Author: Anna Muldoon, Science Policy Advisor
As people returned to their homes after Hurricane Sandy, many may have found an unwelcome guest: mold. They join the ranks of many others around the country this year who’ve dealt with storm and flood damage. Mold can cover everything, can pose a health hazard, ruins your things and smells bad. So you need to get rid of it. All of it. Mold can grow into a long-term problem if not dealt with right away, but how do you know what has mold on it? And how to you get rid of it?
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention advises that if anything has been wet for more than two days, you should assume there is mold growing on it, even if you can’t see mold. Things like carpet, couches, mattresses, paper, and other hard-to-clean items should be thrown away. If your house has been fully flooded and left with standing water, you might want to call in a clean-up expert to be sure you catch all of the damage right away.
When working on cleaning your home, please remember that people with asthma or other breathing conditions are particularly sensitive to mold. Mold can also cause health problems and illnesses. If you start to feel ill after cleaning a flooded home, see a physician.
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Safety: Masks and Gloves
Mold can cause serious health problems in many groups of people. When dealing with mold problems and cleaning up after standing water, CDC recommends wearing N-95 masks to avoid breathing mold. When using bleach to clean, wear kitchen gloves help prevent skin irritation. Remember to open a nearby window when using bleach products and keep bleach products away from children. |
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Dry Out Your House Before you can clean up flood damage, you will have to get the last of the moisture out of your house to prevent further mold growth. If you have electricity or a generator, you could use a “wet-dry” shop vacuum to remove any standing water. If the weather outside is dry you can open windows, run fans facing out the windows, or you can use dehumidifiers. To prevent mold from spreading, immediately remove any large, wet furnishings that you know can’t be saved. |
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Clothes and Fabric
Even though fabric soaks up water, many items made of fabric can be saved after a flood. To make sure mold does not grow or stay in the fabric, CDC suggests washing everything with HOT water at least once. Not all fabrics can be saved, but those you can wash in hot water can usually be kept. Even if you love something, only keep it if you can clean it after a storm. |
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Hard Surfaces
Wood floors, tiled surfaces, counters and other hard surfaces may be salvageable. Using bleach is a good way to kill mold, but you should never pour straight bleach on a surface. A bleach and water mixture can be poured into spray bottles for easy cleaning. How much bleach do you need to use? Check out the CDC fact sheet C
leaning and Sanitizing with Bleach after any Emergency for more information. Remember: never mix bleach and ammonia and never clean with bleach in a room that isn’t ventilated such as an open window.
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Heating, Ventilating, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) Systems:
If your house stayed wet for a few days, have the HVAC system checked by a professional to be sure it hasn’t been contaminated with mold and have it cleaned if it has mold. Turning on a system with mold in the ducts can spread mold throughout your house and cause more problems down the road. Throw out any damaged or wet filters to prevent mold growth and cover vents while you clean other areas and wait for a professional.
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Want to learn more about keeping mold out of your home? The CDC has resources to help you deal with mold after a disaster and re-enter your flooded home.
