How Does Mold Clean Up Work?

Mold Detection and Identification

Our first step is to inspect the home for mold, and if found take a surface test and send it to a lab.  We prefer to use San Air lab in Virginia but any accredited lab will suffice.  Some clients like to have tests conducted at two separate laboratories.  We welcome this openly and prefer to take as many tests as possible.  Keep in mind lab fees can become significant; a minimum of 3 surface tests before and after the treatment must be conducted on all jobs for verification. 

Test results can be obtained in 24 hours from most labs.  The lab we use has a password-protected page where our clients can log in and get their results directly from the lab in PDF format. 

Professional Pond Management uses Flir infrared technology to survey homes and buildings quickly for moisture problems.  As water evaporates, it uses heat, and this heat loss can be seen by the infrared camera.  With this technology moisture problems can be quickly identified cutting hours or even days of laborious searching for leaks.  This camera is so good at identifying problems in homes that soon we will also be adding Home Inspection as a service.

Removing Mold

Once the moisture intrusion problem is corrected (e.g. the roof leak is fixed), the removal of the mold needs to begin.  To understand how this process works we first must understand the biology of mold.  Mold is a fungus, a living organism belonging to its own kingdom.  Its not considered an animal because it has no mouth and no stomach and its not considered a plant because it contains no chlorophyll.  Molds can live everywhere especially in soil, which is why most crawl spaces have mold issues. 

Mold is made of protein, in fact some of the proteins (called Glucans) in the cell wall of mold are thought to be the reason for many allergic reactions.  Treating mold with solutions like bleach can kill the mold but it does not remove the cell wall.  Dead mold can still be a source for illness.  Mold has to be physically removed to remove potential for allergic reaction.  Sometimes simply removing the moldy material and installing new material is the solution.  Many times mold can be found throughout the building or home and tearing it down is a very expensive way to correct a mold problem.  This process is called rip and tear which basically means the building or home is rebuilt.  Many mold cases don’t have to be rip and tear if the right people do the job. 

Professional Pond Management uses an EPA approved protein destroyer produced by Anabec Inc. in mold removal/remediation jobs to clean up mold. The cleaner used is not a poison, in fact it has been used in hospitals and transplant operation rooms. It does not kill the mold.  It rips the mold apart even at the smallest microscopic levels.  This product is not eaten by mold -it destroys the mold's cell wall.  It’s a physical removal of the mold without ripping out the materials or endless hours of HEPA vacuuming. 

Preventing Future Mold Growth

Mold needs three ingredients to grow and multiply:  food, oxygen and moisture. Today’s homes provide more than enough food for mold.  The wood framing, paper products in drywall, insulation and plywood are all excellent hosts for mold to grow and thrive.  Since food and oxygen are available in all homes the only way to control mold growth is to control moisture.  Keeping moisture levels low enough to inhibit mold growth can be difficult.  Mold can grow when relative humidity is over 70%.  The key to keeping mold growth to a minimum is to control moisture. 

Once the mold is removed, the surface can be sealed with a mold resistant moisture barrier, when needed.  Indoor surfaces can also be sealed with an invisible mold resistant shield.