How Do Professionals Test For Mold?


Hi, I’m Jeremy with MoldStar Remediation and I am a Certified Microbial Consultant. You can find me on the web at www.moldstarremediation.com

You can call me at 404-989-9981.

Today I would like to talk with yo about: How do professionals test for mold. This would depend on what you are trying to find out.

Is the Air I’m Breathing Contaminated With Mold?

Most people want to know if their air is contaminated. Knowing if the air is contaminated will tell you what you are breathing and help establish a cleaning plan. When the air is contaminated, the spores that are in the air will eventually land on a surface such as the walls, ceiling, floor, as well as the personal contents.

When the air is contaminated there is going to be non-visible mold contaminants on every surface in the room that need to be removed.

Professional mold inspectors use a spore trap and an air pump such as this…to collect the air sample.

The air pump cycles 75 of air in the room through the spore trap and impact on a sticky solution inside the spore trap.
The spore trap is then opened in the lab and analyzed under a microscope.

The lab will produce a report that will detail the genus types and quantities of mold spores in the air. A professional mold inspector will then review the report and estimate the quantities and genus types of mold spores that originate from indoor mold growth and can then offer advice and recommendations.

One of the limitations of a spore trap air sample is that it only identifies the genus type of mold spores in the air. Each genus type of mold has a number of different species. For example: Aspergillus is a common type of mold that grows indoors. It has about 200 different species.

What Type of Mold Species are Present in My Home?

If you want to know the species of molds present in your homes and if you are being exposed to toxic mold, a Dust Analysis can be helpful.

What Is A Dust Analysis

We collect a sample of dust from the carpets. The mold spores present in the dust are grown in the lab to determine what both genus and species of molds are present in the dust in the home. It is a good test in determining if toxic molds are present in the home, since it identifies the mold spores down to the species level.

The theory is that the mold spores present in the dust was at one time airborne and occupants are breathing it.
You can compare the dust analysis results to the air sample results and estimate the species of mold spores that you are breathing.

Swab Samples

Swab samples are another testing method. Swabs are used to identify the type of mold that is being swabbed. One of the limitations of a swab is that one swab provides information for the one square inch that is being swabbed.

Sometimes swabs can be useful if it needs to be proven if mold is present on a surface, such as for a court case, insurance claim, or during clearance testing.

If you want to know what you are breathing or need a mold remediation, call MoldStar Remediation for all of your mold remediation needs.


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