Urgent: mold in kids' room with baby, what to do?« Back to Previous Page

Stop using the room immediately and keep the children away from the area. The combination of high Dubai humidity and an enclosed space behind furniture creates a perfect environment for mold. With infants present, avoiding exposure is the priority.

For immediate action, do not attempt to clean it yourself with bleach or other chemicals, as this can aerosolize spores and worsen the air quality. Your first step is to get a professional mold inspection. A proper inspection involves more than a visual check; it should include air quality testing to identify the spore types and concentrations in the room's air, which is critical with children's respiratory symptoms. In the UAE, look for a provider that uses a third-party accredited microbiology lab for analysis, as this provides an objective, verifiable report on the type and severity of the mold.

For remediation, the company should follow protocols like those from the IICRC, which include sealing off the area, using HEPA filtration to capture airborne spores during removal, and safely disposing of contaminated materials like the wardrobe if it's porous. The goal is to fix the moisture source—often condensation from AC units or a small, unnoticed leak—and then remove the mold itself. Until the inspection is complete, increase ventilation in the home by running exhaust fans and keeping AC fan settings on "ON" rather than "AUTO" to help reduce humidity levels.