The Dangers of Mold in Your Chimney
Taking care of your chimney isn’t easy and it can be costly. Maintaining a chimney requires a lot of time, materials, skill and constant attention. You need to constantly monitor your chimney in order to ensure the safety of your home and family.
A big concern for chimney owners is the presence of mold in their chimney and not knowing whether it is there or not. It is important for chimney owners to know the dangers of mold and how they can not only prevent it, but eliminate it.
What you need to know:
Aside from water being known to cause damage in your chimney’s mortar and brick and not to mention the risk it has on potentially damaging your chimney’s structural integrity, water is the number one enemy because it is the key ingredient in the forming of mold.
Signs of mold:
How do you know if mold is forming or has formed in your chimney? Without going up into your chimney, diagnosing the presence of mold requires you to be very attentitive. This is predicated on the season you are currently in. Since the potential for mold growth greatly increases with the presence of water, you need to be more alert whenever it’s warm, rainy or humid. Second, you need to take note of the smell. If you notice a musky odor circulating, then that is definitely a tell-tale sign of mold growth.
Potential Dangers and Hazards:
Every person has a different reaction to certain substances. The same is true with a person’s reaction to molds. Here are a few of the common physical reactions attributed to mold growth:
- Dizziness
- Breathing problems
- Flu-like symptoms
- Memory loss
- Weakened immune system
Of course, these reactions vary depending on the severity of the mold growth and exposure and the person’s physical state upon contact.
Preventing Mold in your home:
In order to prevent the possibility of mold growth, you should absolutely waterproof your chimney and make sure you have a suitable chimney cap installed. Chimney caps cover the opening so that little or no water at all can enter. Eliminating the possibility of water also eliminates the possibility of mild growth in your chimney.
Please don't take a chance with mold, call us at Guaranteed Chimney of New England and keep your family and home safe!