Mold is everywhere. All homes have mold in them. Mold spores can be found in the air, on surfaces, furniture, and all over the place, especially where there is moisture. Although we already know that mold is everywhere, we all experience the unexpected or the unplanned. A natural disaster, such as a flood, where mold will begin to grow fast and you will need to act fast by testing to be sure you have mold present will make you ask the question, Are home mold test kits reliable?
Most mold testing involves taking a sample of either the air or a surface. Essentially, a mold inspector “tests” the air or surface to find out what kind of mold exists and/or if the mold found is able to grow in the area tested.
So, the question becomes again, “Are home mold test kits reliable?” Or, “Should I hire a professional to test my home for mold?”
If the decision is to test the suspect mold yourself, make sure to do your research. Some may say that mold test kits do not provide meaningful answers or that they only test for the presence of mold. This may be true in most cases with companies that are just trying to make money off of the, “Fear factor.” When selecting a do-it-yourself test kit, you want to make sure the results will give you quantifiable results. Which means, the measures or value of how much mold there is and what type of mold it is. You also want to be sure the results come from a certified laboratory. If you are dealing with a slumlord, and need to prove you have mold in your apartment that they refuse to take care of, you want to make sure that if it comes to it, the results can be used as evidence in a court of law. Environmental Innovative Technologies manufactures do-it-yourself mold test kits that provide all of the above. They call it, “The Environmental Professional in-a-box.”™ When knowing you will have certified test results, this will help answer the question of, Are home mold test kits reliable.
So, to answer the question, “Are home mold test kits reliable,” the answer is, they can be. You just have to do your research and make sure you get that value added, quantifiable results.
Are Home Mold Test Kits Reliable When Testing for Mold Spores in the Air?
The difference between testing mold air samples and mold surface samples is that air samples can be taken and analyzed in a variety of ways. When testing mold spores in the air, I would say to leave that up to the professionals, as they would have to have the understanding of building construction, water sources, and other factors that may not be apparent to many people, such as condensation occurring in a poorly ventilated attic, poor drainage on the exterior of a building, or cracks in the foundation.
Surface samples can be taken in a variety of ways. The three most common methods are:
- Bulk samples. A piece of the sampled area is physically removed and sent to the mold testing laboratory,
- Swab samples. Something akin to a cotton swab is rubbed across the area being sampled, often a measured area, and subsequently sent to the mold testing laboratory, and
- Tape samples. A piece of clear tape is pressed against and removed from the area being sampled, presumably picking up and removing part of any mold that was present on the surface, and then set to the mold testing laboratory for analysis, which is the testing method of the Environmental Professional in-a-box do-it yourself mold test kit™”,
So, to sum it all up, “Are home mold test kits reliable?” Yes! Give you and your family a sense of security and know first hand whether or not there is mold present..