Today’s harvest of mold complaints is pretty much status quo. Someone in Oregon wondering if they can sue their landlord over a moldy window sill (not unless the mold has actually hurt the tenant, and even then the lawsuit is doubtful); how do I know if my house is moldy? (um, look? Get an inspection); Can moldy organic peanuts hurt me? (ALL peanuts have some mold, organic peanuts are likely to have more mold. Just because something is organic doesn’t mean it is perfect);

Mold keeps growing in the world, and we keep fielding answers about it.

Goland Services Property Management has been notified by a tenant of mold taking over a Sacramento duplex.

Mold in the apartment covers every available surface, window sills, etc. Furniture and clothes have been tossed to try to control the spread. And the tenants can’t afford to move.

If this is your situation too, and you’re in California, you might want to give us a call and see about getting an assessment from Byebyemold.

It’s not that unusual that when units went into foreclosure, mold starts growing out of control. Either there’s a leak, or trapped humidity or a lack of maintenance, or a combination of factors. In any case, having no one living in a property helps boosts mold’s ability to get a foothold in a property, sometimes even becoming so bad it affects neighbors. It certainly affects property values.

After hearing from government whistleblowers (employees complaining of illness and unhealthy working conditions,) the FAA is attempting to clean up the Detroit Metropolitan Airport to rescue it from its current mold infestation by replacing the roof, putting in new drywall and installing new ceiling tiles and carpet. The US Office of Special Counsel is handling.

If you’re in California, click here to Inquire about an Inspection

The honeymoon is really over when you come home to your dream home that is making you sick. Which is what happened to Danielle Beety who refers to her experience as like an episode of HOUSE. Her mystery illness was a 5-centimeter abscess in her neck (surgically removed) and fever that returned every time she and her newlywed husband returned to their new home.

The environmental engineer who did air and wipe testing in their leaky basement and found elevated levels of mold and gram-negative bacteria – resistant superbugs that cause respiratory and other ailments. Doctors and the environmental engineer told them to grab their dog and move out.

So they did.

Foreclosure on their house will begin soon, but they’re leaving everything behind. The builder denies that the house caused the illness. Internationally known microbiologist Chin S. Yang links the housing boom and environmental-health issues. He believes that rapid building to keep up with the housing boom resulted in less than high quality buildings suffering with sick building syndrome. Toxic bacteria and mold are a trigger of health problems. For some of these toxic homes, demolition is the only solution.

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Mold mold everywhere, coming out of the vents, on the ceilings, making it hard for people to breathe. Residents of Sovereign Townhomes complain of a mold infestation that they are calling a “mold invasion.” Managers claim they remove mold when it is discovered. Some of their tenants receive Houston Housing Authority assistance.

The HHA has 12 inspectors performing about 12 daily inspections. 44% of the 29,000 yearly inspections performed for Houston Housing Authority fail.

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“Boggy” and “swampy” Orlando Firehouse too pricey to fix, too pricey to replace. Station 9 on Mercy Drive in northwest Orlando has had mold and water intrusion since at least 2000. The City Council approved the $550,000 purchase of a 1.88-acre lot, and applied for a a $4 million federal grant that would pay for it.

Environmental studies show a damp crawl space beneath the building. Although some work was done,there is often standing water in the crawl space.

Is it a case of mold poisoning or did the deer simply eat themselves to death?

Deer in Otter Tail County apparently gorged themselves on local corn in the absence of herbage, and basically ate until they died. At one point, the deaths were considered a result of eating mold, but the mold involved is blue and green mold in corn and is not toxic. it is the red or pink mold that’s toxic, mold which contains aflatoxin. None of the mold that has been found actually contains aflatoxin.

The deer’s normal diet is alfalfa, and apparently, having no alfalfa unbalanced their diet.

Not that you should expect deer to show up to eat your house mold–though if that happened, you would certainly have a photograph to sell to the National Enquirer.

So I’m sitting here with the flu, thinking about writing about mold. Most of the symptoms I have—runny nose, headache, sore throat, congestion, cough—could have been from mold exposure. (Actually I know who gave me this. Thanks for sharing. You know who you are.)

So those of you out there who are coming down with winter colds with significant respiratory symptoms, don’t forget to check your house or signs of mold, especially if you know of a leak somewhere. Because that cold you have could be an allergy, the result of being in a closed environment with a population of mold spores floating around, dispersed to your lungs by your enthusiastic heating system.

Leaks lead to mold, as does excessive humidity. And just because it is winter, that cellulose your house is made of is going to be just as tasty as ever to all those hungry mold spores. In fact, with your heat on, as far as mold is concerned, it is spring 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. Daunting, isn’t it?

Yes, mold can grow at any time of the year. AND if your house has an infestation, if you have your central heat running, or ceiling fans on to circulate the heat, you may also be circulating those mold spores, because the spore survives for one reason and one reason only. It is just looking for a place to establish the next colony.

No, you don’t have to feel like the martians are coming. Just keep the place as clean and dry as possible, and we’ll all survive till spring. And pass me some of that hot tea, will you?