Mold in my dreads?

Okay, so I know there already are many discussions addressing mold already, but I have spent hours searching on the internet and I haven't found quite what I was looking for.

So I have had my dreadies for just over 11 months now, and in the past couple months I have combed out a few of my dreads' tips that have tried to blunt themselves. When I did this I noticed that there was stuff tangled in my hair, not visible on the surface of the dread. It was mostly white and black stuff that would break up a bit when I rubbed it in between my fingers. I was afraid this was mold, but since my hair doesn't smell bad at all, and I try to dry it well (especially recently) I thought perhaps it could just be lint. But as time went on and I had to comb out more and more tips, I thought there is just too much of the stuff for it to be lint.

Now I'm confused. I used to wash my hair with T Gel (2-3 times a week in the beginning, now more like once a week), but I have recently switched to baking soda rinses. I do a vinegar soaking about once or twice a month. And for the past month or two, I have also been spraying my dreads with a liberal amount of vinegar before bed (about every other night). Is it even possible for mold to grow when exposed to so much vinegar? I mean my dreads are kind of thick (I only have I think 35 or so), so perhaps they are holding water more than I realize.. I don't know.

So I guess what I'm asking is two things: Is it mold? and if it is, how can I dry my hair faster/how often should I do vinegar rinses to get rid of the mold and prevent it from coming back?

Sorry for the long post, I just would like answers to be as specific as possible because I am concerned about my health. Thanks in advance to anyone who can help me out in any way. I really don't want to have to comb my babies out.

updated by @gingerdread-girl: 01/22/20 09:33:16AM

if they are thick like u say it could be mold but with no smell i wouldnt think so (theres a new rot knot that will get rid of mold fast)

buti would think its most likely t gel gunk t gels a tar bassed gel thats very residy=ue heavy,,and very toxic

why were u washing with thar?

mold can grow on vinager under the right conditions i think

u should have done acv after every bs wash

i would

use an anti residue wash...once

if no smell when damp or drying skip this step if u let it air dry over hours and notice a scent

use the rot knot

if no mold use the dreadlockshampoo

it really sounds like t gel is the culprit tho

--
My new book Ban The Taboo Vol 1

I'm having the same problem right now. I've noticed that I've had white-to-brownish residue in my dreads since about the second time I washed them. I'm pretty sure it's just dead skin cells that have gotten trapped in the dread. This usually doesn't have a smell. I just noticed earlier today after I got out of the shower that I could smell that wet towely, mildewy smell. And it's been following me around all day. I don't know if anyone else can notice but I sure can notice a difference. I've been trying to figure out where the smell is coming from exactly, but I smelled each one of my dreads one at a time and I couldn't tell. It's like when I don't smell them, I can catch a whiff of mold smell. I found areas where there was white buildup in my dreads and I tried scraping it out with my nails and a tweezer. It's just really hard to get that stuff out.

I've never used residue soap. I only washed with baking soda and tea tree and lavender oil for the first year. After that I started using some soap from dreadlockshampoo. Nowadays I try to use a natural soap from Whole Foods. I just washed my hair with baking soda and tea tree yesterday, and then rinsed my hair out vigorously for an hour. I made sure I got to every single dread and squeezed out any dead skin. Not much dead skin squeezed out so I assumed my hair was clean. I was wrong. It seems like my hair will just always have buildup and it will never go away.

Sun drying is the best way to avoid mold in your dreads. i've heard that sunlight or sunny atmosphere is the most hostile environment for mold spores. however, if you live in a region where its cold/snowy/rainy some other preventive measures can be steady use of clove oil, cinammon oil, lavender oil, peppermint oil, or any other oil that has anti-fungal properties.. if it doesnt smell bad it most probably might not be mold though..

I have had the same thing and it is mainly in the bits of my dreads that started first. Mine was white/black/brown coloured and I think it is probably a mixture of dead skin, lint and the little bit of residue you probably have left over from the t-gel. I wouldn't worry about it unless it smells bad!

Just wondering how it went for you...peace

So what I ended up doing was using an anti-residue wash for my dreads. After doing that I combed out another blunted tip and still notices the stuff, so I soaked my dreads in a half vinegar, half water solution and let that sit over night.I washed that out the next morning and the stuff was STILL in the tip of my dread, even after I practically drowned my hair in vinegar. I combed out the clumps and took a closer look at them and noticed that they were made of thin threads, so I think it's safe to say they're just fuzzies from my baja (it leaves a lot of those) and not mold, especially since they are in very small clusters and only really in the tips of my dreads.

I am glad for you. Good to know it was not mold for you. In the future if you think you may have mold. try this recipe: 3/4 cup white vinegar with 1/4 cups water and 30-50 drops of lavender essential oil. Wet your dreads and leave this in for 24 hours. You can also do it as a spray, just make sure it gets squeezed to the inside of the dreads, or the problem areas, again leave it in for 24 hours, then rinse. Happy dreading....peace

Gingerdread Girl said:

So what I ended up doing was using an anti-residue wash for my dreads. After doing that I combed out another blunted tip and still notices the stuff, so I soaked my dreads in a half vinegar, half water solution and let that sit over night.
I washed that out the next morning and the stuff was STILL in the tip of my dread, even after I practically drowned my hair in vinegar. I combed out the clumps and took a closer look at them and noticed that they were made of thin threads, so I think it's safe to say they're just fuzzies from my baja (it leaves a lot of those) and not mold, especially since they are in very small clusters and only really in the tips of my dreads.