These fungi can eventually damage the home or cause health concerns.
Tip
Which is worse, mildew or mold?
What Is Mold?
The Spruce / Joules Garcia
Mold spores are microscopic and are present in all indoor and outdoor air.
They only become visible to the naked eye once a large colony has formed.
Mold can be identified by looking like green, blue, red, or black specks of dirt.
They are often fuzzy.
At-home tests can help you determine the presence of mold.
What Is Mildew?
It is an early stage of a mold growth colony and often needs moist conditions.
Mildew is most commonly found inbathrooms and kitchens.
People with asthma or allergies will feel the most severe reactions to mold and mildew.
How Mold and Mildew Form
Mold and mildew need the right conditions for growth.
To begin, mold spores act as a bang out of seed.
Spores grow with three factors: food (such as soil), water, and oxygen.
Increasing or decreasing any of these factors will cause mold and mildew to grow or die.
Spores land on the surface, germinate, and grow.
Mold and mildew may start 24 to 48 hours after dampening the surface.
Mildew’s white-gray spots spread outward, not upward, remaining on the surface.
Mold, though, eats into its basewhich makes it harder to removeand sometimes grows upward.
Mold spores in the home are inevitable; this is difficult to stop.
But you’re free to prevent the factors that help mold and mildew to grow.
Use a mild detergent with water or acombination of vinegar and waterwith a new sponge.
Mildew can turn from white or gray to brown or black over time.
However, mildew does not transform into toxic black mold orStachybotrys chartarum.
Bleach can be used to kill and remove mildew; however, it is not as effective as vinegar.
Vinegar penetrates surfaces, unlike bleach, killing the mold at its base.
What is the difference between Mold and Mildew?United States Environmental Protection Agency.
United States Environmental Protection Agency.
Mold Allergy.Asthma and Allergy Foundation of America.
Mold cleanup in your home.
United States Environmental Protection Agency.
