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Home & garden
October 2008
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Mold test kits
If you see or smell mold, you don't need a test kit to tell you it's there. Generally, it's not necessary to identify the species of mold growing in your home, according to the national Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

If mold covers an area less than 10 square feet, you may be able to eliminate the problem yourself. Larger areas require a pro. For tips on spotting mold contamination, eliminating mold, and keeping it from returning, as well as information on finding a qualified remediation professional, see our report on cleaning up mold.

When we tested the kits below for our 2006 report (see table below), we found significant shortcomings in all of them, flaws that were serious enough to earn each a Not Recommended rating. We have not tested recent versions though they are still available today. Mold test kits are available at home centers, hardware stores, and online.


MOLD TEST KITS
(tested for February 2006 report)
Name Cost
(kit plus one
lab analysis)* 		How you use it Problems
Home Diagnostics Malt Extract Culture Plates and Air Sampler $74 or $203 with air sampler Came with petri dishes filled with growth media. To use, you put the plates on the vents of your heating or air conditioning to see whether the ducts are contaminated. Or you expose the open petri dishes to room air to check if that room is contaminated with mold. But to do this, you need to buy an air sampler, which costs another $129. Expensive, and took a long time, an average of 23 days, for results to be returned from lab. No expiration dates on the kit; old media could affect the accuracy and reliability of the results. One unused plate came back positive for mold growth, indicating contamination at some point—not very reassuring for postremediation use.
Mold Chek Mold Test Kit $39 (included four petri dishes and four analyses) You pour growth media into the petri dishes. You can sample air by leaving an open petri dish in a room or you can swab surfaces. Using unsterilized utensils or swabs increases the likelihood of contamination. Very difficult to open; kits could spill on the floor while opening package and become contaminated and useless. No expiration dates on the kit; old media could affect the accuracy and reliability of the results. Label claimed kit can identify toxic mold, but the report that the lab sends can't tell you this. One unused plate came back positive for mold growth, indicating contamination at some point; not very reassuring for postremediation use.
Mold Chek Sampling Kit $39 to $49 Sampling kit gets attached to vacuum. Then you vacuum entire house, room by room, in an X pattern. Kit fits on most but not all vacuums. If you vacuum more than one area or room per sample kit, then you won't know which area has a mold problem. Label claimed that kit can tell you whether toxic mold is "hiding in your house." But brochure inside the kit has a disclaimer saying the lab report can't tell you this.
Pro-Lab MO109 $40 to $55 You pour growth media into the petri dishes. You can sample air by leaving an open petri dish in a room or on vents of ductwork, or you can swab surfaces. In some samples, the vials with media leaked over entire kit. In one, an unopened kit was moldy. No expiration dates on the kit; old media could affect the accuracy and reliability of the results. Label claims that kit can identify toxic mold, but the report the lab sends can't tell you this. One unused plate came back positive for mold growth, indicating contamination at some point; not very reassuring for postremediation use.
* Price did not include shipping costs for online purchases.