How to find hidden mold
 

Technical information ahead:

The home I purchased recently has a musty smell so I got a professional test by a mold inspector. The results showed elevated levels of cladosporium, pestalotia, curvularia and hyphal fragments in the kitchen and master bedroom compared to the outdoor baseline. Fortunately aspergillus was close to the baseline.

The problem is that no mold is visible anywhere, but as regards the kitchen, the inspector says the mold is behind the cabinets. I'm not sure how he knows that for sure. Before I hire a remediation specialist to tear up the cabinets or the drywall in the adjoining room, is there a way to definitively pinpoint the location of hidden mold?

Or...if the mold is hidden and undisturbed, can I just leave it alone? I was planning to get a new roof anyway. Is that good enough?

Thanks for any input.

You might see if any of the local companies have a mold sniffing dog. They will at least alert in the area the mold is located.

I am skeptical about a mold inspector in Florida. Our humidity is always sky high and it's hot most of the time. There is mold down the pipes in the kitchen for sure and also the bath drains.

I have never heard of mold behind cabinets here. NEVER. If you do not run your air while you are gone if you are a snowbird, your carpet may mold. When we were away we put the air on 83 degrees to stop any mold on carpets.

Mold Scams ..........Common Signs of Mold Remediation Scams

You can buy a camera that will allow to look inside the walls through a small hole, with any luck you would be able to see if there is mold. Also, mold needs moisture, there are instruments that accurately measure the amount of moisture in the drywall, some of the home inspection agencies have these devices. hope this helps.

The pinhole camera is a great idea if I can find someone who does that. The problem with the moisture instrument is that it won’t find dry, inactive mold.

I would suggest getting an air quality specialist or mold remediation expert in, and take any info you get on this site with a grain of salt. Some of the posters are experts in EVERYTHING!...not.

If you have a compatible cell phone I think I saw the endoscope cameras on Amazon. These plug into the phone and have a light as well as the camera. I agree with above an air quality specialist would probably be the best choice. Had to do this up north in a crawl space, ended up with a $6000+ clean up, negative pressure and moon suits...........

You can buy a do it yourself test kit for mold at any of the local hardware stores.

You might want to try an ozone generator to get rid of the musty smell. We're snowbirds and have had trouble with a musty smell in our house up north when returning after being away for a while. For the past couple of years we've been using an ozone generator that we bought on Amazon for about $70 to zap the house when we return, and every now and then to just freshen up the place. We let it run for an hour or so with the heating system fan running while we're out of the house running errands. When we return, we open a few windows and take a walk or do more errands for a while. You don't want to be in the house with it running and until it airs out. The ozone can damage your lungs. But, it's done a great job in getting rid of the musty smell, which I think might be coming from the air ducts.

Don't fix what's not broken
 

I believe this gentleman's response is best. Everyone's home has some mold. It is unavoidable. Have we not lived with asbestos since we were children?
Good luck

I would contact my homeowners insurance company. This could be an expensive issue that is covered by insurance.

Some of the stucco houses smell horrible here. Others do not. I have never been able to figure out why houses right next door to each other could smell so different. Only thing I could think of is that maybe it rained the day they filled the cement block walls, during construction, and it never dried properly. They don't let it dry very long before they start enclosing it with drywall, etc.

Check outside drainage around your house. I had mold growing inside an outside corner. Rain water was seeping in causing mold along the baseboard in one room.
A gutter and a professional mold remediation company fixed it.

Molds are different across the US. Mold in Florida is very weak mold. We have high humidity and heat which makes it easy for it to grow. Places in the west and mid west where it is dry, mold has to be strong to grow. Strong mold is dangerous. Most time mold in walls or behind cabinets here is from a leak. I would call my inspector Eagle Comprehensive and he has an infrared camera that can detect leaks. Find the source first. I would check government mold website to see if your levels are “bad” before tearing out anything. You maybe be able to use heat dryers to kill dampness and install a dehumidifier. Does your home have a lot of trees hanging over it? I would skeptical too, I have sold real estate across the country and that is how I got my exposure to mold info. Good luck! Andrea Bonivich, Sellstate Superior Realty

cladosporium is the most common spore, think tree and leaf mold, and the air test only shows total spore counts not viable or non-viable. ( alive or dead ). You would be shocked at the spore levels of Clad in fall. Musty smell means water or moisture has awaken preexisting mold. Most likely aspergillus ( mildew ) which wakes up at about 74% moisture( think humidity and dew point ) Was a mold inspector and never trust non-viable air tests....there is no baseline BTW just the outside comparison done that minute outside that day. IMO