MouldCheck Home Test Kit

Mould can cause many problems for allergic people and some toxic moulds can cause ill health to people who are not allergic. The most common symptoms of mould allergy are a running nose, watering eyes, wheezing and sneezing and sometimes itching. In severe cases mould allergy can even cause aches and pains and depression.

We are really excited about being able to offer this new product. It is a little test kit to see what level of mould you have in a particular room. The beauty of this test is that it is so simple to use and you can analyse the results yourself. We trialled the test kit in our sitting room which is built into the bank and consequently suffers from a certain amount of damp. We usually have a dehumidifier running which we turned off the day before the test but still the results were a bit of a surprise.

Within 3 - 4 days the test kit shows you what level of mould you have in a particular room and then you can take measures to deal with it if necessary.

If your results are poor or very poor you will need to take extra measures to deal with your mould problem. Although we have a dehumidifier running constantly in our sitting room, our results showed 12 colonies so the measures we have taken so far are obviously not sufficient. We have now installed an Airfree and will be using the AirCleanse spray in the air and will do another check in three weeks time. 

N.B. The MouldCheck kit should be used within five days of receipt.

Recommendations to reduce mould in your room

1. If there are obvious sources of damp that you can have fixed, have them fixed!
2. Install a dehumidifier to remove excess moisture from the room.
3. Install an Airfree which will incinerate any mould spores in the air and keep mould levels to a minimum. An Airfree works on conmvection and takes between 14 - 21 days to reach maximum effectiveness.
4. Use AirCleanse allergy spray to control mould spores in the air while the Airfree is getting up to speed

The test is for one room only. Make sure that all windows and doors are kept closed in the room for 24 hours before doing the test.

1. Unwrap the test kit and fill in the label on the lid of the petri dish. This is useful if you are using kits in more than one room - it also reminds you of what date you did the test.
2. Remove the lid of the petri dish. Place the dish on a flat surface in the room to be tested and leave for one hour. Take care not to touch the surface of the agar in the petri dish.
3.  After one hour, replace the lid on the petri dish and secure it either with a rubber band or a small piece of tape. Place the petri dish in a cupboard or any dark space and leave for three days at room temperature.
4. After 3 days remove the lid and count the number of distinct mould colonies that have grown. If there are some tiny colonies that have not yet developed, you can return the test to the cupboard for an extra day.
5. Analysing the results - Count the number of colonies in the petri dish:

                0 - 3        Good

                4 - 6        Acceptable

                7 - 12     Poor

                13+         Very poor

N.B. The MouldCheck kit should be used within five days of receipt.