Mold 101
You can find mold growing in practically every home, in most every region. You can't ask a home to do any better than what it is surrounded by. So, if there are a million mold spores outside, there can be a million mold spores inside. When conditions are proper, these spores will settle, set root and grow. When conditions are NOT proper, these spores will settle on all surfaces and become what is more commonly known as "dust". Dust is primarily skin cells, dander and mold spores that didn't have the proper conditions to grow. So every time you dust, you are cleaning mold.
The 2 most common places mold is typically found in a home is either the attic or the basement. In the attic, it is usually caused by inadequate air flow. With a lack of proper ventilation, the attic is Dark, Stagnant, Humid & has plenty of Food (wood). All conditions are proper for mold growth to occur. You cannot increase direct sunlight, you cannot eliminate natural humidity levels in the environment and you can't eliminate the food (roof), but you can eliminate stagnant conditions by improving air flow. Although we do not modify the structure to prevent mold, we will outline step-by-step the changes that you can make to improve air flow to prevent future mold growth.
In a basement, the most common cause of mold is elevated humidity. Very rarely do we find puddles or standing water in the basement. Our basements are typically darker than upstairs, are used and maintained less frequently than upstairs and experience higher humidity levels due to natural moisture content within our foundation walls. Controlling how much water remains within the foundation walls is a simple process, one we will teach you. If you control the moisture content within the foundation walls, you will control the relative humidity (rH) levels in the basement and will effectively eliminate conditions causing mold growth to occur.
Mold can occur in the main living area of the home as well, but usually there is a specific event that has occurred to cause mold in the upstairs areas. Usually, you will have experienced a plumbing issue, a toilet leak or sink overflow. Sometimes it relates to a structural issue like a roof or window leak. This are rare, but do happen and we have the technology to locate the source of the water event and eliminate any mold growth concerns caused by these events.
There are many cases where the situation can be taken care of by the home owner...there are many that require professional attention. The guidelines set forth by the EPA suggest that mold growth covering an area of 10 sq ft or less does not pose a "Cross Contamination" issue to other parts of your home. This means that there isn't enough mold present in a 10 sq ft area, or less, to affect other rooms if you were to clean it yourself without any level of containment. If it is a surface growth issue, you can clean with a damp cloth and mild detergent. We usually recommend products like Spic n Span, 409, Krud Kutter, Simple Green, Lysol, etc. Use whatever cleaner you like to use that is not bleach based. Remember, bleach doesn't kill mold... soap and water does. Simply spray the area then wipe with a damp cloth. That is it. If discoloration remains, you can paint with an anti-fungal paint to encapsulate to help prevent future mold and it will also improve visual appearance. If the area of growth was caused by a water event from behind, we recommend cutting out the affected material, clean all newly exposed surfaces with a damp cloth and mild detergent, make sure everything is dry before putting it back together. If you want to take it one step further, you can paint all newly exposed components and the backside of the new materials being installed with an anti-fungal paint which will make everything inside the wall cavity mold resistant and will help reduce the risk of mold growth in this area in the future.
If you are unsure about your situation, please call us 1st. We will gladly inspect your area(s) of concern at no charge, and will provide a comprehensive report detailing what caused the mold growth to occur, remediation recommendations or self remediation instructions, and what needs to be done to prevent new growth in the future. All inspection reports are provided SAME DAY as the inspection.
You can click on the "Contact Us" link above and fill out our Inspection Request Form, you can email us directly at [email protected], or you can call or text us at (724) 344-3645. We look forward to serving you.
The 2 most common places mold is typically found in a home is either the attic or the basement. In the attic, it is usually caused by inadequate air flow. With a lack of proper ventilation, the attic is Dark, Stagnant, Humid & has plenty of Food (wood). All conditions are proper for mold growth to occur. You cannot increase direct sunlight, you cannot eliminate natural humidity levels in the environment and you can't eliminate the food (roof), but you can eliminate stagnant conditions by improving air flow. Although we do not modify the structure to prevent mold, we will outline step-by-step the changes that you can make to improve air flow to prevent future mold growth.
In a basement, the most common cause of mold is elevated humidity. Very rarely do we find puddles or standing water in the basement. Our basements are typically darker than upstairs, are used and maintained less frequently than upstairs and experience higher humidity levels due to natural moisture content within our foundation walls. Controlling how much water remains within the foundation walls is a simple process, one we will teach you. If you control the moisture content within the foundation walls, you will control the relative humidity (rH) levels in the basement and will effectively eliminate conditions causing mold growth to occur.
Mold can occur in the main living area of the home as well, but usually there is a specific event that has occurred to cause mold in the upstairs areas. Usually, you will have experienced a plumbing issue, a toilet leak or sink overflow. Sometimes it relates to a structural issue like a roof or window leak. This are rare, but do happen and we have the technology to locate the source of the water event and eliminate any mold growth concerns caused by these events.
There are many cases where the situation can be taken care of by the home owner...there are many that require professional attention. The guidelines set forth by the EPA suggest that mold growth covering an area of 10 sq ft or less does not pose a "Cross Contamination" issue to other parts of your home. This means that there isn't enough mold present in a 10 sq ft area, or less, to affect other rooms if you were to clean it yourself without any level of containment. If it is a surface growth issue, you can clean with a damp cloth and mild detergent. We usually recommend products like Spic n Span, 409, Krud Kutter, Simple Green, Lysol, etc. Use whatever cleaner you like to use that is not bleach based. Remember, bleach doesn't kill mold... soap and water does. Simply spray the area then wipe with a damp cloth. That is it. If discoloration remains, you can paint with an anti-fungal paint to encapsulate to help prevent future mold and it will also improve visual appearance. If the area of growth was caused by a water event from behind, we recommend cutting out the affected material, clean all newly exposed surfaces with a damp cloth and mild detergent, make sure everything is dry before putting it back together. If you want to take it one step further, you can paint all newly exposed components and the backside of the new materials being installed with an anti-fungal paint which will make everything inside the wall cavity mold resistant and will help reduce the risk of mold growth in this area in the future.
If you are unsure about your situation, please call us 1st. We will gladly inspect your area(s) of concern at no charge, and will provide a comprehensive report detailing what caused the mold growth to occur, remediation recommendations or self remediation instructions, and what needs to be done to prevent new growth in the future. All inspection reports are provided SAME DAY as the inspection.
You can click on the "Contact Us" link above and fill out our Inspection Request Form, you can email us directly at [email protected], or you can call or text us at (724) 344-3645. We look forward to serving you.