Mold testing is a process that is used by professionals to search for signs of mold and to test the quality of air. This process is not able to actually determine the species of mold that is within the basement or where it is located. But by testing the quality of air they are able to roughly estimate the amount of mold contained within the basement.
Most environmentally quality agencies have to be asked by the homeowner to come to their home and test their basement or they can go through private labs. These agencies will send out a representative or they might mail out a test kit for the homeowner to collect a sample and send it back to them.
If you are conducting the test you have to know what places you should be looking in. there are many species of mold and not all of them are harmful. If the test should come back positive it does not mean that you have to panic or immediately have cause for worry. It is rare that the test will be negative when gathering a sample from the basement.
Each mold test will offer a simple sample that is provided to them after a specific point in time. This means that not all of the species can be identified or whether or not they are toxic.
There are two main types of basement mold testing. The first uses a type of handheld sniffer that will check for spores or specific species of mold. These are designed in such a way as to detect for a specific mold species and to provide you with information of whether or not it is present. The second is to gather a small sample from a mold colony. This will be analyzed by a professional who will determine what type is growing.
Before you run out and purchase a mold test it is important to know that the quality of tests will vary. If you have identified a small colony of mold you should use the necessary products to remove it immediately. This will keep it from spreading and make testing for basement mold unnecessary.
If you still feel that you should test for mold you can purchase a testing kit to do yourself which will cost around $10. It will use three different testing methods that two days after you have gathered it will be sent to the required lab for deeper analysis. This will cost $30.