COLUMBIA - A nasty mold at the Governor's Mansion has sent South Carolina's first family packing.

The building -- reopened three years ago after the state spent $5.6 million renovating the building -- has been home to governors since the 1870s and was built in 1856.

First lady Jenny Sanford said Stachybotrys chartarum has caused health problems with family and staff. The mold was first discovered last August, she said, after the family returned from vacation.

"Our clothes were covered with mold and there was mold growing out of light sockets up the wall," Sanford said. "Suffice it to say, I was concerned."

The state Budget and Control Board, which oversees maintenance on the building, put in manual controls intended to reduce humidity last August.

"But they never did any further investigative work," Sanford said. Tests results available Thursday showed the mold is a variety that can be toxic and "is airborne throughout... where we live," Sanford said.

The air-conditioning system isn't powerful enough to keep humidity low enough to inhibit mold, said Mike Sponhour, of the Budget and Control Board, which oversees the mansion.