This black sooty material on the inside of the roller shutter

moldwindows

I have a bedroom window that looks out over the east (a backyard with mostly tiles and little plants) with a roller shutter which over the past couple of years has gotten a serious buildup of some sort of black soot, which I can't really figure out where it comes from.

Below are a couple of pictures. Apologies for the reflection of my bedroom, I can't open 2 of the windows and the 3rd has a mosquito screen which I'd rather not remove now that those critters are appearing again.

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This soot covers pretty much the entire side of the shutters and I'm worried it might be more than that based on a question on here about black mold that looks suspiciously like what I have. Only thing is my shutters are plastic, not wood.

If this is black mold, would it be safest to just have the entire shutter plus the casing side of my bedroom replaced?

Best Answer

Looks like fungus of some sort. It grows on many surfaces. Try household cleaners and a sponge.

There are many types of mold, and the hysteria surrounding them is often unwarranted. Mold spores are everywhere, and only a very specific type is potentially dangerous, and only in significant quantities.

The term “toxic mold” is not accurate. While certain molds are toxigenic, meaning they can produce toxins (specifically mycotoxins), the molds themselves are not toxic, or poisonous. Hazards presented by molds that may produce mycotoxins should be considered the same as other common molds which can grow in your house. There is always a little mold everywhere – in the air and on many surfaces. There are very few reports that toxigenic molds found inside homes can cause unique or rare health conditions such as pulmonary hemorrhage or memory loss. These case reports are rare, and a causal link between the presence of the toxigenic mold and these conditions has not been proven.

Basically, if it can be cleaned up it's not a serious issue. You wouldn't throw away an item that can be wiped clean.

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