What exactly is mold? Is it the same thing as mildew or fungus?
1. & 2. Mold is a part of nature, all around the world, over 200,000 kinds, 3 or 4 of which are considered toxic to man. You personally appreciate their everyday use as mushrooms and in making bread, beer, penicillin. They come in all colors; and thereby comes the question about the differences between mold, mildew, fungus — simply different colors of basically the same thing. We have all seen what we think is mold in the bathroom since we were kids. If you think you’re looking at mold, you probably are. Our mothers handled it by simply washing the tile, tub, shower stall, floor periodically (once a month) with a good detergent and didn’t let it build up to affect our health. A lot of mold I’ve seen is from bad housekeeping of the tenant. If you want a definitive answer to know if it’s mold or what kind of mold, you would hire a licensed tester (fee around $300 to $500).
