Dealing with mold: the good, the bad and the fuzzy

Fungi and mold are everywhere in the world. It can be on the plants outside, on the shower curtain in your bathroom and even in the ground or walls.

Tom Creswell, a faculty member in the Department of Botany and Plant Pathology and Director of the Plant and Pest Diagnostic Lab said there are tens of thousands of kinds of fungi, many of which are good and helpful to the environment.

“Molds play a part in nature by breaking down dead organic matter such as fallen leaves and dead trees,” according to a mold guide Creswell provided.

Once matter is broken down the cycle of life can begin again. While mold and fungi are technically different things, the names are often interchangeable.

“They can be used interchangeably. Fungi are the more scientific name,” said Rabern Simmons, curator of fungi at Purdue University Herbaria.

Fungi outside need to have some type of water source to survive. This can be as simple as a puddle, a humid environment or a body of water.

“Just a film of water is plenty for them to survive,” Simmons said.

Water is so important because it's how they travel and get to new food sources.

“Much like an animal's sperm cell,” Simmons said, “they need some sort of liquid matrix so they can swim out and find a new substrate.”

Mold spores can also float through the air.

“There are many types of fungi that produce spores commonly in the air and they can blow into the house, so they may settle on wet surfaces,” Creswell said.

This can make bathrooms a common area for mold to grow in. Another common cause for mold is a water leak in either a pipe or vents. Before removing the mold the water source needs to be removed or fixed.

This can be difficult in the case of flooding in a house. Once the mold spores and water are in the house, the mold will look for a place to attack.

“It’s only going to grow on a substance that has some kind of carbohydrate base, where it can attack,” Creswell said.

This can often be wallpaper, cardboard, ceiling tiles, wood and carpets.

“Fungi don't have a way of producing their own food so they have to absorb it from something else,” Creswell said.

There are many common types of mold in the air that could enter your house.

“Mold spores commonly found in the air, both inside and outside are Fusarium, Cladosporium, Penicillium and Aspergillus,” Creswell said.

When mold is found it could be weeks old. Another type of common mold is Stachybotrys chartarum, which is more commonly called black mold.

“It may take some mold like Stachybotrys several weeks to really build up to a level where you might even notice them,” Creswell said.

All kinds of mold can have its risks but normally to a healthy person, mold won’t cause much illness.

“All types of mold can affect people who have mold allergies. However, black mold isn’t any more dangerous than any other types of mold,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.

The first way to stop mold is to fix the issue that's allowing it to grow. Getting to the root of the problem, like getting rid of water, will get rid of the mold.

Once this is fixed the mold can be cleaned. For cleaning mold you can do it on your own or hire a company. An easy way to tell if it can be self-cleaned is your health.

“If you’re immunocompromised or you have an allergy to mold, or a particular kind of mold that might be a good reason to contact someone,” Creswell said.

If you do not have an allergy and it is a small patch, it's easy to clean.

“Probably the easiest thing to do in small areas would be to get a spray that has bleach in it … and just spray on the surface,” Creswell said. “Let it sit for a minute or two, and then using rubber gloves, wipe it off with a paper towel”

Once wiped with a paper towel, it can be disposed of normally in the trash. One important thing to note though is you should get the mold wet before you clean it.

“Try to get it wet with something first so that you're not spreading mold around, so that the spores are not spreading in the air,” Creswell said.

It's important to know the difference between different fungi, and most of the time they are a helpful part in the ecosystem and world we live in.

Outside molds

Mold becomes an issue when it is in your house but there are helpful molds like Zoospore.

This fungi helps break down things other fungi might find difficult to break down such as pollen grains, onion skin, snake skin and keratin, which is in our nails.

“These are fungi that are for the most part, degraders of the world's trash,” Simmons said.

When breaking down something like keratin, fungi could take days to weeks, or even months.

“Some species that can go through an entire life cycle in 24 hours, there's some that can take weeks and or months,” said Simmons, “but primarily your average chytrid fungus of which we are aware is probably about one week.”

People can eat different types of fungi, but each variant has a different effect from species to species.

For example, Armillaria is a root disease in ornamental plants and trees but are edible for humans, Simmons said.

“Just recognize that molds outside are often beneficial because they’re helping break down organic matter in the environment,” Creswell said. “People shouldn’t be concerned about things (molds) outside too much. It's when it's on your food or in your house you have to worry.”