How to Keep Your Home Mold Free This Fall

Autumn is here, which may have you dressing in an extra layer, but did you know changes from summer to fall mean more moisture that can wreak havoc on your home? 

Preventative measures should be taken year round to prevent mold growth, but it’s especially important during seasonal changes. Read on for our 12 tips you can use to prevent the growth of unwanted mold.

1. Keep Humidity Levels Low
   • Installing moisture barrier and using a dehumidifier are our top suggestions to keep humidity levels low in your home. Opening windows on nice days and circulating air with fans is also helpful.

2. Proper Ventilation
   • Use the vent fan in your bathroom when you shower or take a bath. Don’t have one? You should definitely think about having one installed.

Having proper ventilation in your kitchen and for your dryer is also important. Opening your windows occasionally can help dry out dampness and reduce any odors as well.

3. Keep a Leak Free Home
   1. Make sure your home is leak free including your plumbing, roof, and foundation. Leaks can cause much more expensive costs than just preventative maintenance.

4. Proper Care After Flooding
   • If your home floods, make sure the water is cleaned up and the area is dried out completely and quickly. If you don’t have the capacity to do this yourself, contact a professional immediately.

5. Clean Your Home With Quality Products
   • Cleaning your bathroom and kitchen regularly with quality products is important, but are you neglecting other important areas in your home? 

If you didn’t know, mold loves to feed off dust. This dust can be trapped in your exhaust vents, on surfaces like chandeliers and shelves, and even your walls that haven’t been touched since you moved in years ago.

There’s a reason that “spring cleaning” exists. If you don’t clean these areas often, at least do them once or twice a year, to minimize any issues.

6. Replace Water Damage
   • If carpets or furniture had water damage that was not cleaned properly, they may need to be replaced.

Removing water damaged items before they start a mold problem will save you money in the long run. Besides, no one wants to watch Netflix on a sagging, musty smelling couch. 

7. Proper Drainage
   • Ensure your home has proper drainage. Your plumbing should be draining properly away from your house. Having gutters with French drains is also helpful, but make sure you clean your gutters! Blockages from leaves, bugs and other debris can cause pooling of water to seep into your roof. 

If you have issues with water in your basement or crawl space, it may be worth it to have a sump pump installed to remove the unwanted water. We install these so give us a call or fill out our contact form.

8. Low Moisture Houseplants
   • Have houseplants? Sure they help improve indoor air quality, but make sure the damp soil isn’t growing mold. And if you basically have a greenhouse inside your home, this can make that issue much worse.

Think about swapping plants that constantly need damp soil for low maintenance plants like succulents, palms, or snake plant. These plants thrive in low moisture conditions, minimizing the possibility of mold growth.

Dehumidifiers, fans and AC will also help in this scenario.

9. Air Flow Between Surfaces
   • Move furniture and storage away from walls and floors. When items are pressed firmly against outside walls or foundation flooring, moisture can build up between surfaces and cause mold. 

Pull your furniture a couple inches away from walls and keep storage items off your foundation with plastic or metal shelving. If you have a lot of clutter, it may be time to get rid of some things or your health and home could suffer.

10. Check Your Ducts
    • Insulating your ducts and having them cleaned can prevent condensation build up and circulation of mold spores.

This isn’t an area people would normally think of having any mold, but it could possibly be one of the most important. If you have mold growth in your air ducts then you’re spreading the spores much more quickly and breathing in terrible air quality.

11. Rake Leaves Early and Frequently
    • You should want to keep mold growth away from the inside of your home as well as the outside. Fallen leaves trap moisture, which we already know causes mold growth, so allowing leaves to stay on your lawn can cause unwanted odors and allergies. 

These odors and allergies can also come back in the spring if the leaves are left to rot. Raking already wet and moldy leaves can make allergy symptoms even worse. So if you’re kids(or you, no judgment here) want to play in a pile of leaves? We suggest raking the dry ones.

12. Wipe Down Your Window Sills
    • Condensation from changing temperatures and precipitation can cause mold growth around your windows. Wiping down these areas with a quality cleaner frequently, can minimize mold growth from this excess moisture.

Make sure you’re also trying to prevent condensation by using the fans in your kitchen and bathrooms. Another thing that can help is opening your blinds to allow more airflow to your windows.

There you have it, our 12 tips to prevent mold in your home. Have another tip? Let us all know in the comments below!