Ozone for Killing Mold

Ozone has been used successfully for years by restoration professionals and homeowners alike to kill mold and get rid of musty smells. How does it work, how is it done, and should you try to do it yourself?

The first thing you should do is buy yourself a toxic mold test kit (around $10) and test to see if your mold issue is of the toxic variety. My opinion is that toxic mold issues should be adjudicated by professionals. Toxic mold is no joke. It can kill you. Why risk it? If you suspect you have a toxic mold issue, you should 1) Call your insurance company. 2) Have a professional test to determine the type of mold (toxic mold mostly grows on wood, sheetrock, etc., not cement or tile). 3) If you have toxic mold, call an attorney. Get the money you need to fix the problem.

Can you kill toxic mold with ozone? Sure, if you first remove the moisture source (a leaky pipe, etc.) but at the end of the day, you still have the toxic mold that needs to be physically removed. Special air cleaners need to be employed; the area has to be sealed to prevent the toxic mold from spreading, HAZMAT suits need to be worn, then afterward ozone is used to kill any stray mold spores in the are or on surfaces.  There is A LOT more to the process than merely running an ozone generator for a few hours.  I wish it were just as simple as buying one of our ozone generators and VIOLA!, no more mold issues, but frankly it’s not!  Now I know this article will cause some people to forego buying our ozone generator to deal with their mold issue, but when it comes to something as serious as toxic mold and one’s health, I err on the side of health over self-interest.  Please don’t believe the simplified hype and consult with professionals and do some research before trying to do it yourself!  

That being said, the proper use of an ozone generator to perform an ozone shock treatment in an unoccupied space is very beneficial to anyone with a mold problem.  How can ozone generators help with mold issues?  One hour daily ozone shock treatments to sterilize the air and surfaces and deal with the airborne mold spores does help. When done right, an ozone shock treatment will disinfect your area and rid it not only of mold spores but dust mites and dust mite droppings (major indoor air allergen).  What is needed? You need 1000 mg/h of ozone per 100 square feet. And you will also need to employ box fans to churn the air to perform a proper ozone shock treatment. Or better yet, consider our “whole home” commercial ozone generator kits.  They shoot 2400 cubic feet a minute (CFM) of ozone straight up into the air return so that your HVAC system can distribute 30, 40 or 50,000 milligrams of ozone throughout your home to do a “one-shot” ozone shock treatment. (yields best results – what the pro’s do). 

Besides doing an ozone shock treatment, you should also run your HVAC system in the “ON” position 24/7 so that all of the air in your dwelling will get sucked through the furnace filter at least three times an hour.  The fans in modern HVAC systems are very efficient, under 150 watts ($8 a month power usage)  You should also consider investing in an induct UVC system with a 16″ lamp.  They cost under $70 on eBay.   They will kill the mold spores that make it past the  MERV 11 filters you will BUY FROM EBAY and change every month. (About $5 a filter vs. $20 at the hardware store).  Before I got into ozone, I was in the IAQ industry testing the air and installing air purification systems.  I’m sharing the most effective, least expensive way to clean your air.  Don’t waste your money on an air purifier. They are not useful because they can’t filter enough air fast enough to make a difference. Total waste of money, especially tabletop air purifiers vs. a $5 MERV 11 filter, a $70 induct UV system, and ozone shock treatments to sterilize everything.

Conclusion:  Use common sense when dealing with your health.  Don’t waste $1000’s of dollars thinking you need to spend a lot of money to fix a problem. Sometimes simple solutions, keeping it simple is the best solution.  

10 thoughts on “Ozone for Killing Mold

  1. Which side is the back side of the Ozone Plate? Which side is the front side pf the Ozone Plate? If I have the fan blow air across the back side of the plate, how would that look?

    1. Hi Maureen.

      We found that blowing the fan on high against the back side of the ozone plate (light blue) works best. The ozone producing side (striped) is what we’d call the front side. The air on the back side keep the plate under 70 degrees. The air will vortex around to the front side to create ozone, giving the o2 content in the air more ‘dwell time” to come in contact with the plate rather than rushing by too fast while at the same time the plate is cooled by the air hitting flush along the back side. Thanks for the question.

  2. We live in Central America, and the average humidity is 75%. Would you recommend running a dehumidifier before doing an ozone shock to kill mold here? We have three separate areas in our house, each of which can be closed off to do this. The largest area is about 450 sf. The smallest is around 120 sf. How long would we have to run the generator in these spaces to effectively kill any mold in the rooms? And, what size unit would you recommend?

    Thank you!

    1. Hi Julie.

      I think the 3500 mg/h unit (we market it as a car and RV unit) would be enough. It can easily treat rooms
      the size you described. If you run the ozone an hour or two a day it will knock down the mold and keep
      the rooms smelling nice and fresh, and mold free.

      1. Thanks for the info. Another question – how many kilowatts does this machine use while running? Our electric supply is sometimes “iffy”.

      2. I have another question about the specific unit you suggested. (Car and R.V.) What is the shipping size and weight of this product, and would it fit into a large suitcase? How many components does this unit have – by that, I mean, how many pieces can it be separated into for purposes of carrying it by hand in luggage. Would that even be possible?

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.