Prevent Problems from Becoming Catastrophes with an Early Detection Home Mold Inspection After a Water Intrusion in Your Home

During a home mold inspection, we uncovered concerning issues that, if addressed properly, would potentially save a client from having to tackle extensive mold troubles down the road.

Maddy contacted us because she was concerned she may be exposed to excessive mold growth in her Lake Oswego home. She said she smelled a musty odor in her home and was also experiencing allergy-like symptoms – two common experiences when excessive mold growth is present inside a home.

One of our highly trained professionals conducted microbial air sampling in Maddy’s home to determine if airborne mold spores were present. One microbial air sample was collected from inside the house and another sample from outside. An accredited laboratory analyzed the two microbial air sampling results, which indicated that the air inside Maddy’s home contained lower concentrations of fungal spores than the outdoor sample.

But microbial air sampling isn’t the only factor professionals rely on for detecting mold growth.

Visible Mold Growth and Evidence of Water Intrusion

Part of Healthy Home’s thorough inspection included a visual assessment of Maddy’s home. During the home mold inspection, we looked for:

• visible mold growth,
• evidence of water intrusion, and
• any moisture-related issues.

We found evidence of all three in Maddy’s home. Visible mold growth was present in the attic throughout the underside sheathing of her home’s roof. The area showed evidence of water intrusion and excessive moisture as well.

These are critical discoveries because if Maddy remained unaware of their presence, they would continue to deteriorate and contribute to the mold growth, causing even more extreme mold and moisture issues in the future.

Uncovering the Cause of Water Intrusion

Discovering the damage is a crucial key to success. But, we must also find the cause of the problem to be truly effective in finding a long-term solution. Our team’s training and experience led us to determine that the most likely cause of the water-related damage discovered was stormwater infiltrating the home’s roof sheathing.

In our report to Maddy, we recommended that she promptly address the issues in her home’s roof area to prevent more water-related damage and mold growth from occurring. In addition to fixing the home’s exterior, our recommendations include:

• Areas in the attic exhibiting visible mold growth should be sanded or otherwise mitigated to remove the growth.
• If mold growth is seen within the matrix of the roof sheathing, affected portions should be removed and replaced.
• Once the mold growth is removed, an antimicrobial encapsulant should be applied to the underside of the entire roof sheathing surface.  

Professional Home Mold Inspection is Required

Sometimes, people may want to attempt to clean visible mold growth themselves using bleach or other cleaners. We advise against this because properly removing the mold growth includes using proven methods and industry best practices to prevent cross-contaminating the rest of your home during the process. It may also be necessary to design specific mold prevention strategies for the future.

Mold growth removal should always be performed by qualified mold remediation professionals using proper engineering controls. According to the Indoor Air Quality Association, a professional mold remediation contractor should provide:

1. A written plan that describes how the mold remediation will be done, when it will be done, and when the job will be complete.
2. Prevention of cross-contamination of areas in your home and minimization of the dispersal of dust, spores, and fungal fragments.
3. Removal of the mold by cleaning, replacing or sanding surfaces. (Simply “killing” the mold without removing it is not considered an industry best practice.)

The discovery of mold growth and a water intrusion issue in Maddy’s home allows her to have the visible mold properly removed while also correcting the water intrusion issues so they no longer contribute to mold growth.

If you suspect a moisture and water intrusion problem is causing excessive mold growth in your home, give us a call. Our professionals can uncover potential areas of concern in your home with a home mold inspection so you can prevent problems from becoming catastrophes in the future.

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Dan Rouse

Principal at Healthy Home

Dan is a Principal at Healthy Home and is a Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant and a Certified Mold Consultant.

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