Interior Mold Issues
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Mold or mildew? This is on the paneling in the closet where there is no air vent present. I pulled a piece of the paneling away from the wall and pulled up the carpet as well. There does not seem to be any moisture or mold behind the paneling or on the concrete floor and padding under the carpet. Do I use white vinegar vs bleach vs something else? Any advice is appreciated. Thanks.
Yes, this is very likely mold growth (mold and mildew are interchangeable). The mold growth is likely due to condensation. This is due to the fact you didn’t find evidence of mold and moisture on the backside of the paneling. If the mold growth was from a water intrusion, we would expect to see even more growth on the backside of the paneling. You have a couple of ways to prevent future growth. First, increase the heat and ventilation in this room. The higher the heat, the less condensation will form on the wall paneling.
Second, insulate the wall cavity behind the paneling. This will increase the temperature of the wall paneling and eliminate condensation. Clearly this is a more involved solution than the first step (increase heat & ventilation).
I also recommend purchasing a relative humidity gauge to monitor the room during the winter months. Depending on your climate, you want to keep it under 50% RH.
We had a leak in our apartment that took our landlord one month to address. They wound up having to knock out the wall (water damage and we were worried about mold) and they found (surprise) what we all beleive to be a lot of mold. All of our belongings are still in that apartment. Are our belongings (sofas, clothes, EVERYTHING, etc.) safe or will they get moldy now?
This is a tricky question. It entirely determines on how the moldy material was removed. If it was carefully placed in garbage bags, it may have had little effect on the surrounding areas. On the other hand, if it was carried haphazardly throughout the apartment, the spores may have been widely distributed.
The good news – because the mold never grew directly on your contents, it is easily removed. Regularly laundering will remove the settled mold spores. Items that can’t be laundered such as furniture can be damp wiped with a wet cloth or vacuumed. If vacuuming, make sure to use a HEPA rated filter/bag.