In recent years, black mold, or stachybotrys, has become a major concern in both the housing and health industries. It first came to widespread attention in the early 90’s when two babies and several children in the poor area of Cleveland, Ohio died of lung hemorrhages after exposure to black mold. Though recent studies by the United States Centers for Disease Control and Prevention have determined that mold was not responsible for these deaths, the extreme negative health effects of black mold are not in question. If you are a Bay Area resident who finds stachybotrys in your home, you should immediately seek mold removal in Berkeley.
Though most mold is a black color, stachybotrys is greenish black and viscous. It often looks wet on the top, though it can become dry with a powdery texture. Black mold can often be indistinguishable from other mold species unless examined under a microscope. For this reason, if you have any mold in your home, it is wise to seek mold removal in Berkeley. If it turns out to be black mold, and you delay, you and your family could be in for serious health problems. Luckily, black mold takes longer to grow than other species. Usually, a surface must remain wet for at least a week to be a suitable site for stachybotrys, and it takes eight to twelve days for the mold to colonize. Because black mold has a wet outer coating, it is less likely than other species of mold or its spores to spread. However, once it dries up and reaches the powdery state, this is no longer the case. And just like any species, disturbing the colony can cause it to spread to other parts of your home. For this reason, if you find black mold in your home, you should immediately seek mold removal in Berkeley. While do-it-yourself removal kits exist, using them for black mold can have serious consequences on your health.
Black mold produces trichothecene mycotoxins with can kill the neurons in the brain. For this reason, black mold has been known to cause numbness, dizziness, confusion, shortened attention span, difficulty concentrating, memory loss, impaired learning, mood swings, depression, anxiety, anger, seizures, and hallucinations. People’s main contact with black mold comes with breathing it in, so the most common symptoms are respiratory, including shortness of breath, wheezing, sore throats, bleeding gums, nose bleeds, stuffy nose, and, in the worst cases, swelling and hemorrhaging of the lungs. It can also affect your immune, reproductive, and circulatory systems, and cause fatigue, hair loss, vision problems, skin disorders, and even death.
If you find black mold in your home, or even if you are not sure of the species, immediately seek mold removal in Berkeley. It could very well save your life.
Mold Removal Berkeley – Swift Restoration has been providing mold removal in Berkeley for the last seven years. We provide 24 hour service, a 30 minute response time, free on-site estimates, and we will work to find the solution that will best fit your budget. For more information or to request mold removal services, give us a call at 408-624-2037 or visit our website at www.swiftrestorationinc.com.
