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ENVIRONMENTAL HAZARDS GUIDE ASBESTOS in Buildings Carpet Dust Carpeting and Indoor Air Quality MOLD: A COMPLETE GUIDE TO MOLD INSPECTION, TESTING, CLEANUP & PREVENTION BASICS YOU NEED to FIND, TEST, REMOVE MOLD BOOKSTORE - ENVIRONMENTAL BUYERS GUIDE - home inspections for mold CAT DANDER in BUILDINGS CLEARANCE INSPECTIONS - MOLD CLEANUP DO IT YOURSELF MOLD CLEANUP FIBERGLASS INSULATION MOLD FLOODS & MOLD CLEAN/PREVENT FUNGICIDAL SPRAY & SEALANT USE GUIDE INDOOR AIR QUALITY & HOUSE TIGHTNESS INDOOR AIR QUALITY IMPROVEMENT GUIDE INDOOR AIR QUALITY METHODS COMPARED INSULATION INSPECTION & IMPROVEMENT INSULATION MOLD ITCHY FABRICS MILDEW in BUILDINGS ? MILDEW ERRORS - MOLD PHOTOS MILDEW REMOVAL & PREVENTION MOLD ACTION GUIDE - WHAT TO DO ABOUT MOLD MOLD APPEARANCE - WHAT MOLD LOOKS LIKE Black Mold Brown Mold Green Mold Red Mold Yellow Mold White Mold Invisible Mold Meruliporia Mold Photographs Mildew Photographs Recognize Cosmetic Mold Recognize Harmless Black Mold Stuff that is Mistaken for Mold White stuff that is not mold MOLD APPEARANCE - STUFF THAT IS NOT MOLD HARMLESS INDOOR PARTICLES Basketball Mold Syndrome - BBMS Black stains from soot/thermal tracking Black stains from animals Black cosmetic mold Efflorescence & brown deposits Efflorescence & white deposits House dust Pollen Sprayed foam insulation White stuff that is not mold Wood sap MOLD ATLAS & PARTICLES INDEX MOLD BY MICROSCOPE MOLD CLASSES, HAZARD LEVELS MOLD CLEANERS - WHAT TO USE MOLD CLEANUP COMPANIES MOLD CLEANUP GUIDE- HOW TO GET RID OF MOLD MOLD CLEANUP with BLEACH MOLD CLEANUP - WOOD FRAMING & PLYWOOD MOLD CLEANUP HEALTH RISKS MOLD CLEANUP MISTAKES to AVOID MOLD REMEDIATION CLEARANCE INSPECTION MOLD CULTURES MOLD DETECTION & INSPECTION GUIDE MOLD DOCTOR NEEDED? MOLD EXPERT, WHEN TO HIRE MOLD EXPOSURE RISK LEVELS MOLD EXPOSURE STANDARDS MOLD on or in CARPETS MOLD on DIRT FLOORS MOLD FREQUENCY in BUILDINGS MOLD GROWTH on SURFACES, GUIDE TO MOLD INSPECTORS & MOLD TESTERS MOLD INSPECTION SERVICE MOLD KILLING GUIDE MOLD LEVEL REPORTS MOLD LEVELS IN BUILDINGS MOLD by MICROSCOPE MOLD ODORS, MUSTY SMELLS MOLD PREVENTION GUIDE MOLD RELATED ILLNESS MOLD SPRAYS, SEALANTS, PAINTS MOLD TEST KITS MOLD TEST KITS for DIY MOLD TESTS MOLD TEST PROCEDURES MOLD TEST REASONS MOLD TESTING SERVICES ODORS & SMELLS DIAGNOSIS & CURE RENTERS & TENANTS GUIDE TO MOLD SEWAGE BACKUP TEST & CLEANUP STAIN DIAGNOSIS & GUIDE TECHNICAL & LAB PROCEDURES THERMAL TRACKING TRAPPED MOLD BETWEEN WOOD SURFACES USING LIGHT TO FIND MOLD IAQ ISSUES, OTHER More Information InspectAPedia ® Home & Site Map Air Conditioning Bookstore Electrical Environment Exteriors Heating Home Inspection Insulate Ventilate Interiors Mold Inspect/Test Plumbing Water Septic Roofing Structure Accuracy & Privacy Policies Contact Us |
Here we illustrate and explain reddish brown or pale yellow bubbly surfaces on walls, especially masonry walls or on masonry chimneys, caused by leaks & moisture - efflorescence and sometimes creosote leaks. When investigating a building for a mold problem, you can save mold test costs by learning how to recognize Stuff that is Not Mold or is only Harmless Mold but may be mistaken for more serious contamination - save your money. Our photo at page top shows white fluffy crystals of mineral efflorescence near the bottom of a poured concrete foundation wall. Because some clients have on occasion sent samples to our lab that really should not have been collected, much less looked-at, I provide this library of photographs of things that are "not mold" and don't need to be tested. These are substances that you can easily learn to recognize in buildings. Save your mold test money, and increase the accuracy of your mold contamination inspection or test for toxic or allergenic mold in buildings: review these items to learn recognize non-fungal materials or even possibly harmless cosmetic "black mold" often mistaken for "toxic fungal growth." © Copyright 2010 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. What is the Brown or Reddish Bubbly Stuff Found on Building Walls?
These two photos of ugly reddish brown and white bubbly "growth" on a wall were sent to us by a reader. This stuff looks like terrible mold but it's probably not mold at all. We won't know for sure without testing the material or inspecting the building. But it sure looks like reddish-brown salts left behind by water and moisture passing through a masonry wall or a plaster wall, evaporating from the wall surface and leaving behind all of the crud that the moisture picked up from the wall itself as it passed through. We often find this darker colored wall deposit on older buildings built of brick and stone whose interior wall surface is plaster applied directly to the masonry wall. We also often find this wall "growth" when water has been leaking in a plaster wall cavity. Plaster is so alkaline that it is not as friendly to mold growth - it's not "mold proof" as mold may grow on or in paint or even on or in organic material in or on the plaster. What is Causing the Bubbling and Peeling of Paint on Foundation Walls?
Take a look at this closeup (above left) of peeling paint on a foundation wall in a basement. The lumpiness of the surface tells us that this wall has been painted a number of times, painting over a rough concrete or concrete block surface. In the center of the photograph (above left) you can see where paint is falling away and the gray concrete or concrete block is exposed. At the upper left corner especially you can see rounded bubbles of material that looks as if it is "growing" on this foundation wall. The author's hand (above right) shows a combination of peeling paint, deteriorated masonry surface, and mineral salts all left behind as water and moisture have been passing through the building foundation. There is a water problem in this building and a moisture problem, but the stuff on the wall and in hand is not mold. These pictures shows combination of peeling paint and yellowish-white mineral salts left behind as water is passing through this wall as moisture or as actual liquid water. The moisture is both pushing paint off of the surface and also leaving behind salts of various minerals that were dissolved out of the wall as the moisture passed through it. When water evaporates from a surface it leaves behind minerals that were dissolved in it. Diagnosis of White & Brown Stains on Brick or Concrete Block Chimneys
White powdery stuff appearing on a brick chimney may show up indoors or outside (photo above left). Brown stains leaking out of any chimney (photo above right), whether masonry or metal, may indicate a dangerous condition - prompt inspection is needed. We find these stains on concrete block or "cinder block" chimneys as well, and occasionally on stone chimneys. Brown stains on a chimney wall may also show up indoors or outside (photo above right). The brown stains are probably from creosote or soot washing out of the chimney interior flue and leaking into the attic through the chimney wall. This chimney needs immediate inspection and repair. In either case we recommend that you promptly hire a professional chimney sweep to inspect the condition of the chimney including at the rooftop and inside the chimney flue. Water leaks into a masonry chimney can damage it and make it unsafe both structurally and with respect to leaking dangerous flue gases or even sparks that could cause a fire. See CHIMNEY INSPECTION & REPAIR GUIDE for details. What Does it Mean to Find Efflorescence and Stains in a Building Interior?
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Use links just below or at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website. MOLD APPEARANCE - WHAT MOLD LOOKS LIKE Books & Articles on Building & Environmental Inspection, Testing, Diagnosis, & Repair
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