Are you peering suspiciously at the wallpaper covering your walls, wondering if it’s hiding something? Ever looked at a house for sale and wondered if that outdated wallpaper is covering something bad? Today, we’re answering the question “Can mold grow behind wallpaper?”, and everything you need to know about this concerning problem!
We’re Cleaner Guys, a professional mold removal company in Mount Vernon, WA. We have more than 20 years of experience dealing with mold of all kinds, in all different types of homes and businesses! Our experts can tell you everything you need to know about mold and wallpaper. Read on!
Table of Contents
- Can Mold Grow Behind Wallpaper?
- How Do You Know If There Is Mold Behind Wallpaper?
- Can Mold Behind Wallpaper Make You Sick?
- Is Mold Dangerous?
- How Do You Get Rid of Mold Behind Wallpaper?
- How to Stop Mold From Coming Back Behind Wallpaper
Can Mold Grow Behind Wallpaper?
The short answer is yes, mold can grow behind wallpaper. In fact, wallpaper is often one of the top places we find mold! This is especially true of wallpaper in bathrooms. Why is that? I asked one of our most experienced resident mold experts, Bob Shupe, for his take.
“Most of the time, wallpaper in a room that is often wet [like a bathroom] is made of vinyl, or otherwise plasticized to prevent water from passing through it into the wall”, Bob stated. “The problem is that this plasticization also prevents water from coming out from behind the wallpaper! Trapped moisture is what creates mold.” If there is any way for moisture to get behind the wallpaper, such as a loose seam, it will have a hard time getting out and evaporating, which will lead to dampness and mold.
So, the plasticization of wallpaper in bathrooms can accidentally cause mold by trapping moisture and not allowing it to evaporate. But what about wallpaper in other rooms, like living rooms and kitchens, that’s not plasticized?
Regular wallpaper can also hide mold growth and signs of water damage, because it covers the wall with an extra layer. If there is mold or water damage inside the wall cavity, signs of it usually show up on the drywall. These signs can include water staining, squishy or soft drywall, or bubbling or peeling paint (see below). Wallpaper can hide these signs for much longer, because it takes longer for the damage to seep through the drywall and the wallpaper!
How Do You Know If There’s Mold Behind Wallpaper?
Signs of mold behind wallpaper can be tricky to spot for a couple of reasons. First, wallpaper is often patterned or darkly-colored, and this can make it harder to spot water staining or the beginnings of mold growth. Second, plasticized wallpaper is thick, and it takes a long time for visual signs of mold to even show through it!
The first and biggest signs of mold behind wallpaper are usually a musty, damp odor near that wall, or the wallpaper peeling and unsticking from the wall in places. These are both very strong indications that there is either mold or water damage behind the wallpaper, causing a smell or causing it to not adhere properly to the drywall.
If you see regular signs of water damage or mold on the surface of your wallpaper, such as water staining, mold spots, or a soft and squishy wall, then chances are the water damage and mold behind your wallpaper is already very advanced. It should be addressed immediately for your own safety.
Can Mold Behind Wallpaper Make You Sick?
Yes, mold behind wallpaper can definitely make you sick! Our professional guess as mold experts would be that mold sickness is probably one of the most unrecognized and misdiagnosed illnesses, because most people aren’t aware that mold can even make you sick, and the symptoms are therefore often attributed to something else.
To make it even more confusing, not everyone even experiences symptoms of mold sickness! Some may have extreme allergic reactions to mold, while others may not be affected much at all. Those with already-compromised immune systems — such as children, the elderly, and those with chronic illnesses — or those with respiratory issues like athsma are especially vulnerable to mold sickness, and it can be dangerous for them.
Signs of Mold Sickness
According to the CDC, symptoms of mold sickness typically include:
- A stuffy or persistently runny nose
- Unusual amounts of wheezing and coughing
- Red and itchy eyes and/or skin
- Persistent headaches (particularly if you don’t have a history of headaches)
- Severe reactions can escalate to fever, fatigue, and some difficulty breathing
Now, these symptoms obviously look almost identical to the common cold, and other minor virus illnesses. So, how do you tell the difference? The key difference between mold sickness and other sickness is the duration of the symptoms. The average lifespan of a cold is usually no more than 2 weeks. However, with mold, the symptoms you experience will stick around as long as the mold is present. That means that if it’s mold sickness, the headaches or respiratory issues you experience from it will linger for weeks and weeks — and even months — until the mold is removed.
Is Mold Dangerous?
Although mold can cause mold sickness (as discussed in the previous section), it is usually not truly dangerous except to those with already-compromised health, such as the elderly, the chronically ill, and those with asthma.
However, there are a couple of rare species of mold that are highly toxic, and those are dangerous. The most common of these toxic species is Stachybotrys Chartarum, a species of black mold. Prolonged exposure to this mold can cause brain fog, neurological damage, internal bleeding, vomiting, and more!
The problem is that it is nearly impossible to tell “regular” non-toxic mold apart from the toxic mold species. This is why it is our strong professional recommendation to never attempt to clean a mold infestation yourself. We understand that no one wants to spend the money to have to hire someone to take care of mold, but this is your health we’re talking about. You could potentially cause severe damage to yourself and others if you mess with the wrong kind of mold on your own. It’s safest to leave mold cleanup to the professionals!
How Do You Get Rid of Mold Behind Wallpaper?
As previously stated, we strongly advise against trying to get rid of mold behind wallpaper yourself, for your own health and safety. Just the act of pulling the wallpaper off the wall to assess the extent of the mold will agitate the mold, causing it to release millions of mold spores into the air, which can make mold sickness far worse, and spread the mold to other areas of your home!
Getting rid of mold behind wallpaper successfully and safely requires the kind of Personal Protective Equipment, quarantine containment barriers, air-cleaning equipment, and fungicides that only professional mold remediators have access to.
If you see signs of mold or water damage behind wallpaper, such as we have described earlier in this article, the only safe thing to do is to call a mold remediation company near you!
NOTE: Other articles on the internet will tell you that you can clean this up yourself, with things like bleach and vinegar. We strongly, strongly caution you against following this “advice”. The people who suggest that you can do this yourself are not mold cleanup professionals, and they are ignorant of the kind of danger you could put yourself and your home in if you try to do this yourself. Bleach is an especially terrible recommendation (check out our article on why bleach is not a smart choice for cleaning mold). Please do not follow this unprofessional advice.
How to Stop Mold From Coming Back Behind Wallpaper
Mold behind wallpaper is usually either caused by excess moisture from humidity and condensation (common in bathrooms), or by water intrusion inside the wall, such as from a pipe leak. Mold does not grow without moisture, so water is in some way always the underlying problem. So prevention efforts must focus on getting rid of moisture.
If you want to prevent mold behind wallpaper in areas of your home other than the bathroom, do these things:
- Be aware of the signs of water damage inside walls, and act quickly to call a water damage restoration company and a plumber if you see any of them! Water damage is very dangerous, and must be addressed immediately.
- Take the time to winterize the plumbing inside your walls during the winter, to prevent the water in your pipes from freezing, expanding, and causing the pipes to burst. Learn how to do this with our quick guide to the 8 steps to keep your pipes from freezing.
- Consider removing the wallpaper and going with painted walls instead. Water damage and mold are simply easier and quicker to spot on drywall, so if you want to be sure to catch mold early, wallpaper may not be the best thing. It often effectively hides mold and water damage from view for longer.
Preventing Mold Behind Wallpaper in Bathrooms
If you want to prevent mold behind wallpaper in your bathrooms in the future, here’s what to do:
- Adequately ventilate the space by regularly running ceiling fans or standing fans, and regularly opening windows — especially when showering!
- Reduce moisture in the air and potential condensation on the wallpaper by regularly running a dehumidifier in your bathrooms, especially during and after showering.
- Keep an eye out for any peeling or lifting in the wallpaper. If any seam or corner of your wallpaper begins lifting or peeling, it allows moisture in under it, which will cause mold.
Synopsis
Mold behind wallpaper is very common, both because wallpaper can trap moisture between it and the drywall, and because it often covers and hides signs of mold and water damage. Mold behind wallpaper can make you sick, and it should be dealt with right away! However, it is not safe to try to clean a mold infestation behind wallpaper by yourself. You are more likely to spread the mold spores to other areas of the home by agitating them, and your health may be at risk if the mold is a toxic kind. The only truly safe course of action if you’re concerned about mold behind wallpaper is to hire a professional mold removal company.
If you need mold removal in Mount Vernon, WA (or almost anywhere in Western Washington), Cleaner Guys is one of the best options around! We’re the only mold removal company around that boasts award-winning customer service, and a price-match guarantee! Call or message us today through the menu at the top of your screen.
Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. No part of this article is medical or legal advice, and may not be used as such. For all serious medical matters, consult your doctor. For all serious legal matters, consult your legal advisor. This article contains Cleaner Guys’ experience and opinions only.
