Hi Moms,
Please help. Our daughters room smells like mold. I'm sure it came from running a humidifier in her room this winter. So far, we've taken her mattress off the floor and onto the frame, and cleaned the carpets. Today I'm going to try Rug Doctoring the mattress, washing her blankets(which don't smell, but maybe it'll help?) and sorting through the stuff animals to see if any of those smell.
It happened last winter, and we just moved her mattress, washed the carpets, and the windows and everything was fine. Have any of you been through this? What worked for you?
Thanks in advance for any and all suggestions!
N.
Could also be outside the windows in the roof overhang, the gutters outside her windows, etc.
I'd definitely run a dehumidifier or fans in there for several days.
I recently posted something similar. We couldn't figure out what was causing it either. My guess was either the humidifier or a spilled drink of some sort. I steam cleaned and washed the bedding. It seemed a little better for a day, but I could still smell it and it got worse as the day progressed. I didn't want to steam clean the mattress, I was afraid I wouldn't get all the water out and make an additional problem for myself. The hubby checked for a water leak around the windows and checked the walls for signs and nothing but a stinky room. Finally I pulled out all the babies and stuffed animals and washed them ( non of them smelled, but I washed them all anyway). I also washed her curtains and her pillows. I took her mattress and put it in the sun for a few hours. Opened the windows for an entire day to air things out. And I steam cleaned again...extremely carefully, making sure to get it as dry as possible. I also wiped everything down with a vinegar and water solution. I am not sure which of those things did the trick, but the smell was gone and hasn't returned.
could be the carpet padding holding in the musty aroma. Dump a few boxes of arm and hammer on the carpet and sweep it in and let it set a few days before vacuuming it up.
Chances are if you smell mold, there is mold. It might be in the walls. I think there are companies you can call that will come out and check. There might even be an at home kit. Check with a store like Home Depot or Lowe's. I'm sure they would have something.
I would be concerned with walls molding between the studs and the drywall. Mold can hide where you can't see it. I don't know what kind of house you have, but in my house (1.5 story built in 1906) we check the attic for mold every year. Both kids sleep upstairs. It can cause havok on sinuses, throat, lungs...
You'd likely notice a leak somewhere, but not necessarily if there was one in between the home's frame & drywall (even mold in the insulation).
Wash the curtains.
Move all the furniture away from the walls and see if mold grew on the walls behind or the back of the furniture. Wipe all the walls down with a mild Clorox solution then air it out (or run a dehumidifier in it) till it's completely dry.
Also clean out her closet and check those walls, too.
Vaccuum out the heating/cooling vents in her room.
Mold spores will hide everywhere and wait for the right conditions to grow again so wash and dry everything you can whether it smells or not.
