A leak above my microwave has led to a mold situation.

It truly depends on how extensive the mold is. Once everything is opened up and the area is exposed, if it covers more than a small area you should get it looked at. If it isn't any worse than what you can see now, cleaning it, airing it out and then sealing it and replacing any damaged areas will take care of it. If anyone in your household has respiratory issues, I would take extra precautions. You can have the mold tested to see what type it is, also. Some are much more dangerous than others. Hope some of this helps!

Mold that is that bad, I would get a professional job done by a licensed contractor. Make sure they give you a guarantee that that it will not return. Mold is very hard to get rid of, and you will most likely have to rip some of the mold out to get to the root of the mold. It can spread quite fast. Good Luck!

This is just surface mold, just wash with vinegar, then rinse. Now when fixing leak, see where water may have intruded, like behind this wall. If that is the case you may need to get someone in to clean up properly, you will have to see when in process of repairing. Sooner is better than later. The longer you wait the more expensive it gets, plus potential mold in walls is not something to mess with.

Hello Donna; I have two ideas for you, which I have used with much success before.

I have used clear rubbing alcohol on mold. I have also killed mold by using white vinegar.

Both work, and I hope that it will help you. Good Luck and Take Care!!!

I have had that mold before. I sprayed it with a half and half mixture of bleach and water.

Thanks for all the helpful advice. I'm going to get expert help. Your comments gave me good insights.

clean it with bleach, start with 3 .parts water to 1 part bleach. You can mix it stronger if needed.

what is showing is a small amount but real problem id on the backside of the boards were it is dark and warm for mold to grow, I had to cut 4' sections under window of dry wall and it was thick with mold . so if you spray and treat arera and it keeps coming back most likely need walls replaced with air mask and clothing that don't let mold spores attach to you or other places .Mold is poisiouness... so elevalue the situation.

Whoever repairs your leak should have a moisture meter with them to run over your drywall to detect the leak. Have them examine the wall board throughly, if its wet, I would replace it or at least have it opened and examined for mold between the wall/ceiling. If its not molded, put a small fan in the opening and dry it out for a week before sealing it up again. Any slight surface mold can be done by you, anything in wall board - cut out and replace. If its an area like to leak again use green board in place of drywall.

Like the poster above said check to be sure the mold isn't in or under the wall board, if it is just surface mold, spray with peroxide to kill the mold then use a little bleach with water and soap and scrub. I had a water leak and the surface of a basement wall had mold on it. I sprayed it down so it was wet with peroxide (I checked online and peroxide kills even black mold) then I scrubbed the wall down with a bleach mixture and the mold did not reappear.