Don't Bring Them into Your Home! Unfortunately we see this too often in homes. The home owner or professional interior decorator finds an antique piece of furniture and brings it into the home. Unfortunately most of the time the item is mold-infected, hence introducing mold into a home Every antique store I have ever visited has that old-musty smell. Well, there is a reason for that...it's mold. Often these antique pieces are neglected, improperly stored in basements, garages or other areas before they are put in the showroom. Material Considerations The most common materials of concern are wood and cloth followed by leather. Often times you will see growth on the wood and leather surfaces, but it's much harder to detect on/in cloth. The fabric of furniture including the padding were often made from organic material making them susceptible to mold harboring and growth. Inspection Before you buy an item from an antique shop, have the salesperson help you inspect the it
photo courtesy of Tim Jones There are a lot of questions and false information on the internet about mold, plume and how to season a desktop humidor. I'm going to tackle these topics and a few more. This post is definitely geared towards the cigar aficionado. Let's start with the basics. When we use the term mold we are referring to fungi/fungus. Here are a few bullet points. * There are over 100,000 species of mold. * Mold is not a plant nor is it an animal. * Mold spores are the reproductive body of mold similar to seeds. (but not) * 250,000 spores can fit on the head of a pin. * Mold spores are everywhere indoors and outdoors in the air we breathe. * Mycotoxins are a secondary metabolite produced by active mold. (mold odor) * Mold requires 3 things in order to grow. Oxygen, Water and Organic Material. * If missing one of the three requirements for continued growth, mold will go into a state of dormancy. Mold can stay dormant indefinitely. * Once mold grows it will not