8 Places Mold Grows and What to Do About it

Mold often hides out of sight in homes. Exposure to mold in residences has caused illness in people and pet animals and has done billions of dollars in damage to building interior finishes and structures, requiring professional treatment by mold abatement contractors. Mold has also destroyed countless amounts of furniture, décor, and other personal possessions. Beyond the most likely locations, such as basements, crawl spaces, and bathroom corners, there are some less obvious spots that should be routinely checked for mold.

What Causes Mold?

Mold needs several things in order to flourish in an area of a home — the right temperature range, sufficient moisture, and a food source. The good news is that most of your home likely provides a poor habitat for mold to thrive. It's those areas that tend to be darker and moister that make good breeding places for mold.

Utah Flood Cleanup Is a Certified Mold Abatement Agency and Is Available 24/7 to Help You With Mold Cleanup.

Where is Mold Most Likely to Grow, and What Can I Do About It?

When you check for mold growth in your home, start with the most common places that mold develops in homes, such as these areas:

Attic

With changing temperatures, moisture from humidity and condensation, seeping through the roof or vents, a home's attic is a haven for mold. Paper items, boxes, and other materials stored in attics are good food sources for mold, and accumulated dust in a musty attic with little air circulating is ideal for mold spores.

What to do? Perform regular checks of your attic for signs of mold. Ensure sufficient ventilation to keep air circulating in the attic. Have your roof inspected periodically, and have any roof leaks repaired urgently, no matter how small.

Basement

Basements are naturally cooler than the ground floor of a house, because they're underground. When moisture enters the basement through small cracks and other tiny accesses around the foundation, or through basement windows or doors, humidity in the basement air promotes mold.

What to do? Periodically inspect your basement for mold. Check for any hairline cracks along basement walls and around access openings. Ensure adequate ventilation and air circulation.

Bathroom

Bathrooms are notorious for promoting mold. It's typically the smallest room in the house, and it's fair to say it's likely to have the highest amount of humidity saturating the environment per cubic inch, due to showering, flushing, and running hot water in the sink. When ventilation is lacking, serious mold issues can emerge.

What to do? Check frequently for evidence of mold under and behind sinks, behind and on the underside of the toilet, around shower bases and in tile grouts, along plumbing pipes, and even under stored bath linens. Ensure excellent ventilation, and strong exhaust fans are used during showers.

Kitchen

Condensation on plumbing pipes, humidity from cooking, dust particles for food, and the right temperatures promote mold in kitchens. Behind, under, and inside the refrigerator, washing machine, dishwasher, or other large or small appliances that use water are common areas for mold growth.

What to do? Clean all sides of kitchen appliances and fixtures frequently, clean inside those that use water, ensure proper ventilation, and especially use exhaust fans during cooking or heavy water use.

Windows

Window sills and frames are exposed to condensation and may not be exposed to adequate airflow except when windows are open during warm temperatures. Dirt accumulates in crevices along the frames and on sills, providing the preferred food for mold spores to flourish.

What to do? Wipe windows and frames thoroughly, to remove condensation. Clean window tracks and hardware. Open windows and clean between glass and screens, if applicable to remove dirt as a food source for mold.

Walls

Drywall exposed to a lot of moisture and dust in the interior atmosphere may be susceptible to mold growth. For wall-papered surfaces, it can be difficult to determine if mold exists behind paper. The likelihood of mold behind wallpaper depends on climate, building quality, usage, and other factors.

What to do? Use mold-resistant primer or other surface treatment for mold prevention on decorative wallpaper. If mold exists, remove and replace wallpaper. If there's more than a small amount of mold, you'll need to have a mold abatement professional remove the contaminated material and sterilize the wall space.

Air Conditioner

Typically, window air conditioning filters and even whole-home HVAC systems with better filters are not entirely effective in capturing dirt from outside a home. Unless your home has a high-end system with a HEPA filter, the air in your air conditioner probably contains enough dust to feed mold spores. The condensation that results from cooling the air, along with ideal temperatures promotes mold growth.

What to do? Running your AC unit for at least 10 minutes each day can help avoid mold growth. During the off-season, store the equipment in a dry space. For a window air conditioner or a whole-house air conditioning system with mold, contact a professional to remove the mold and sanitize the equipment.

Carpets

Cooking, showering and running water in sinks, wet pets, wet feet, spills, humidifiers, window and fixture condensation from changing temperatures, and blown-in moisture from doorways all add moisture to carpets. Add dirt and the typical household temperatures to rugs, and mold thrives.

What to do? Keep carpet cleans. Vacuum a minimum of once weekly, and have carpets cleaned routinely, to help prevent mold spores from proliferating in your carpet.

Whole-House Solutions to Mold Growth

Condensation occurs during winter when cold outside air collides with warmer inside air at windows, doors, various inlets, and even along under-insulated walls. Snowmelt that lays for days or weeks against a house, saturating some areas of inadequately protective exterior walls can also bring in moisture that leads to mold in the basement or around the foundation of a home.

To help prevent mold growth due to winter conditions:

  • Caulk to block air leaks and moisture entering your home.
  • Use a dehumidifier, especially in areas susceptible to moisture.
  • Upgrade wall insulation, to current R-Values determined by the US Department Of Energy for your climate, and home construction type and size.
  • Maintain interior humidity at around 60% or lower. Keep humidifiers clean.
  • Wipe condensation from doors, windows, vent covers, plumbing pipes, and other areas with persistent heavy condensation.
  • Reverse ceiling fan direction, to push air upward, vs. downward, to help prevent condensation from building up on the ceiling and upper walls.
  • Check ceilings, walls, floors, corners, closets, under furniture, and under stored items in infrequently used spaces. Have a professional mold inspection periodically.

Mold Problem? Choose Utah Flood Cleanup for Mold Abatement Services in Utah

We are mold abatement experts as well as disaster cleanup specialists in fire, flood cleanup. We strictly adhere to IICRC S-500 and S-520 guidelines — no shortcuts. Mold abatement cost and other rates are preset per Xactimate software, which is the insurance industry standard. Our professional team holds numerous industry certifications, awards, licenses, and affiliations, including CDS, ASD, IICRC WTR, RRP Certification, Certified Mold Professional, and credentials as an Asbestos Remediation Contractor, Supervisor, and Inspector.

Our services include smoke, fire, flood, and sewage water cleanup and damage repair, and mold remediation. We provide our customers with:

  • No-charge inspection of insured water damage
  • 24/7 emergency service
  • 2 Year Guarantee on Workmanship
  • Affordable financing

We serve customers from our numerous locations throughout Utah. For more information about household mold prevention and elimination, search "Utah mold abatement in home ." Or, to discuss your needs with one of Utah's most efficient mold abatement companies, contact us at Utah Flood Cleanup by calling (801) 823-6637, for a free phone consultation.

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We are disaster cleanup experts located in the state of Utah. We perform cleanup for water damage, floods, mold, fire & more. Give us a call at 801-416-2666 if you're in need of assistance.
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I was corrected and they are still in business. Talked to Daryl and he’s a great guy. Would definitely send work his way if I ever need it.
Robert Mixon
Robert Mixon
22:36 07 Mar 23
We had a leak in our roof while we were out of town. Daryl was so helpful and responded quickly so we were able to get our wood floor dried out to avoid damage to the floor. He was very professional and knew exactly what needed to be done.
Gary Hatch
Gary Hatch
22:52 07 Jun 22
I contact Daryl about wanting to have a mold inspection done in my crawl space. He was incredibly nice and immediately booked at time with me. When he arrived at the house, he carefully did his work, showed me the results of the tests. Thankfully there was no mold. But, even better, he took the time to show me and explain a few areas of concern for the future. Really incredible service. I wish everyone was so professional. I couldn't recommend someone more highly. 5 star!
rhayesparton
rhayesparton
23:22 13 May 22
Daryl with Utah Flood Clean Up, came to inspect a previous roof leak that had left some moisture in our walls. He was very honest about his findings and detailed with the information for removing it! I am a General Contractor and I won’t use anyone else!
Garry Naccarato
Garry Naccarato
14:11 23 Apr 22
My experience with this company is that they are honest and great to work with. Very refreshing to have someone you can trust.
Trevor Heaton
Trevor Heaton
19:44 06 May 20
Called for some detailed information about mold/removal. Daryl was busy, but called back just a few minutes later and spent time answering ALL my questions. He was very knowledgable and patient. Thank you Daryl.
Diane G
Diane G
18:00 17 Apr 20
Sadly, I've had to use Utah Flood Cleanup 4 times in the last year! I really appreciate how quickly they responded to each casualty. They were there right away! Daryl, the owner, gave me a price that was half of the other quote I got, and his men are professionals... not kids who don't have a clue. Plus, he included more "fixes" in his quote for less money. He is very knowledgeable and I felt very confident in his recommendations. He also worked directly with our insurance adjuster so that I didn't have to! I highly recommend this company.
Ashton Carrington
Ashton Carrington
16:09 16 Apr 20
I called Utah Flood Cleanup when I had a leak in the kitchen that drained down into the basement. Daryl came out shortly after speaking to me on the phone! He was friendly, professional and very knowledgeable. He quickly and thoroughly assessed the situation, explaining everything he did as he went along. I was very impressed with how thorough he was in his examination of the damage. He let me know up front what I was looking at and I felt he was very honest and reasonable. I've had other companies out who seem to know very little and just want to start ripping everything out at once! Daryl explained and showed me why he recommended what he did and I felt very comfortable and confident in his recommendations. I highly recommend this company!! You won't be sorry.
Jo Carrington
Jo Carrington
03:09 08 Jun 19
Call these guys for the best knowledge and serve for water damage or mold.
Daryl Olsen
Daryl Olsen
18:58 26 Jan 19
We wanted our house checked for mold due to a moderately high mold count in the air sample. They were very thorough and found only one small spot in the bathroom that needed attention. They advised on our options for dealing with it and did not propose expensive and unnecessary repairs.
Heather Steed
Heather Steed
02:09 16 Aug 18
We absolutely love Utah Flood Cleanup, they come in and take all the problems over. The headache of insurance companies, they pack your items up, the clean up and restoration, and they even move all the items back in. All of there staff are professional and very knowledgeable, they layout a reasonable budget and fight against the insurance to get your house to the best finished state. All of there sub contractors are fast and experts in their fields, this company only uses professional tradesman. We really appreciate all that the Utah Flood Cleanup guys have done for us.
Kit Cc
Kit Cc
03:27 15 Aug 16
Josh and Sam came to inspect the mold we found. They were on time, considerate and knowledgeable about our situation. They presented our options and recommendations to treat the issue. I will recommend Utah Disaster to my friends and family.
Connie Pinnell
Connie Pinnell
18:16 08 Jun 16
Jaxon came and assessed water damage in our basement. They were very helpful and went out of their way to make the experience as painless as possible. Very responsive when questions came up and they were never pushy, which I appreciate.
Aimee Hollingsworth
Aimee Hollingsworth
19:48 01 Jun 16
Jaxon was great, he answered his phone at 6:30 am and was out in an hour and got my basement cleaned up
neil norton
neil norton
14:55 31 May 16
Within the last year we had a major flood in the basement, and just today had another water issue that flooded a smaller portion of the basement. I called The Flood Company immediately and they were on-site within an hour or so. I'm extremely pleased with The Flood Co. The professionalism and expertise demonstrate by Jackson and Sam put my mind at ease, knowing we would be taken care of well. I would recommend The Flood Company to anyone in need of these services. They get a five star rating from us!
William Hansen
William Hansen
03:03 26 May 16
My main water line broke and our crawl space was flooding. I called my insurance company and they recommended these guys. Sam and Jesus showed up and got things taken care of. They stopped the water line and put fans to dry the area. The insurance process was super smooth I'm glad I called them!
Karla Maquin
Karla Maquin
04:11 06 May 16
Utah Flood Cleanup is amazing! Josh and Jesus stopped by after their shift and were kind enough to give us a free inspection of our flood problem. Our little 4 year old thought he'd make a sauna in the bathroom. He flipped the shower on and walked away. We never heard the water running and came upstairs to put my daughter to bed. Sure enough, the shower was pointed into the bathroom and flooded the whole thing. Josh and Jesus came out got the whole place inspected, pulled out themal meters and moisture meters and confirmed there was water damage (and old mold growth from previous spills). They grabbed their tools and began demolishing the floor themselves, right then and there so we could get fans on it to prevent future mold growth. I hope I never have another flood but if I do, I'm definitely calling them again! They're the best!!~~~
Jessica Means
Jessica Means
01:49 22 Apr 16
These guys are great to work with and really go above and beyond to serve their customers.
Zack Adams
Zack Adams
17:36 16 Dec 15
I called in the morning and they came that afternoon. Chris and Jesus came. They were professional, polite, knowledgeable and they quickly got the place all cleaned up and prepped for the repair. Then they recommended some handymen to do the repair. I hired Hank and he was great too. Did the whole job in one day.
Alan Green
Alan Green
20:37 16 Oct 15
You showed up to our house based upon little information. When you got here you went right to work looking to see what was going on. With being a family of 7, it can be a scramble being out of a bathroom and no shower. You were excellent and so kind on letting us know what our options are and what you can do to resolve the problem in our basement bathroom. With being in our new home, not even making a second mortgage payment yet, it is hard to discover there is mold and a water leak through out the basement bathroom and laundry room. I really appreciate the time you took out of your day to come to our house. My brother in law referred us to you, and it was the best referral, so thank you very much.
Ashley Metz
Ashley Metz
22:39 30 Sep 15

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What Our Clients are Saying

Customer Testimonials

I was corrected and they are still in business. Talked to Daryl and he’s a great guy. Would definitely send work his way if I ever need it.
Robert Mixon
Robert Mixon
22:36 07 Mar 23
We had a leak in our roof while we were out of town. Daryl was so helpful and responded quickly so we were able to get our wood floor dried out to avoid damage to the floor. He was very professional and knew exactly what needed to be done.
Gary Hatch
Gary Hatch
22:52 07 Jun 22
I contact Daryl about wanting to have a mold inspection done in my crawl space. He was incredibly nice and immediately booked at time with me. When he arrived at the house, he carefully did his work, showed me the results of the tests. Thankfully there was no mold. But, even better, he took the time to show me and explain a few areas of concern for the future. Really incredible service. I wish everyone was so professional. I couldn't recommend someone more highly. 5 star!
rhayesparton
rhayesparton
23:22 13 May 22
Daryl with Utah Flood Clean Up, came to inspect a previous roof leak that had left some moisture in our walls. He was very honest about his findings and detailed with the information for removing it! I am a General Contractor and I won’t use anyone else!
Garry Naccarato
Garry Naccarato
14:11 23 Apr 22
My experience with this company is that they are honest and great to work with. Very refreshing to have someone you can trust.
Trevor Heaton
Trevor Heaton
19:44 06 May 20
Called for some detailed information about mold/removal. Daryl was busy, but called back just a few minutes later and spent time answering ALL my questions. He was very knowledgable and patient. Thank you Daryl.
Diane G
Diane G
18:00 17 Apr 20
Sadly, I've had to use Utah Flood Cleanup 4 times in the last year! I really appreciate how quickly they responded to each casualty. They were there right away! Daryl, the owner, gave me a price that was half of the other quote I got, and his men are professionals... not kids who don't have a clue. Plus, he included more "fixes" in his quote for less money. He is very knowledgeable and I felt very confident in his recommendations. He also worked directly with our insurance adjuster so that I didn't have to! I highly recommend this company.
Ashton Carrington
Ashton Carrington
16:09 16 Apr 20
I called Utah Flood Cleanup when I had a leak in the kitchen that drained down into the basement. Daryl came out shortly after speaking to me on the phone! He was friendly, professional and very knowledgeable. He quickly and thoroughly assessed the situation, explaining everything he did as he went along. I was very impressed with how thorough he was in his examination of the damage. He let me know up front what I was looking at and I felt he was very honest and reasonable. I've had other companies out who seem to know very little and just want to start ripping everything out at once! Daryl explained and showed me why he recommended what he did and I felt very comfortable and confident in his recommendations. I highly recommend this company!! You won't be sorry.
Jo Carrington
Jo Carrington
03:09 08 Jun 19
Call these guys for the best knowledge and serve for water damage or mold.
Daryl Olsen
Daryl Olsen
18:58 26 Jan 19
We wanted our house checked for mold due to a moderately high mold count in the air sample. They were very thorough and found only one small spot in the bathroom that needed attention. They advised on our options for dealing with it and did not propose expensive and unnecessary repairs.
Heather Steed
Heather Steed
02:09 16 Aug 18
We absolutely love Utah Flood Cleanup, they come in and take all the problems over. The headache of insurance companies, they pack your items up, the clean up and restoration, and they even move all the items back in. All of there staff are professional and very knowledgeable, they layout a reasonable budget and fight against the insurance to get your house to the best finished state. All of there sub contractors are fast and experts in their fields, this company only uses professional tradesman. We really appreciate all that the Utah Flood Cleanup guys have done for us.
Kit Cc
Kit Cc
03:27 15 Aug 16
Josh and Sam came to inspect the mold we found. They were on time, considerate and knowledgeable about our situation. They presented our options and recommendations to treat the issue. I will recommend Utah Disaster to my friends and family.
Connie Pinnell
Connie Pinnell
18:16 08 Jun 16
Jaxon came and assessed water damage in our basement. They were very helpful and went out of their way to make the experience as painless as possible. Very responsive when questions came up and they were never pushy, which I appreciate.
Aimee Hollingsworth
Aimee Hollingsworth
19:48 01 Jun 16
Jaxon was great, he answered his phone at 6:30 am and was out in an hour and got my basement cleaned up
neil norton
neil norton
14:55 31 May 16
Within the last year we had a major flood in the basement, and just today had another water issue that flooded a smaller portion of the basement. I called The Flood Company immediately and they were on-site within an hour or so. I'm extremely pleased with The Flood Co. The professionalism and expertise demonstrate by Jackson and Sam put my mind at ease, knowing we would be taken care of well. I would recommend The Flood Company to anyone in need of these services. They get a five star rating from us!
William Hansen
William Hansen
03:03 26 May 16
My main water line broke and our crawl space was flooding. I called my insurance company and they recommended these guys. Sam and Jesus showed up and got things taken care of. They stopped the water line and put fans to dry the area. The insurance process was super smooth I'm glad I called them!
Karla Maquin
Karla Maquin
04:11 06 May 16
Utah Flood Cleanup is amazing! Josh and Jesus stopped by after their shift and were kind enough to give us a free inspection of our flood problem. Our little 4 year old thought he'd make a sauna in the bathroom. He flipped the shower on and walked away. We never heard the water running and came upstairs to put my daughter to bed. Sure enough, the shower was pointed into the bathroom and flooded the whole thing. Josh and Jesus came out got the whole place inspected, pulled out themal meters and moisture meters and confirmed there was water damage (and old mold growth from previous spills). They grabbed their tools and began demolishing the floor themselves, right then and there so we could get fans on it to prevent future mold growth. I hope I never have another flood but if I do, I'm definitely calling them again! They're the best!!~~~
Jessica Means
Jessica Means
01:49 22 Apr 16
These guys are great to work with and really go above and beyond to serve their customers.
Zack Adams
Zack Adams
17:36 16 Dec 15
I called in the morning and they came that afternoon. Chris and Jesus came. They were professional, polite, knowledgeable and they quickly got the place all cleaned up and prepped for the repair. Then they recommended some handymen to do the repair. I hired Hank and he was great too. Did the whole job in one day.
Alan Green
Alan Green
20:37 16 Oct 15
You showed up to our house based upon little information. When you got here you went right to work looking to see what was going on. With being a family of 7, it can be a scramble being out of a bathroom and no shower. You were excellent and so kind on letting us know what our options are and what you can do to resolve the problem in our basement bathroom. With being in our new home, not even making a second mortgage payment yet, it is hard to discover there is mold and a water leak through out the basement bathroom and laundry room. I really appreciate the time you took out of your day to come to our house. My brother in law referred us to you, and it was the best referral, so thank you very much.
Ashley Metz
Ashley Metz
22:39 30 Sep 15

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