# Fine black dust in bathroom/kitchen



## Bux-n-Dux

I have an issue with finding a very fine black dust that seems to mostly be in the bathroom and kitchen. From my "research" I believe it has something to possibly do with the fan in the bathroom only venting into the attic. And something to do with the "breathing" of the house and possibly moisture/mold particles from the attic.
The bathroom fan needs to be ducted to an outside vent in the roof. I've found that out. Right now it just vents into the attic only...going to take care of that this weekend. 
Anyone else have this issue with the fine black dust? And what do you recommend? I'm an average diy'r but definitely a hvac rookie. Do I need the air ducts cleaned or anything like that? I don't find this dust throughout the whole house.
Thanks in advance.


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## PappaM

I'm in the mold assessment profession and can tell you that if the particles are mold, there's a bigger mold problem your not seeing. I doubt it's mold. If you have recessed lighting in these areas with cellulose insulation, most likely you have old style "cans" that are not sealed. the black particles are minutes pieces of dirty insulation being pulled through the openings in the can. You can correct this by installing new style cans, which are sealed to prevent conditioned interior air from escaping into the attic. You should also see lower utility bills as well. Also, your correct in venting the fans to the exterior to prevent moisture build up which can lead to mold growth in the attic.


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## MEL

Do as Pappa says. Vent the fans to the outside only. Never vent just into the attic.. If your recessed lighting cans are IC rated then they are the better one. If they are non IC then you need to seel them off or use the IC rated cans. This is very important for several reasons. Like mold, also to save energy and also to prevent fires from contact with your insulation with non-IC cans


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## -Axiom-

Venting bath & kitchen fans into the attic space commonly leads to mold growth, I see it frequently.


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## MEL

-Axiom- said:


> Venting bath & kitchen fans into the attic space commonly leads to mold growth, I see it frequently.



Yes. As have I seen it cause alot of $$$ issues.


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## Bux-n-Dux

Thanks guys. Even if we do not use the fan often would just the moisture from the shower steam cause mold build up in the attic through the vent opening? Is there a place I can have the black "dust" tested to see if it's mold or not?


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## PappaM

Bux-n-Dux said:


> Thanks guys. Even if we do not use the fan often would just the moisture from the shower steam cause mold build up in the attic through the vent opening? Is there a place I can have the black "dust" tested to see if it's mold or not?


I can help with that. Give me a call when you have time 586-855-7644 . As far as moisture making it into the attic through the exhaust fan..I doubt it as long as the duct from the fan to the exhaust cap is sealed


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## PappaM

By the way, you should use the fan every time the shower is used to prevent elevated levels of moisture in the bathroom, which leads to mold growth.


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## PLUMMER47

Just goto depot or lowes or a decent hardware and they have petri dish kits that instruct you how to take a sample and send it in for testing, or grow yourself to get an "about" ID. Atleast it will tell you within a few days wether its dangerous mold or not, then you decide to send it in if you want an exact ID. Less than $10.00. This is what some Wayne State environmental guys did on a Multi-housing project in Detroit last November when a disgruntled professor sabotaged his university provided housing unit. Unfortunately it effected everyone else's units. Good Luck but I "think" that dust is not mold. Once you've smelled it, you can pick it up quick when ever you enter an infested home. Good Luck


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## PappaM

PLUMMER47 said:


> Just goto depot or lowes or a decent hardware and they have petri dish kits that instruct you how to take a sample and send it in for testing, or grow yourself to get an "about" ID. Atleast it will tell you within a few days wether its dangerous mold or not, then you decide to send it in if you want an exact ID. Less than $10.00. This is what some Wayne State environmental guys did on a Multi-housing project in Detroit last November when a disgruntled professor sabotaged his university provided housing unit. Unfortunately it effected everyone else's units. Good Luck but I "think" that dust is not mold. Once you've smelled it, you can pick it up quick when ever you enter an infested home. Good Luck


I can tell you for fact that those petri dish test kits are B.S for a number of reasons:

Mold is a naturally occurring organism that exists in a 100% of the air surrounding the earth. Therefore, if you set a dish out for seven days as recommended by the lab that sells the kit, there going to find mold spores growing in it.

2. Petri dish test kits may tell you the types of mold, but not the actual spore count. So let's say black mold shows up on the test result. Your first reaction is to panic and call someone to clean your house. The problem is, where to clean and what to clean. After spending several thousand dollars, your home is most likely no less mold free than when you started.

3. The cost to purchase the test kit is $10.00, but the cost to ship it to the lab is $18.00 and the lab fee is either $35.00 or $45.00 depending on the kit you purchase. you just spent $73.00 for a test that is discredited in the mold testing/remediation profession due to it's known characteristics of showing false positives and lacking the ability to show actual spore count data.

4. The only one benefiting from petri dish test kits is the lab who sells them. By the way, just to test these labs, I sent in blank mold sampling cartridges to see what would happen. Guess what? they came back mold spore positive, which is impossible because the cassettes are manufactured in a sterile environment and the seals were never removed so the samples should have came back clean.


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## MSUICEMAN

Do you guys burn candles? We had an interesting experience with them a couple months ago. Noticed a black film on some things and noticed it only when burning the candles down to the bottom. The wick must leave a really sooty flame, and the soot stuck on certain things which were noticeable. Now we don't burn them all the way down and don't have the issue data all.


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## Bux-n-Dux

MSUICEMAN said:


> Do you guys burn candles? We had an interesting experience with them a couple months ago. Noticed a black film on some things and noticed it only when burning the candles down to the bottom. The wick must leave a really sooty flame, and the soot stuck on certain things which were noticeable. Now we don't burn them all the way down and don't have the issue data all.


Yes, my wife does burn candles and that is what we were thinking it was at first. When doing a little research, that was what some other folks had mentioned too. It is just like a little thin black soot that clings to surfaces and is noticeable on the white color appliances in the kitchen. I'm told that it is from "cheap" material candles - which led to a new problem for me....my wife now thinks she has the green light to buy only expensive candles now.


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