Mold
Advice
Q. I
have a single story brick ranch home in a western suburb of Detroit, and
have discovered a great deal of mold growth in my attic area yesterday,
Saturday, while I was doing some minor wire rerouting. The roof was redone
in the summer of 2000 by a pro contractor. The underside of the roof
sheathing is covered with a solid black covering of mold. I estimate
at least 1000 sq. ft. I have had excellent health all my life and
about a year ago I started getting sick and ended up in the hospital with
pneumonia. I have coughed and been ill for about a year and 3 months
now. I have discovered I have a liver infection and lung disease.
I have never smoked. I am only getting about 45% of the value of the
air I breathe. I have occasionally had sinus problems but this last
year it never seems to clear up. I have also had some skin problems
I never had before. I am not sure if the health is part of the mold etc.
Up until a few months ago I never thought about mold as a health problem.
Many of the sheets of plywood on the roof were replaced and it appears
that the contractor did something wrong because the under surface is moist
and wet. All nails protruding are wet. Any suggestions for dealing
with building materials that are covered by mold? [Nov. 25, 2002]
A.
In view of the large amount of visible mold covering and your serious
recent possible mold health problems, your first step is to move
temporarily so healthy, mold-free living quarters. Each hour and day you
live in mold infestation further endangers your and your family's health.
Second, you need to be concerned about the possible spread of the mold
growth covering into your ceilings and walls beneath the attic, and to the
spread of easily airborne mold spores throughout the entire home. To know
the true extent of your mold cover problem, you need to hire a
Certified
Mold Inspector to do a thorough physical examination of
your home, including inside walls and ceilings and hvac [for mold growing
inside heating, air conditioning, and ventilating ducts and equipment],
plus extensive mold testing through out the home. Third, based on the
results of the careful physical mold examination and mold sampling mold
laboratory analysis, you need to have both the visible mold and any hidden
mold contamination effectively and completely removed from your
home.
Q.
I recently moved back to the United States from abroad.
All of my furnishings arrived at my house, after over 1 month in transit
via cargo ship, seriously infected with Mold. All of the sofas and
cushions, rugs and wood furniture had several moldy, green blotches. The
furniture was unloaded with out our realization and put in place for just
over 24 hours before we had the moving company take it all out of the
house to be treated at a remediation facility. How at risk is the house
now considering that mold was not a problem before we purchased it and we
never had a mold problem on our furniture during our stay abroad. [Feb.
26, 2002]
A.
Mold cross-contamination is very likely from your moldy home furniture and
home furnishings to the air inside your home, and [through the air] to
mold contaminate your entire home and home hvac [heating, ventilating, and
air conditioning] equipment and ducts. Your first step is to hire a
Certified
Mold Inspector to thoroughly inspect and most test your
home for the presence of elevated levels of unhealthy mold spores. If the
mold physical examination and mold testing reveal that, indeed, you do
have a current mold infestation problem, it is much less costly and much
more effective to have your home mold remediated now at the beginning of
the problem, rather than after the mold has taken over your home.
Q.
I have a serious problem with mold and mildew in my bathroom. My bathroom
does not have a any windows. But, it does have a vent on the wall. The
mold and mildew are located on my ceiling. I have tried cleaning out the
mold and mildew with clorox, pine sol, and other chemical agents. I
also brought a special paint that was support to block out the mold and
mildew. It didn't work. The mold and mild ate it way through the paint. I
just don't know what else I can do to remove this mold growth. Maybe you
can suggest other mold remediation way that I might be able to use to
resolve this mold problem. [Dec. 14, 2002]
A.
Please note that clorox, pine sol, and alleged mold-killing paint are not
effective for killing mold. Read
why bleach is not good for killing mold on porous surfaces such as walls,
ceilings, and other building materials at
Bleach and Mold. Because mold problems directly result
from water or moisture problems, your first step is to locate the water
source for the mold growth and fix the water leak or water intrusion
problem. You can start by buying a digital hygrometer [about $30] from
Home Depot, Lowe's, or a major hardware store. Use your hygrometer to
check over several days the humidity level in the bathroom and in other
areas of your house [including attic, basement, and any crawl
space]. If the humidity level is over 50%, you may have enough air
moisture to facilitate mold growth. The higher the humidity above 50%, the
greater your potential mold problem. Your ideal room humidity level
is 30 to 40%. You may need to install a bigger and better vent fan
in the bathroom [and run it longer] to reduce your bathroom humidity to a
safe level. If the humidity level is not a problem, you need to inspect
inside the bathroom floor, ceiling, and walls for the possibility of an
interior water leak and interior mold growth. Read more about mold
inspection and mold testing by visiting:
Mold Inspection.
Read the 25 steps for safe and effective
Mold Remediation.
Do-It-Best-Yourself Mold Solutions Phil can help you fix your own property’s mold problems at low-cost, more safely, and better-in- results than what is done by many mold inspectors and mold contractors. How can Phil help you?
1. Read Phil’s five plain-English, mold advice books to master mold inspection, testing, removal, remediation, and prevention for your house, condo, apartment, office, or workplace.
2. Buy do-it-yourself, affordable mold test kits, mold lab analysis, video inspection scope, mold cleaner, and mold killer, for the successful toxic and household mold inspection, mold testing, mold species identification and quantification, mold cleaning, mold removal, and mold remediation to find mold, kill mold, clean mold, and remove mold from your residence or commercial building.
3. Get FREE mold advice, mold help, and/or answers to your mold questions, by emailing mold expert Phillip Fry at envirodangers@yahoo.com. You can also email pictures of your mold problems in jpeg file format as email attachments.
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