When mold shows up in a home, it doesn’t just grow on walls—it spreads. Once mold begins to colonize, it releases microscopic spores, fragments, and often mycotoxins into the air. These tiny particles travel on dust and air currents, eventually settling on surfaces throughout your home, including your personal belongings.

Three Levels, or Conditions

To help understand the degree of contamination, mold professionals often refer to three levels, or conditions, of contamination:

• Condition 1 – Normal fungal ecology: No active mold growth or settled spores beyond what is typical in a healthy indoor space. Surfaces are clean, and there’s no evidence of moisture issues.

• Condition 2 – Settled spores and fragments: No visible growth, but spores or byproducts have settled onto surfaces due to a nearby source. This is considered cross-contamination and is the focus of most contents cleaning efforts.

• Condition 3 – Active mold growth: Visible colonies are present on surfaces or materials, releasing spores into the air and requiring immediate remediation and likely disposal of affected items.

When personal belongings are exposed to a Condition 2 environment, it means they’ve likely picked up contamination from surrounding air and dust—even if there’s no visible mold on them. Cleaning these items helps reduce your ongoing exposure.

By contrast, items in a Condition 3 state—those with visible mold growth—are rarely salvageable. Mold growing on soft materials like couches, mattresses, or paper has already embedded into the item. Cleaning won’t get deep enough to stop exposure, and these items should almost always be discarded.

It’s essential to recognize the difference:

• Cross-contaminated items (Condition 2) may still be safe to clean.

• Moldy items (Condition 3) are generally unsafe to keep and should be let go of.

Always err on the side of caution. If an item has no visible mold but makes you feel worse when you’re near it, trust your body—it may be better to part with it.