Efflorescence: What Is It and Why Should You Care?

Even if you don't know the term, you know what efflorescence is. You've probably even seen it. That powdery white coating that appears on the surface of rocks, or concrete blocks, or even walls. You might think it's mold, and hey, sometimes it might be mold, but sometimes it isn't.

Let's start with basics. Efflorescence occurs when a salt exists inside of a porous material, like brick or concrete blocks, and dissolves in water. The solution then migrates to the surface of the porous material and forms a coating.

The powdery white appearance of the wall is efflorescence.

The good news is that efflorescence is not mold. It has nothing to do with mold. It can coexist with mold, of course, so it's always better to err on the side of "there might be mold" and get your basement checked out, but if you're told you have efflorescence problems, it's not mold! I'm emphasizing this because mold is terrible and brings with it a whole host of problems that you don't want to deal with.

More good news is that many of the effects of simple efflorescence are cosmetic, and can be dealt with simply by cleaning the surface of the walls. This is another way to spot the difference between efflorescence and mold - if you can wipe it off with a damp paper towel, it isn't mold.

Now, the bad news. 

Since efflorescence occurs when water travels through the walls and brings salt with it, that means water is getting into your basement or crawl space. An increase in ambient moisture and humidity is very common with internal (indoor) efflorescence, and needs to be dealt with in a different way, for many reasons.

One, continued efflorescence can eventually lead to degradation of the materials, so you need to keep an eye out for signs of foundation problems.

And secondly, the increase in moisture from water traveling through the walls can cause - wait for it - mold! And everything else that comes with basement and crawl space moisture problems.

So if you've noticed efflorescence in your basement or crawl space, it's nothing to worry about yet, but it's a good time to have us come out and check for any underlying issues.