Lights For The Air Ducts & HVAC – The Modern Way To Kill Mold Spores

We recommend you take the air duct cleaning a step further by installing UV lights in your air ducts and HVAC system afterward. UV lights kill the mold, germs, and mildew as it passes through the light inside the air ducts.

HVAC systems produce a lot of moisture and that’s why mold is such a problem there. UV lights can be installed inside the air intake vent to kill the mold near the coils. They can also be installed inside the ventilation ducts that blow air into the rooms.

Install Ventilation Fans In Bathrooms

The bathing and showering we do in bathrooms creates highs levels of humidity. If your bathroom doesn’t have a ventilation fan, this is one home improvement you want to take care of. Mold is very common in bathrooms, kitchens, attics, and ventilation ducts because of the high humidity.

Install Ventilation Fans For The Attic

Your attic space should be well ventilated even though you may feel that it’s best to trap the heat as it rises from your HVAC system.

Ask any roofer and they’ll tell you that your attic needs to breathe to prevent decay and rotting.

Ask a Cleveland mold inspection company like us and we’ll tell you to install attic fans if your attic space isn’t well ventilated. Simply by installing an attic fan to move the air in your attic, you’re preventing mold growth.

Get Crawlspace Encapsulation

Crawlspace encapsulation prevents moisture from getting to the underside of your house where mold, mildew, bugs, and other problems can become a huge problem. The process involves removing the mold and mildew and cleaning the crawlspace thoroughly before installing a special plastic moisture barrier.