Mold & Bug Feces: What You Need To Know

No one likes pests or mold in their home.

But if you’re not vigilant, bugs and mold can sneak in. Mount Valley Foundation Services can fix any damage they’ve caused and make your home less inviting to them.

The real issue is figuring out what’s invading your home, as bug waste and mold can look alike in dim light. How do you tell the difference?

What Kinds of Bugs Can Get into Your Home?

Many types of insects can get into your house, but some cause more problems than others. While spiders might scare you, they usually don’t harm your home’s structure.

On the other hand, some bugs can really damage your home once they’re inside.

The ones to watch out for are:

Camelback crickets
Cockroaches
Carpenter ants
Termites

What Does Bug Feces Look Like?

Bug droppings look different based on the bug, but they usually look like tiny pebbles. You’ll find them in dark corners and in piles on your ceiling, walls, and floors. It’s easy to confuse large clumps of bug droppings with mold in the dark.

However, bug droppings aren’t fuzzy like mold and usually don’t smell, while mold smells musty.

What Can Bug Feces Do to Your Home?

Bug droppings in your basement or crawl space can cause trouble.

They look bad, can be unhealthy, and might attract more pests. Some droppings can even damage wood and metal in your home. Also, if you find a lot of droppings, it means you might have a big pest problem that could lead to more damage and costly repairs.

What Does Mold Look Like?

Mold is a beast in and of itself. Like bug feces, it can appear in your home in many forms. More often than not, it clusters in the parts of your basement or crawl space that are dampest and darkest, festering until it can spread out.

There are a few different types of molds, which can make mold in general difficult to identify. These include allergenic, pathogenic, and toxigenic molds. These categories of molds can have differing impacts on the overall health of your family and home, but they’re all dangerous in the long term.

The good news is that even though there are three different general categories of molds that can grow in your home, they tend to share similar traits. These include:

Fluffy or furry in appearance
Colorful: most basement or crawl space molds are green and black, but they can also be pink, yellow, or other colors.
Clustered together: mold tends not to separate from its primary cluster unless it’s been growing for a long stretch of time.

Mold on a support beam of the crawl space.

Without professional experience, you may notice something strange growing in your basement or crawl space but not be able to tell an expert precisely what you think it is.

In these situations, it’s best to leave the classification of your mold to the professionals.

What Can Mold Do to Your Home?

Mold can have a two-fold impact on your home: It can compromise your family’s health while also devaluing the whole of your property. Your family can start to develop allergies and related respiratory problems if mold grows unchecked in your home.

Selling a home with a mold problem or mold-related damage can be difficult, as you’ll need to disclose the damage in question in your market listing. Homes with bowing walls, bouncy floors, and similar damage can lose up to 30 percent of their market value if that damage isn’t repaired before the final sale.

When Should You Contact a Professional?

While we don’t handle bug removal or mold cleanup, once you’ve worked with a professional to clear those issues, Mount Valley Foundation Services is here to ensure they don’t come back.

We specialize in repairing your basement or crawl space to prevent future invasions, keeping your home safe and secure. T

rust us to provide the lasting solutions needed to maintain a healthy and pest-free environment beneath your home.

Schedule a free repair quote and inspection today.

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FAQs

How do I clean up mold or bug feces in my basement or crawl space?

For mold, use a mixture of water and bleach. For bug feces, sweep them up carefully and dispose of them securely.

Should I wear protective gear when cleaning?

Absolutely. Wear gloves, a mask, and protective eyewear to avoid direct contact or inhalation.

Can mold and bug feces attract other pests?

Yes, the presence of either can attract more pests looking for food or a favorable environment.

Leah Leitow

Content Writer

Leah is a Content Writer for Groundworks with nearly ten years of experience working in the foundation repair industry. Her experience ranges from working with homeowners to find the right solution to training inspectors and staff. In her background as a Michigan journalist, she gained invaluable insight into people's lives throughout our state. Leah lives in metro Detroit with her husband and two sons.