Are You Always Too Tired At Home? Mold Exposure May Be The Reason.

Are you tired all the time? If so, you’re not alone — especially not today. Surveys from early 2022 point to around 60 percent of American adults constantly feeling tired, particularly at home. Hectic work schedules, excess screen time, sleep deprivation, and stress contribute to this trend. And, we can add one more common cause: Mold exposure.

You probably already know that being around a lot of mold can make you sick. After all, it’s why we worry about it growing in our homes. But, do you know what health problems mold can cause — or how varied or subtle they can be?

It’s more than just “feeling sick,” although that’s a start. 

Everything from skin rashes to asthma attacks to even vertigo or depression can stem from too much mold around you. But then again, plenty of other factors can trigger those symptoms. 

So, microbial contamination, like breathing in spores at home, usually isn’t the first thing you or your doctor consider when diagnosing these medical issues.

Before we go any further, we need to stress: We’re not doctors! But, our service plays a vital role in removing mold from people’s homes. As a result, we’ve learned to recognize the signs of mold problems in a house or business and the physical symptoms that stem from exposure. 

HydroKleen208 specializes in mini split and heat pump cleaning in Boise Metro and Valley County in Idaho. And these systems are notorious for breeding mold that circulates in the air you breathe. 

If you’re experiencing signs of fatigue or other health concerns, please consult your general practitioner right away. After that, it’s worth checking your home for signs of a mold problem. Finding and fixing that can be the key to feeling better and healthier. 

This article will explore the relationship between mold exposure and feeling tired. Then, we’ll touch on how to identify and address a mold problem in your home. And, if you use a mini split or other heat pump system in your home, you’ll especially want to read till the end. 

Meanwhile, you can always call us with any questions or concerns about the indoor air quality in your Treasure Valley home or business. We’re here at (208) 779-5596.

Can Mold In Your House Make You Tired?

More than three decades of research show that mold exposure, particularly at home, can cause people to feel tired or develop chronic fatigue. It’s due to mycotoxins, which are toxins produced by mold, decreasing oxygenation in the body, among other reactions that cause people to feel tired.

More Signs Of Mold Exposure

Fatigue isn’t the only symptom of mycotoxin exposure. People may also feel sick, develop rashes, start wheezing, or otherwise have difficulty breathing. These issues are even more pronounced for people with mold allergies.

Related: Can Black Mold Cause Vertigo?

Even more severe reactions can include “brain fog” or trouble concentrating, immune deficiencies, and other serious health issues that can become chronic.

However, part of the problem with identifying these is that they mimic many other issues. For instance, many of those minor symptoms can look like seasonal allergies or a reaction to different fabrics or laundry detergents.

And neurological issues can stem from a wide variety of causes. That’s why it’s also essential to look for other signs of mold in your home and address any you find.

Three Common Signs Of Mold In Your Home

Along with physical symptoms, the most common signs that your home has a mold problem are:

• Persistent Musty Or Mildew Smell
• Finding Spots On Furniture, Walls, Or Clothing
• Walls Are Warped

Related: What Is The Best Temperature To Prevent Mold In My Home?

Persistent Musty Or Mildew Smell

Musty smells are a sign you have standing water or excess moisture somewhere. That means mold isn’t far behind if it’s not already growing. A mildew smell, more specifically, is a sign of fungus and organic growth.

Finding Spots On Furniture, Walls, Or Clothing

Collections of mold spores often take the form of round, colored spots and splotches on many surfaces in the house. Smaller ones may be flat, or they grow to become sticky or fuzzy.

Walls Are Warped

Bulging walls, bubbling or peeling wallpaper, or other damage is often a sign of mold growing where you can’t see it. And, even if that’s not the problem, it may be soon: Those are usually signs of water damage, possibly from a plumbing problem.

Common Mold Problems With Mini Splits

You are very likely to have a mold problem in your home if you’ve had a ductless mini split system for more than a year. It turns out that the air handlers become infested with mold very quickly, and they’re hard to clean. As a result, your heating and cooling system constantly spreads spores through the air it circulates.

Related: What You Need To Know About Microbial Contamination In Mini Splits.

For example, here’s a photo of the coil inside an air handler. We cleaned one side and left the other half dirty so the homeowner could see the difference:

Mini Split And Heat Pump Cleaning In Kuna, ID

The Unexpected Relationship Between Vertigo And Black Mold Exposure

Sudden dizziness. Problems focusing or keeping your balance. Nausea. Sweating. Sudden hearing loss. The room feels like it’s spinning around you. Could the culprit be mold? The answer may surprise you.

The health impacts from mold exposure are real, and they can be severe. But part of the problem is that the symptoms often mimic many other common medical issues. As a result, you or your doctor may not pinpoint the actual cause right away.

And, yes: One of those problems can be vertigo, especially if your symptoms are new and persistent.

Now, that doesn’t mean mold is automatically to blame. After all, other, more common triggers are migraines, inner ear infections or problems, and head injuries.

But, if your sudden onset occurs along with signs of mold infestation, there’s a good chance the two are related. 

This article addresses the problem on a few different fronts. 

First, we’ll talk about the relationship between mold and vertigo. Then, we’ll talk a little more about the condition itself. Finally, we’ll walk you through how to check for mold in your home and what to do if you find it. 

We need to note that we are not medical professionals, and you should talk to your doctor about any health concerns. 

But, since our specialty is mini split and heat pump deep cleaning, we run into many mold problems in the Treasure Valley.

As a result, we’ve learned a thing or two about the effects of mold exposure. So, we’re sharing those with you here. If these problems sound familiar to you, and you use a mini split or heat pump to heat and cool part or all of your home in Boise Metro or Valley County, give us a call today.

Can Black Mold Cause Vertigo?

Black mold can cause vertigo in direct and indirect ways. First, exposure to mycotoxins in mold causes dizziness, triggering vertigo. Second, people who are allergic to mold can experience vertigo due to mold exposure.

Related: Can Mold Make You Dizzy?

Specifically, many doctors believe allergies can lead to Meniere’s disease, an inner-ear disorder that causes vertigo. While the exact causes aren’t yet known, allergies, viral infections, and head injuries appear to play significant roles. 

And, of course, this is far from the only problem people experience from black mold exposure. Less severe symptoms include rashes, watery eyes, runny noses, and trouble breathing. Other people experience anything from fatigue and nausea to “brain fog” and trouble concentrating. 

Related: Mold Toxicity And Physical Symptoms

What Is Vertigo, Exactly?

Vertigo isn’t a disease itself. Instead, it’s a symptom caused by an underlying condition. For instance, we mentioned Meniere’s Disease as a trigger, along with inner ear infections, migraines, ear infections, and other disorders. It can be a one-time experience or become a chronic problem.
And that depends largely on what’s causing it for you. In the case of mold exposure, you’re likely to experience it more than if there’s a mold problem at home. We’ll talk more about that again later. But first, let’s go back to the physical symptoms you’re experiencing.

Four Ways To Address Vertigo

The four best ways to begin addressing chronic vertigo episodes are:

1. Visit Your Doctor
2. Change Your Sleep Habits
3. Adjust Your Movements
4. Do Specific Exercises

Visit Your Doctor

Your first step, no matter what, is visiting your doctor. You need to identify and hopefully rule out various illnesses that may be at the root of your problem. Your doctor will also help you put together a treatment plan and may prescribe medication for an underlying issue.

Change Your Sleep Habits

Get into a stress-free routine before bed, so you’re relaxed. Sleep on your back to avoid fluid buildup in your ears.

Adjust Your Movements

Try not to stoop down when picking up something. Don’t stretch your neck too far, and turn your head slowly and carefully. These steps avoid irritating your ears or otherwise triggering an episode. And, returning to your sleep habits: Get out of bed carefully and slowly when you wake up.

Do Specific Exercises

You can find many simple movement exercises that help end an episode or prevent future problems. 

Now that we’ve dug into those symptoms and how to avoid them, let’s talk again about eliminating specific triggers in your home. Specifically, mold. After all, finding and removing a mold infestation helps with more than just vertigo.

Related: Indoor Air Toxins And Their Symptoms

More Signs Of Mold In Your Home

Identifying a mold problem from physical symptoms is tricky because those symptoms mimic other medical issues. So, here are more things to look for:

Related: Healthy Air At Home Is Crucial For People With Asthma

Damp, Musty Smells

Damp, musty smells indicate a good breeding ground for mold (spores need dark, moist, and warm places to grow). And, the must smell on floors and walls can mean there’s already a problem.

Spots On Walls, Furniture And Clothing

Mold growth can take the form of fluffy or slimy spots that are black or white. You can find them on surfaces all over your home, and even shirts and other clothing items.

Warping Walls

Bulges, peeling wall/paper, and other signs that look like water damage may also be caused by mold growth behind the walls. At the same time, there may be a hidden leak that’s contributing to mold.

Ductless Mini Splits And Mold

Now, we need to address a source of mold and spores buildup that’s becoming more and more common in Idaho: Ductless mini splits in homes and businesses.

For the most part, these heating and cooling systems are excellent: THey provide exceptional comfort while using very little energy. But, the downside is that they are prime breeding grounds for microbial contaminants. And, they’re very tough to clean.

Remember how we mentioned that spores require dark, moist, warm places to grow? Well, you just described the inside of an air handler.

Warm air enters the system, and there’s no light in there. As the unit cools the air, water vapor condenses back into liquid. Most of it drains out from the unit, but there’s still some left in there.

The result? Mold growth that ends up looking like this:

So, how do you get rid of it? 

As we said, it’s not easy — even for a professional HVAC tech. They’d have to take apart each unit in your home and scrub each one manually. That’s incredibly time-consuming when you have to get in between each of the small ridges on that coil we showed you there. 

That makes it very expensive and not consistently effective. Meanwhile, all that junk you see on the coil makes its way back into the air you breathe every day. 

Related: How Often Should A Mini Split Be Cleaned?

Fortunately, there’s a better solution out there: Hydrokleen’s world-renowned heat pump and mini split cleaning process. 

Our parent company, HydroKleen Global, spent more than ten years developing and improving the tools, processes, and nontoxic cleaners necessary to flush out all the dirt, toxins, and microbial contaminants from a mini split system in one quick visit. 

You can read more about our process in our Learning Library. But the long and short of it is: We’ll show you the progress we’re making during our visit so you can see what’s happening. And, we guarantee it improves your system’s performance and makes the air you breathe feel cleaner. 

If not, the cleaning is free. 

Mini Split And Heat Pump Cleaning In McCall, ID

HydroKleen208 provides world-renowned mini split and heat pump cleanings to homes and businesses from McCall, ID down through Boise. Our process eradicates mold, bacteria, and other microbial contaminants that make you feel sick at home. Call (208) 779-5596 with questions or to schedule an appointment.