Using thieves oil to treat black mold
I was recently contacted by a reader who has had terrible problems with black mold (Stachybotrys chartarum). If you’ve never heard about this problem, let me tell you that it is BAD stuff. Not only does it smell gross, but it is actually toxic, and it will cause you, your family and even your pets to get exceptionally sick if you don’t deal with the problem.
Thankfully, there are a few ways that you can combat and kill black mold with regular essential oils. For starters, you can spray pure tea tree oil on any place that has mold and it will kill the mold and end any smelly issues you have. But since black mold easily spreads to other parts of your home and creeps into everything, you’ll want to take extra precautions.
Thieves oil (which you might remember I gave you a simple recipe for a while back) is actually fantastic for combating black mold in the air and throughout your home. But for this use, you would not mix in the carrier oil (jojoba, almond, etc) but just use the combined essential oils from the recipe.
Most of the time, black mold spreads so aggressively that people end up having to move. But if that is not an option or you only have a small development of mold so far, you can diffuse thieves oil in your home. Usually, you should start with a 24 hour shock treatment and then diffuse daily for 15-30 minutes or once a month for 8 hours.
And of course, you can also diffuse thieves oil in your home to fight off anything you might not have yet discovered and keep your home germ free. If you’re starting off without a large mold buildup, you can begin with an 8 hour diffusion and then follow with the 15-30 minute or 8 hour monthly treatments.
You’ll need to diffuse the oils on every floor of your home, and starting with a basement or bottom level (where mold often starts) and working your ways up usually works best.
Cold air diffusion is now said to be one of the most efficient ways to distribute the oils evenly in your home and also makes sure you don’t add any moisture to the room. You can find several examples of cold air diffusers on this website. I have no affiliation with them and don’t know if there prices are fair. I just found them via a google search and they had a lot of good information about diffusers so I think it’s a good place to get started if you are looking to buy one of these.
Another cheaper alternative would be to put 4-8 drops of thieves oil onto a cotton ball and place it on the air vents in your home. You can also put them on your return air vent so it will filter into your air system as well. To clean your dryer, add 2 drops to a wet washcloth and run your dryer for several minutes. You can also put a few drops into your washing machine and just run a rinse cycle.
Thieves oil will actually kill the mold in your home over time but you have to continue using it. You won’t likely want to be in the room when you’re diffusing because of the cinnamon and clove oils. They have a very “hot” feeling to them and can irritate the skin and mucus membranes. Children and pets should also definitely not be in the room because these types of oils in such small bodies is bound to cause irritations.
For the same reason, if you put the oil on your skin or ingest it, you’ll want to do a small test area first. If you apply it to your body (rubbing a small amount on your chest for example), you’ll probably want to dilute it with something like almond, jojoba or olive oil. Use 1 part of the essential oil mix to 4 parts carrier oil and only apply it in small amounts, especially at first. A little bit will go a long way.
Or you can also apply it “neat” to your feet (just a couple drops) without mixing it with any other oils. I do the latter and don’t notice any burning when I put it on…but I don’t touch the oils with my fingers and have pretty tough skin on my feet.
You can also dilute it 1 part thieves oil to15 parts carrier oil for massages but the smell of it may be too hard to handle. It’s very intense.
If you want to drink it, just add a couple drops to a full glass of water. You can do this several times throughout the day. And if you happen to have a headache, add a drop of thieves oil to your tongue and press it to the roof of your mouth. I’ve even done the latter with migraines and it made my headaches almost unnoticeable.
One of the most important things to remember when dealing with toxic black mold is that it will grow in and on just about everything…and it is often very hard to get rid of. Glass, and wood metal surfaces can be cleaned with a solution of water and thieves oil (add a teaspoon to every gallon of water) or just tea tree oil. But skip the bleach, especially on wood, because it will not dry out quickly enough and the mold will start all over again. Anything with fabric (furniture, mattresses, clothing), paper or porous materials harbors mold spores so just diffusing could take a very long time to eliminate the problem. In fact, you’ll need to have these things professionally cleaned and/or dispose of them.
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Tiffany is an American who has been living in Germany with her husband since 2001. The two are self-proclaimed "Self-Reliant Yuppies" who are in their early-30's and bought an 1830's farmhouse several years ago, which they have been turning into a more sustainable and green dream house. Two cats, a Newfie and their 2 year old daughter enjoy the adventure with them. Tiffany enjoys cooking, rock climbing, lux-camping trying to turn her black thumbs green and taking road trips. Visit the 
Great NEW information. I didn’t realize that burning oils in the home would combat mold in that manner. I am certainly going to look into this in more detail. Thank you.
I don’t know if you visited this website- moldrx4u.com and if you haven’t been there, check it out. You can’t burn the oils, as it will change the molecular properties, and you need a nebulizing diffuser to really work. (The ultrasonic ones don’t get enough oil in the air.) The thieves blend does work, but you do have to use pure oils, not synthetic. Thanks for a great post on a non toxic solution!
When toxic mold dies, it leaves behind a casing which contains mold spores. These mold spores emit what are referred to as mycotoxins. When mycotoxins are inhaled or ingested, they are potentially deadly and are to be avoided if a person does not want to suffer toxic mold poisoning. Thieves oil DOES NOT treat or manage the spores or the mycotoxins. Thieves oil may kill the mold but it leaves behind the deadlier mold spores and mycotoxins that can be released and create vast biohazardous conditions. Our company has discovered a beneficial biological formulation that is 0′s on Material Safety Data Sheets and it consumes the mold, the mold spores and the mycotoxins leaving the property safe, healthy, and environmentally friendly.
There is actually research that indicates that thieves oil can and DOES kill mold spores. And that even after treatment has ended, spores continue to die. The case study information can be found here: http://www.moldrx4u.com/ScientificData.asp
But as far as mycotoxins are concerned, I think tea tree oil is said take care of them. Which is why I recommend using both.
I think everyone who experiences black mold problems needs to research the available options and absolutely do testing to be certain that the mold is indeed dead and gone.
Dear Chrissy,
Could you please let me know what you have that kills mold that I can purchase. I have a Mold problem in my home in an area we are unable to get at, I have been using a cold air diffuser running Thieves oil in it at night to kill the mold…but didn’t realize about the Mycotoxin’s from the Dead Mold. I would GREATLY Appreciate any information You or anyone could Please give me!!! Thanks, Pam
))
Would you please e-mail me info about your rid-mold / mycotoxins product? Thank you.
i’m researching due to heavy mold presence…looking for environmentally friendly products that will work.
Hi
I like the idea, well done!
my wife diane is so hypersensitive to the black mold the smallest contact with it her blood pressures go sky high i have remediated almost the whole house but we feel there is still some there, do u think the thieves will help Thanks, Wally
I would recommend testing out in an isolated space first using a diffuser and then going from there. It sounds like you’ve already killed & gotten rid of any traces of mold in your house, but the thieves should keep it from coming back as well as eradicate anything you can’t see. Thieves oil can be very aggravating to the mucus membranes so you do want to test it out in the air first.
There is more information about treating your home with thieves here: http://www.thieves-secret.com/black-mold.htm