HELP! I have a baby and mold in the air

[Candice Johnson]

I have lived in this apartment for 6 months now and I have had problems with mold, small issues but I have a 5 month old! So I found a mushroom growing in the bathroom, got a work order they came and cleaned it up along with mold in the bathroom window, they cleaned it up. Then we had a "flood" from where the hose in the back of the fridge had busted and my daughters room, kitchen, bathroom, hallway, hallways closet and my bedroom closet all had water under carpets and the came and vacuumed, twice and i have work orders for that then lastly i went to go get a pair of shoes i hadn't wore in a week or two and there was mold all over my shoes in the closet! thank god for renters insurance! Oh and a leak i=under my bathroom sink they supposedly fixed and i found on the other side of the wall( my closet) that there were black stuff on the other side of wall that had fell off( its a wall piece that comes off to get to bathroom wall pipes) all they said is that is was a fungus... any who i have work orders and i want to know how to go upon getting out of lease. I did take a mold air sample test thing and just sent it off to lab today HELP

[Sean OReilly]

Years ago, I moved out of my home and rented it while we waited for it to sell. We had tenants that thought they experienced mold in the home, and learned a few things from the testing company:

1. Mold exists in the air naturally anywhere. It lives on surfaces outdoors, and gets picked up in the air and blown around. For this reason, a professional will take air samples outside of the residence, as well as inside, to establish that the mold level inside is elevated.

2. Mold cannot always be positively identified on visual inspection (mold and mildew are two separate things, and black mold and mildew can look similar).

3. Most molds are generally harmless, although some can be highly toxic.

4. Professional mold testing is expensive, but will be given more consideration should the matter go to court.

Testing ran about $1,000 in 2008, for both surface and air samples. In the end, what was thought to be "mold" was actually mildew. 

Having said all that, the EPA has guidelines here on how to handle various building materials that have been in contact with water. For the most part, carpet that has been wet for more than 24-48 hours should be removed and replaced, and in all cases the padding and subfloor underneath should be dry.