Mold odor disappearing when mold is dead?

[Guest guest]

I recently bought a cold mist diffuser and some " detox oil " from a

Dr. in Washington State to try to get rid of a mild mold problem in a

few cabinets in my kitchen. There had been a tiny, small leak under

the sink for who knows how long, and some mold had grown, but the

smell was mild to moderate--not a really bad mold problem. I had a

plumber fix the leak and the damaged wood was removed. The

dishwasher ws also removed so we could look behind it. Three lower

cabinet areas smelled a little musty--under the sink, the dishwasher

area, and the cabinet on the other side of the sink.

The detox oil is equivalent to " Thieves Oil " (Young Living) and was

supposed to be diffused into the air for 24 hours per room to kill

mold. That is the only instructions I received.

I put the diffuser right in each cabinet in turn, and kept diffusing

for almost three weeks, using a total of twice the amount of oil that

was supposed to treat my entire, small house and car. But the musty

smell is still there in the cabinets. With the remainder of oil, I

treated a small chair that was musty, for a couple of days. Nothing

changed.

I spent almost $200 on these items. The doctor's office insists that

the oil will kill mold, but the smell will not go away until the mold

is completely cleaned up, which I haven't done since I wanted to kill

it off before getting in there.

Is this scientifically correct? Does dead mold smell just the same

as living mold? I had assumed it would no longer be producing

volatile compounds, and the smell would go away to a great extent.

The office was very uncooperative; I have to give them a 20%

restocking fee and they will no longer send me anything. Just

because I want to return some products that didn't seem to work as

claimed, and asked questions. I even said I would write to this list

and find out the scientific truth about musty smells continuing after

mold is dead. That did not change their mind. This seems extremely

unprofessional and unhelpful, but that's another topic.

In any case, can some of the remediation experts tell me the truth

about this? Does dead mold smell like living mold, or does the musty

smell decrease significantly? Or does the mold have to be physically

removed to clear out the odor?

Thanks.

Judith