Forscher Property Inspections are in the business of property inspections in Pinellas, Hillsborough and Pasco counties and the general Tampa Bay area. Home inspections include 4 point and wind mitigation inspections.
Anyone that has been in the Florida climate for any length of time is well aware of the humidity that is pervasive here. They are aware of going out in the hot sun for a short period of time and breaking out in a profuse sweat.
What they might not be aware of is the effect that this might have on one’s home and the things that one should understand and do on a routine basis to avoid moisture and mold issues.
It is best to operate a dehumidifier in a home to keep the humidity below 55 to 60% because having it any higher creates an environment that mold spores can potentially start to thrive.
Although it may feel nice to leave windows and doors open, this can subject the house to high humidity outdoor air and mold spores which come in with that air and can than grow and multiply as well as start to park themselves on the surfaces in your house including furniture. You will not necessarily even see it but it can develop in areas such as under a bed where one sleeps all night and one could be breathing spores.
My wife and I learned the hard way on this specific scenario. We used to open doors and windows in the house. My wife started to have physical issues and this was traced back to mold found in her body. We could not see the mold. We even moved from that house to a new condominium on the water and took all our furniture with us. She was still getting the same physical reactions. We had a mold inspection done and very fine mold was found on much of our furniture although it was not visible to the naked eye.
As a Florida home inspector although I am not specifically doing a mold and moisture inspection, I like to relay this type of information to clients so they can start to think with it. Many are moving in from dryer climates and many just may not be aware of it.
If you are in need of a Tampa Bay Area home inspector my experience includes about 10,000 inspections done. We do both residential and commercial property inspections.
Gregg Forscher
Forscher Property Inspections
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