Even though mold is one of the simplest organisms on the earth, having been around for millions of years, it is a relatively new phenomenon/concern in society. Why? There are many reasons for this explosion of mold growth, but two of the top culprits relate to modern day construction practices and the real estate market. Specific factors include:

1. Drywall. Drywall is a convenient building material, as it is both inexpensive and easy to work with. However, drywall is basically composed of gypsum dust held together by two thick pieces of paper. Wet cellulose products, including paper from gypsum board (not to mention cardboard, ceiling tiles, wood, etc) are a food source for mold. You often see mold growing on the backside of drywall where you cannot see it because the mold is feeding off the paper from the other side of the gypsum board. Drywall absorbs water like a sponge, which makes drywall difficult to dry out. And within 24-48 hours of wet drywall, you’re going to get mold. Older buildings have walls made of plaster, which is highly mold resistant (but not mold proof).
2. The building boom. The building boom and the ensuing real estate bubble brought with it lots of buildings being put up very quickly, often at that sake of quality construction. As a result, we now have lots and lots of buildings with poor construction. Corners were often cut in order to save a buck. We see a lot of roof leaks, door/window leaks, improper ventilation, not following building codes, etc. even with multi-millionaire dollar new construction. Poor construction often leads to water leaks, and water leaks can lead to mold. This is not an indictment against all developers. There are plenty of good ethical developers who built quality homes during the boom. But the number of mold calls we get from owners of new construction is staggering.
3. Finished basements. If you live in a cold climate, you’ve probably got a basement. Most of these basements were originally not meant as living spaces. But in recent decades, people decided that finishing their basement would be a great idea because it would add so much livable square footage to their homes. While a good idea in theory, older buildings were not built with this in mind. Even newer buildings have lots of basement mold problems. Basements often flood and back up with water, which is a recipe for a mold disaster. The majority of our jobs involve the basement.
4. Sump pumps. Sump pumps go hand-in-hand with finished basements. Sump pumps are great – until they fail. If they fail, then you’re basically opening the flood gates to your basement. You can take on 1 foot of water in your basement in just a few hours! If you have a sump pump, make sure it’s of high quality (don’t buy the cheap kind) and make sure you invest in a battery backup system or a second sump pump as a backup if you can afford it.
5. Foreclosures. As we all know, there is a wave of foreclosures out there right now and there is no telling when this will end. When properties are vacant, disaster often strikes. Be it from break-ins (stealing the copper pipes) or busted pipes from the cold, vacant properties often have water problems. Even if a building is properly secured, just the fact that the property is “sealed up” can lead to condensation and humidity build up. And water problems of any kind – from break ins, busted pipes, condensation, humidity, etc.,- lead to mold problems.

The good news is that most of this stuff can be prevented with active management and maintenance. Remember, water problems lead to mold problems. If you are an active homeowner who buys and installs quality building materials, and actively monitors high risk areas of your home, you’ll be in good shape.