Should I be concerned about mold?

May 25, 2008 5:08 PM

Should I be concerned about mold?

I just moved into a rental unit and my bedroom is in the basement (about 1/3 underground) and it appears as if there was a water leak at one time (there are water stains on the baseboard and it appears that the carpet was replaced. Should I be concerned about mold? I can't see any, but I don't want to get sick. What actions can I take?

posted by stevechemist to home & garden (4 comments total)

If you suspect mold, you can hire an independent agency to inspect your home. Just search for mold inspection on google. Just because you can't see it, that doesn't mean it can't be behind the drywall. Trust me - I work in this business and we deal with this all the time.
posted by damnjezebel at 5:19 PM on May 25

Should I be concerned about mold?

Some molds yes. Other molds no.

I can't see any, but I don't want to get sick. What actions can I take?

You can have your landlord sign off on an agreement that the unit has been inspected and is mold free. If he/she is unwilling to do this, insist that you value your health more than your living arrangement and insist they allow you to break your lease and move out.

Or you can tally up all of the invisible things you encounter in your day to day life which could possibly cause illness and then seal yourself in a bubble...
posted by wfrgms at 5:26 PM on May 25

If you've already signed on the dotted line and have taken possession, and there was no mold provision, and there's no law covering it, I don't think you have any legal or financial leverage. I think the owner is unlikely to sign anything additional after the fact. You might be able to count on their good graces, on the other hand, but it seems like a longshot. On the upside, due to all the lawsuits, most professional landlords (i.e. not Aunt Sally renting out her spare room) are super paranoid about mold and they want to have it locked down. That's why it so often shows up as an appendix to the lease these days. Check yours and see what you've got. If there was something affirming there was no mold problem, but you find dangerous mold, maybe you've got something.

You can have someone come test it, but be prepared to pay hundreds of dollars. The ones who do the air tests or bring the dog are pretty expensive. The first google result for mold inspection yielded this document on what testing can and can't do. That's the Minnesota Department of Health. They're pretty pooh pooh on the subject in general. But plenty of people have suffered serious health from mold exposure so I think it's good to at least figure out where you stand and what the options are.
posted by kookoobirdz at 7:29 PM on May 25

Home Depot sells do-it-yourself mold testing kits. They cost $10-$20 and then I think $30 or so to send them to be tested (though I'm pretty sure if you don't see any mold growth on the kit, there's no reason to send it in). It's basically just a petri dish that you expose to the environment. I've used it in a place that I was certain had mold exposure and they sent a document identifying the 3 molds that the dish contained. If you are mainly looking for peace of mind, that might be a way to go.
posted by ghostmanonsecond at 8:35 PM on May 25