Odd Blue stains on matress

blahblahbla

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this but we recently changed the bed sheets and we discovered these spots on the new 8 month old Mattress .We changed the bed sheets a month before and didn't notice this. A few articles I read suggested it was either mold or bed bug droppings.
I cant imagine it been mold as we keep the house very warm but the places where the spots are, are places we place hot water bottles at night. We never noticed a leak in any of the bottles but it seems very odd. How can we diagnose if its actually mold, or is it something else? I attached pictures below.

FortySeven

blahblahbla wrote: »

I'm not sure if this is the right place for this but we recently changed the bed sheets and we discovered these spots on the new 8 month old Mattress .We changed the bed sheets a month before and didn't notice this. A few articles I read suggested it was either mold or bed bug droppings.
I cant imagine it been mold as we keep the house very warm but the places where the spots are, are places we place hot water bottles at night. We never noticed a leak in any of the bottles but it seems very odd. How can we diagnose if its actually mold, or is it something else? I attached pictures below.

I wouldn't like to meet the bedbug that left droppings that size!

Mold does not necessarily happen because of cold. More humidity related and this would make sense if hot water bottles are local to that area.

Fungus and mold spores are everywhere at all times, they are no issue until the conditions are right for them to flourish.

Is there adequate ventilation below the mattress? It needs to have some airflow really to allow any dampness to evaporate.

It is hard to make out what it is in the pictures probably because of my phone but I would air the mattress as much as possible. That will change the environment and so will discourage growth.

I would give the area a light wipe with a damp cloth that has been wrung out. Use a well diluted bit of bleach.

blahblahbla

We open the windows in our bedroom daily ,below the mattress is the bed, how do I check for ventilation?
Whats the best way to air it?
Its not on plastic or anything like that.
We wiped it down with Milton and hot damp cloth, and we used a hair dryer to dry it out.We then flipped the mattress for the time being.

FortySeven

blahblahbla wrote: »

We open the windows in our bedroom daily ,below the mattress is the bed, how do I check for ventilation?
Whats the best way to air it?
Its not on plastic or anything like that.
We wiped it down with Milton and hot damp cloth, and we used a hair dryer to dry it out.We then flipped the mattress for the time being.

That's about all you can do. If the bed is a Dugan it is made to breathe. If it's slatted it us fine. Sometimes people modify beds by putting planks or boards to stiffen them and this causes issues.

Did it wipe off easily?

blahblahbla

FortySeven wrote: »

That's about all you can do. If the bed is a Dugan it is made to breathe. If it's slatted it us fine. Sometimes people modify beds by putting planks or boards to stiffen them and this causes issues.

Did it wipe off easily?

No, that's the thing, it did not come off so the dots are still there. Id really like to know the cause so if we buy another one we wont run into the same problem. Ill probably throw out the hot water bottles anyway just in case.

Would take more than a few dots on a mattress for me to go buying another one.

Can't see why it would be the hot water bottle either I'm using them years and they are usually leaking before I get a replacement and never remember seeing marks. That said ive never had a white mattress so marks wouldn't stand out.

FortySeven

blahblahbla wrote: »

No, that's the thing, it did not come off so the dots are still there. Id really like to know the cause so if we buy another one we wont run into the same problem. Ill probably throw out the hot water bottles anyway just in case.

Not likely to be mould if it didn't wipe off. I'd say it is some colour transfer from your water bottle or perhaps something else. I wouldn't worry about it at all.

ebbsy

Dirty duvet, dirty mind.

TeaBagMania

stop drinking the blue water from the toilet

Turtle_

Fwiw, in general the practice of making your bed in the morning is really unhealthy. Better to strip back the covers and let the mattress air, helps reduce dust mite quantities and susceptibility to mould. Not sure if you do make the bed when you get up, but thought it's worth mentioning.

Michael D Not Higgins

Oi, helpful posts please. This isn't After Hours.

blahblahbla

An update;
I took the mattress of the bed and removed the base sheet, I will show you photos in the new uploads. I showed the mattress to my Dad and he said scratch it while its under the blow of a hot hair dryer. SO I started doing that and I found the blue sports started coming off. They were quite hair like and left a discoloration in the mattress after so I assume this must be mold.

From the photos of the bed I think its a box bed which I am assuming does not let air flow through it well should we ask the landlord to replace the base as well.
Also is it OK just to clean the mattress or does the fact mold is present prove to be a health hazard?

FortySeven

Its not mold that is the hazard but the spores from the mold in the air. In those sizes I wouldnt worry about that, they will not be emitting anywhere near the amount to give any adverse health effects. The box divan is designed to allow the mattress to breathe, as long as there are no additions between it and the mattress, (plywood, plastic sheets etc) then it is grand.

I would clean it up and just keep an eye for it returning. It may be that there was a bit of moisture when the mattress was packaged, they are usually vacuum sealed in plastic for transport.