Can plants cause black mold, humidity damage, etc.?

[Kuzuri]

Hey all!
I live in a single room apartment in an assisted living facility for people that for one reason or another cannot live in a regular apartment on their own, and therefore, need help to manage things like cleaning up, cooking, remembering to take their medication, and so on (I'm not a helper/part of the personnel. I'm one of the above mentioned 'people').

Anyway, I have approximately 110 plants, most of which are in my apartment/room (I say "most of which" because a couple of them are in the various common rooms). But now, the personnel claims that my plants will cause black mold and water damage to the room, because they increase the humidity that much. Is this true?

I have no humidifier or water trays to increase the humidity. I water the plants in the bathroom and also let them drain there for a few hours before putting them back in their place in my room. I make sure to open windows for as long as possible. There is never any moisture on the inside or outside of my windows, so I really doubt what they're saying is true.

But in reality, I have no idea if it is true, so I wanted to ask someone with more experience and knowledge. And that brought me here.

Hope you can help!

[howze01]

I don't think it will raise humidity enough to cause any of those issues. As long as you have good ventilation and there are no other issues I can't say I agree with them. Maybe get a hygrometer and measure humidity in your room and compare it to others around you? That should give you both the answers you are looking for.

[Kuzuri]

Originally Posted by howze01

I don't think it will raise humidity enough to cause any of those issues. As long as you have good ventilation and there are no other issues I can't say I agree with them. Maybe get a hygrometer and measure humidity in your room and compare it to others around you? That should give you both the answers you are looking for.

Thank you - I think that's what I'll do. I did consider this too, but I thought I would ask here before I did.

Thank you once again.

[JMNYC]

Originally Posted by howze01

I don't think it will raise humidity enough to cause any of those issues. As long as you have good ventilation and there are no other issues I can't say I agree with them. Maybe get a hygrometer and measure humidity in your room and compare it to others around you? That should give you both the answers you are looking for.

+1. My take is the people in question are coming from more ignorance and paranoia than truth.

And, if there are no existing spores in the facility, how can even higher than usual humidity cause black mold?

[Bulbofett]

Tell them that high humidity keeps airborne bacteria down, so you're just looking out for your neighbors XD

[JMNYC]

Originally Posted by Bulbofett

Tell them that high humidity keeps airborne bacteria down, so you're just looking out for your neighbors XD

Perfect! Why do I keep thinking some of these people also believe Plants eat up oxygen.....rather than the OPPOSITE.

I only hope none of them are....OMG, Creationists!

Educate them with a smile!

[LovePhals]

Plants actually increase air quality and decrease pollutants in the air. NASA did a study and found that some plants actually REMOVE mold spores, Peace lily being one. Phalaeonopsis and Dendrobiums are some of the best at removing air pollutants from furniture, cleaning solvents, ect. which do much more harm than plants. Air circulation is still important if you have several plants but the amount suggested is 1 per 100 sq. feet.

[JMNYC]

Originally Posted by LovePhals

Plants actually increase air quality and decrease pollutants in the air. NASA did a study and found that some plants actually REMOVE mold sports, peace lily being one. Phalaeonopsis and Dendrobiums are some of the best at removing air pollutants from furniture, cleaning solvents, ect. which do much more harm than plants. Air circulation is still important if you have several plants but the amount suggested is 1 per 100 sq. feet.

This is also true for many, many garden variety houseplants!!!

[Optimist]

It sounds like they are trying to create a scape-goat for some reason. Maybe they found black mold in the basement. It takes a huge amount of persistant standing water to create black mold. If your orchids are properly areated, they are no more guilty than cup of coffee would be. Your orchids raise the quality of your life, and keep you mentally healthy. The clean up crew ( which is what they are) needs to stop catastrophising over situations that have not occured.

---------- Post added at 06:43 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:41 PM ----------

If they actually have black mold you should ask to be transferred, as it can lead to upper respiratory distress if you are around it for a long time.

[King_of_orchid_growing:)]

Originally Posted by Kuzuri

Hey all!
But now, the personnel claims that my plants will cause black mold and water damage to the room, because they increase the humidity that much. Is this true?

I have no humidifier or water trays to increase the humidity. I water the plants in the bathroom and also let them drain there for a few hours before putting them back in their place in my room. I make sure to open windows for as long as possible. There is never any moisture on the inside or outside of my windows, so I really doubt what they're saying is true.

But in reality, I have no idea if it is true, so I wanted to ask someone with more experience and knowledge. And that brought me here.

I do not believe the plants themselves can create a significant amount of humidity to cause black mold.

If the plants were still dripping water and leaving puddles and water stains, it might be cause for concern later down the line, but if they're not, then it is not a problem.

Originally Posted by JMNYC

Perfect! Why do I keep thinking some of these people also believe Plants eat up oxygen.....rather than the OPPOSITE.

I only hope none of them are....OMG, Creationists!

Educate them with a smile!

The truth is during the day, plants use up CO2 and give off O2.

During the night, plants go through a different cycle where they take up O2 and release CO2, but the amount of CO2 they release is not very large.

What I'm describing here is grossly oversimplified, but it is a known fact.