When we inspect a home, safety is always top of mind. In a UP home, indoor air quality is a critical factor for your family’s health and safety because we Yoopers spend so much time indoors through the long winter months. No wonder mold inspection is one of our most popular services here at UP Home Inspection!

If you’ve been waiting for the right time to schedule a mold inspection, you’ll be glad to hear that our mold testing services just got a whole lot better. Starting this month, you now have the option to add airborne particulate testing when we check your home for mold.

Particulate testing takes mold inspection to a whole new level. Read on and find out why!

Why Add Airborne Particulate Testing to Your Mold Inspection?

The biggest red flag that triggers people to schedule a mold test is that someone in the household is experiencing allergies or other respiratory problems.

Mold is certainly a top suspect when it comes to respiratory distress related to the home environment. However, when you look at overall air quality and allergies, mold issues are just one possible cause. The other main potential issue is the level of particulates in your air. These can be just as problematic as mold but won’t show up in a standard mold test.

Ordering a particulate test with your mold inspection will reveal whether your problem is with mold, particulates in your air, or both. That way you can know for sure what’s causing your respiratory issues, and take appropriate remediation action with confidence.

What Are Household Airborne Particulates And Why Should I Care About Them?

“Airborne particulates” is a catch-all term that describes any piece of debris light enough to float around in the air. If you’ve ever shined a light through a dark room and looked at what’s floating through the air, you’re aware of how prevalent particulates can be in household air. It’s amazing what you’re breathing in all day long!

There are many kinds of particles that can make their way into a home that sometimes we just don’t think about—or don’t want to think about. Unfortunately that old adage, “what you don’t know won’t hurt you” doesn’t apply to what’s in your air.  

Some of these particles, like animal dander, can be highly allergenic. Personally, I know I can’t be around a lot of dander. It makes my lungs tighten up and soon I’m coughing like crazy! Even if a particle isn’t an allergen, like silica, it can still irritate delicate bronchial and lung tissue and lead to serious issues when inhaled.

What Types of Household Airborne Particulates Do We Test For?

Ordering a particulate test along with your mold inspection helps us to identify far more potential issues than mold testing alone. Our airborne particulate testing reveals the presence and amount of the 22 types of particulate matter commonly found in household air samples. These include:

• Dander
• Cellulose Fibers
• Synthetic Fibers
• Fiberglass
• Wood Fibers
• Pollen
• Plant Hair
• Animal Hair
• Human Hair
• Feather Barbule
• Opaque Particles
• Aciniform-like Soot
• Ash and Char-like Soot
• Silicates
• Gypsum
• Talc
• Mineral Salts
• Rust
• Carpet Beetle Larvae
• Dust Mites / Parts
• Insect Parts
• Insect Frass  

Respiratory Issues? Schedule Your Mold Inspection With Particulate Testing Today

If you or someone you live with suffers from allergies, worsening asthma, frequent colds, sinusitis, coughing, sneezing, nasal congestion, or even headaches or fatigue, it could be something in the air.

Why not get it checked out? A simple mold inspection with particulate sampling could help you identify the cause of the issue, so you can find relief. Schedule your mold inspection today!