Dew point and air leaks can cause Captiva mold
How the dew point and air leaks can cause Captiva mold growth in your home
We have all seen dew on the grass in the morning or condensation on the outside of your windows in the morning. This condensation is caused when moist warm air comes in contact with a cool surface or cool dry air. This causes the Captiva moisture in the warm air to condense on the cool surface.
When this occurs, the air reaches it’s “DEW POINT”. The dew point is the temperature to which a given parcel of air must be cooled, at constant barometric pressure, for Captiva water vapor to condense into water. All this is fine in nature but when it happens inside our home or in our attic it can be a problem.
In your hot attic, a Captiva leak in the air conditioning ducting or a pealed back strip of duct tape will cause Captiva water to condense and drip through your insulation onto the top side of your csiling drywall. Over time this Captiva water will support Captiva mold growth. If there are cracks around your windows or wall penetrations the same Captiva condensation will occur and may support Captiva mold growth on wood trim or drywall. Stucco cracks will also let warm moist air into your walls and if that air contacts cool dry air in the wall cavity water will condense and mold may begin to grow within your walls. All of these situations are happening in thousands of homes in our towns each and every hot and humid day. The worst times of year are days with hot humid days and much cooler nights.
We have all heard the horror story about the part time resident who has an air conditioning failure while they are out of town, or their Humidistat fails or it’s batteries fail. The result is warm humid air inside their home in the day time and cooler nights that cause the humidity to condense on the walls, furniture and everything else. This causes a condition called a “Captiva humidity bloom. To prevent this, by pass the humidistat and have a qualified home watch check your home at least trwice a month while you are away.
Other simple fixes are:
- Caulk all windows and fill all wall penetrations with foam to prevent air penetration.
- Check your air conditioning ducting at the beginning of the summer season for tape peels and air leaks.
- Have your air conditioning unit serviced twice a year. Be sure the drain line and drain pan are clean and clear.