Many businesses hire professional carpet cleaners to regularly clean and vacuum their carpets. While on a basic level, this can be effective in maintaining your floor’s cleanliness, there can be major problems and risks if water is continually added to your carpet. An environment for mold is naturally created making your carpeted commercial building a Petri dish for mold to grow and flourish and cause major health issues for everyone inside.
Should A Carpet Cleaner Be Used On Mold?
Should you use a carpet cleaner to remove mold from your business’s carpet? No. You should contact a professional to have the mold professionally removed in order to prevent a mold outbreak in your hospital, office building, or in the examples below, your school or church.
Mold Problems In Carpeted Buildings
Mold is a subtle but deadly hazard for commercial buildings. It hides in wet areas, in your ductwork, and under surfaces, waiting for the proper circumstances to spread. Remarkably, one of the unintentional causes of large mold outbreaks may be the very equipment—carpet cleaners—that is supposed to maintain a clean workplace. Additionally there is the challenge of mold spores spreading through HVAC systems, the very system that was supposed to keep the air clean. These challenges is why it is vital to hire a competent mold treatment and air quality testing company.
The Unseen Mold Problem With Carpet Cleaners
Water and cleaning agents are injected deep into the carpet fibers by carpet cleaners, which are intended to remove filth and stains from flooring. Although their cleaning efficacy is widely accepted, there is a problem with water extraction. Many carpet cleaners leave their residue wet because they are unable to completely remove the moisture. Mold thrives in locations with little ventilation or water trapped under under carpets. The water being used and reused throughout a carpet, along with the lingering moisture, this provides the perfect environment for mold to thrive and be spread by the carpet cleaner.
If this moisture builds up, it can cause a serious mold problem that may not only affect the carpeted area but also spread to other parts of the structure. Large carpeted spaces are typical in business settings where an ongoing carpet cleaning schedule is present.
Mold Caused By Carpet Cleaners Case Studies
Past experience and examples serve as sharp reminders of how urgently professional involvement is needed, especially when it comes to indoor air quality and building maintenance. Below are two examples of how water trapped under the carpet from carpet cleaners led to a major mold problem.
1. Mold In School Carpets Case Study
One prominent instance of this was a customer PROAC Corporation had and responded to a mold outbreak at a Delaware charter school. This case study of mold in a school provided insights into the difficulties associated with mold remediation and the value of expert advice.
A Delaware charter school found mold in the carpet of a single classroom. Upon realizing the possible risks, the school administrators contacted PROAC to request an expert evaluation. After arriving, the PROAC team started a comprehensive assessment of the mold and the air quality and tried to determine the source of the moisture. With this information, we could make an effective plan of action.
PROAC advised the refrain from attempting to clean the moldy carpets. The reasoning behind the action stemmed from a basic knowledge of the nature of mold; if the mold was disturbed without appropriate containment in place, the spores might readily move throughout the entire building due to the air ducts and ventilation system. This would cause extensive mold contamination in the school.
The carpets were cleaned, which added moisture and water while also spreading the mold in spite of PROAC’s warnings. While the school had good intentions, the end consequence was precisely what PROAC had hoped to avoid: a widespread growth of mold across the whole school building. The rapidly worsening circumstances highlight the vulnerability of mold containment and the detrimental effects of using the wrong treatment methods.
The school had to shut down due to being overrun with mold. PROAC then had to do extensive work removing the mold from the entire school building rather than just one classroom.
2. Mold In Church Carpeting
During Covid a local church in Pennsylvania experienced mold growing sporadically all throughout their sanctuary’s carpet. Since the sanctuary is large it was not made of one solid piece of carpet. It was made up of separate carpet squares that were 2’x2’. Between each square is a thin spacing that is perfect for water to creep into.
The first bit of mold appeared during the COVID shutdown when the church had sat empty for a longer period during the damp and humid spring months we experienced in Pennsylvania. Carpet cleaners were used to remove the mold, which quickly multiplied throughout the room.
First major efforts were used to remove the mold and dry out the carpets. Due to the water remaining trapped under each square, no matter how many fans were used, the carpet had to be completely removed.
Ventilation & Ductwork Can Spread Mold Spores
While the purpose of your ventilation is to keep the air clean and of higher air quality, it can also contribute to spreading the bad smell in your office or the bad mycotoxins from mold. HVAC systems are essential to the comfort and indoor air quality of commercial buildings. These networks, however, can also serve as pathways for mold spores, dispersing toxins throughout a structure. Spores from mold can become airborne and enter the HVAC system once the mold grows in a certain place, such as a wet carpet. These spores travel throughout the structure in the absence of adequate filtration or routine maintenance, looking for new places to colonize and posing a major health risk.
How To Clean Your Carpet? Probiotics
Probiotic cleansers show promise as an alternate cleaning technique to reduce the chance of mold formation. Probiotic cleaners, in contrast to conventional carpet cleaners, employ good bacteria to dissolve organic debris, filth, and grime without using as much liquid to wet the carpet. This lowers the possibility of leaving behind moisture that might encourage the formation of mold. Commercial facilities may preserve better interior environments with cleaner carpets and less susceptibility to mold growth by utilizing the potential of probiotics.
Contact PROAC To Mitigate Your Mold
Fighting mold in business facilities is a complex process that goes beyond just removing obvious growth indicators. Mold removal requires an awareness of the all the different aspects that play in the growth of mold. This is vital because mycotoxins can be detrimental to your health.
Contact PROAC, we are experts at mold treatment and air quality, as well as using cutting-edge cleaning solutions like probiotic cleansers, all of which contribute to a safer and healthier environment for all inhabitants.