Sampling For Mold

Sampling can be done in order to help confirm the presence of mold, identify the type of mold, and locate the source of mold. There are several methods of sampling, such as the following:

• Air - Used to assess respiratory exposure to mold, identify hidden mold growth, and assess control measure effectiveness after mold remediation. This is the best testing method for assessing respiratory mold exposure.
• Surface - Used to measure the number of mold spores on indoor surfaces and the source of mold exposure
• Swab - Used to identify mold species and levels in a measured area by growing swabbed mold spores on an agar plate in a culture medium
• Bulk - Used to identify and verify the mold source in a contaminated environment
• Dust - Used to identify mold sources and assess health effects from exposure to mold spores found in dust

Sampling can also be done after a remediation or cleaning to determine if it was successful. Indoor samples should be compared to outdoor samples when making this determination. If the two are similar in type and concentration, then the remediation was successful.

Sampling is not necessary under general conditions when you can visually identify growing mold, as the goal of mold identification and remediation is to identify the source of the problem, repair it, and clean up the mold.

Sampling can be important under certain circumstances, such as the following:

• When litigation is involved
• When the source of mold is not evident
• When dealing with health concerns

However, sampling is prone to error and limitations. If not conducted by a trained professional, some of the problems that you can encounter are as follows:

• Inadequate quantity of samples
• Inconsistency of samples
• Omission of outdoor samples for comparison
• Contamination of samples

To learn more about Mold visit our Mold Abatement, Remediation & Removal Online Training web page.