Mold can spread quickly, cause serious damage

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Posted: March 7, 2006 05:57 PM

http://khon.com/khon/displayStory.cfm?storyID=11854

KHON2 - Honolulu,HI

Mold can spread quickly, cause serious damage

Tina Shelton

The number of homes sustaining major or minor damage due to the

flooding now stands at 27.

The Red Cross has surveyed the area from Kahaluu to Waiahole.

Surveyors say they found four homes with major damage and 23 homes

with minor damage.

Another 84 homes suffered minimal damage, either to the home's

structure or its yard. All together, 111 homes were affected.

The Red Cross says it will send family service outreach teams to

help with financial assistance.

Some of the damage will get worse with time. Mold can move in

quickly after things get soaked.

This past weekend, homeowners were ripping out wet carpet and

staring at warped walls. It's critical to attack mold quickly.

Even in dry neighborhoods, some people worry about mold.

" Particularly here in Hawaii, mold is very common and somewhat

normal, " says Princenthal, Aircare president.

So normal that we sometimes forget to check and clean those hidden

places, like inside air conditioning ducts.

When things get really wet, however, you can't put off the cleanup.

" Time is of the essence. It's almost like a time bomb when our homes

become wet or flooded, " says Princenthal.

Everything that's porous is prone.

When we have water that enters our homes, be it through floods or

plumbing or leaks, it wets materials in our homes that are really

mold food.

After water's accumulated, you've got maybe 72 hours, max, before

unwelcome mold begins to grow.

" The most important thing is to get the water out, " says Princenthal.

It seems obvious when things have been saturated, and most of us

know a strong bleach is required to kill surface mold.

But, short of a disaster, preventing a mold outbreak in the first

place doesn't have to be complicated.

" What I normally tell our clients is if you're aggressive to reduce

dust, they automatically reduce mold because the mold usually

attaches to that dust, and that's usually where it grows, " says

Princenthal. " If we keep our homes clean, dry and well ventilated,

in theory, we shouldn't have a mold problem. "

It's important not to over-react to mold, but if you need

professional help, pick an experienced company.