Is this MOLD?

[kc2651]

i have this in my basement not sure if it is mold does anyone know? Thanks

 

[ToolGuy]

No, just some greyish stain. I see that in pine wood all the time. Don't know what it is. Maybe it was mold at one time, before they cut the tree.

Mold will be dark black and sort of fuzzy looking, like what you see on old bread. Also, mold will not form in what you show in the photos because it's not wet.

 

[Phatboy]

Tool guy is correct. Its just the coloring of the wood, I acctually like it verses clean man made looking wood.

 

[Quattro]

Yup, some of the floor joists in my house look similar. Not mold!

 

[cheesefood]

I'm about 95% idiot, but isn't most of the wood pretty mold-resistant? I thought that mold only attacked drywall and the studs/joists on really old homes.

 

[ToolGuy]

I'm about 95% idiot, but isn't most of the wood pretty mold-resistant? I thought that mold only attacked drywall and the studs/joists on really old homes.

No.. mold will grow on pretty much anything that retains moisture. Actually, the douglas fir used on older houses, say pre 1930's, is a little more resistant than today's fast grown yellow pine.

Of course, treated lumber is resistant to mold.

 

[inspectorD]

I hate when I have to do this but...
Mold eats things which are cellulose based. Wood, paper,dust anything organic....and wet.OOOOOOO sounds nice.
And it does grow on PT lumber, just on the exterior of it. That's why we all own pressure washers to clean our decks. But that is a non-toxic mold. It usually just staines the wood.
That mold there is like Toolguy says...it come free with the lumber from an uncovered yard. I remember it from all those house sized piles I moved when I was framing homes...and my clothes got..well, moldy.
Nothing to worry about until your home reaches the 55% humidity levels.
That means you will start to smell it. If it smells moldy now...you may have mold growing somewhere else.
The good thing is it can be tested, and cleaned.

 

[ToolGuy]

Now see what you did? I done went an' lernt sumthin. But then, why then does it grow on fibergla... oh, dust. Never mind.

 

[inspectorD]

Give a man a fish and he eats for a day....teach a man to fish ...and he has to learn a whole new slew O' ways to git out of the house.

 

[Batavia_1009]

Thanks for that knowledge. I've seen that before too, but I wasn't sure if I needed to be concerned.