Mold Removal

One of the services offered by Speed-Dry is mold removal. This goes together with water removal because mold is the result of water damage. Often times the water we are called upon to remove has not been discovered until after mold has grown. Then, in addition to removing the water, the mold problem must be handled. From being in the business for over 20 years, Speed-Dry staff has encountered many mold situations and we know mold very well. We’ve dealt with storm-damaged homes that developed mold. We’ve dealt with homes that had plumbing failures while the owners were away. And, we’ve dealt with homes that had hidden leaks that developed into huge live mold colonies with different colors ranging from green to black to bright orange. Over the years, Speed-Dry has acquired solid experience inspecting, detecting, removing, and remediating mold. In this field, it’s crucial that you use someone knowledgeable and experienced. And, Speed-Dry is.

We at Speed-Dry know the importance of the proper removal and remediation of mold. From knowing our customers, who are often people calling us to help them solve a mold problem, we have met in person many people with mold sickness. From seeing people who are suffering, it has reinforced in our hearts the desire to go more than the extra mile when it comes to performing their job. We know that someone’s health is at stake when working mold.

By performing thousands of water damage and mold jobs over the years, Speed-Dry staff knows where mold hides and we know what it takes to get rid of it. From taking apart a vast variety of houses and buildings down to the bare structures we know every little crook and cranny where it might grow.  And since our work is checked by laboratory testing, we know exactly what it takes to make the mold go away. Even when it gets down to the level where it’s invisible to the eye.

The most important thing about mold removal is that we get it all. But before the removal starts, it’s important that the mold spores are not allowed to spread. An example would be if one part of a home had water intrusion that developed into mold, but the rest of the house was not contaminated. Techniques similar to the removal of asbestos are applied to accomplish this. The section about to be worked on would be sealed off using plastic sheeting and tape for containment. In certain circumstances, multiple layers would be used, effectively creating chambers. A sealed passage to the outside would be constructed. Next, a machine called a negative air machine would be set up. This machine draws air from the contaminated room through a HEPA filter, which catches invisible mold spores and has a duct that leads to the outside. With the machine on, a negative air pressure is created in the room, which prevents mold spores from escaping into other areas.

There are some things that can be cleaned of mold, and there are some things that can’t. Non-structural contaminated material such as sheetrock, insulation, carpet, and flooring must be removed. After being contaminated, these materials will always hold spores and mold odor. Further, they may cover up structural components that also have mold. When water soaks into a house, it goes far deeper than you can see. If your drywall absorbs water, than the framing behind that drywall will probably absorb the water too. If mold grows, it will be on the drywall and on the framing. This can happen under carpet, behind cabinets, and behind baseboards. It can also happen under hardwood floors and under ceramic tile. So, certain things have to be removed just to expose what’s underneath. When performing a mold removal job, Speed-Dry removes the contaminated material that cannot be salvaged. And, we also expose every possible location where mold might be.

After removal of the contaminated material, the structural framework and masonry is cleaned and remediated using the proper method for the individual job. Speed-Dry uses HEPA vacuuming, washdown methods, & soda blasting methods depending on the situation. These methods will be explained below.

HEPA vacuuming involves using a special vacuum to remove as much dry mold as possible from framing and masonry. The vacuum is designed to catch mold spores inside it, so they aren’t circulated into the air through the vacuum exhaust. This removes most of the mold but not all of it. This method is used to remove contaminated dirt, insulation, and debris. And, there is always lots of debris after drywall has been removed. And if ceiling drywall has been removed, there will be lots of contaminated insulation. The HEPA vacuum also prevents the spread of fiberglass insulation, which you also don’t want to breathe or have in contact with you.

The washdown method means using a water based solution containing detergents and disinfectants to clean the structure. This sounds simple, but it is a job that must be done meticulously. Every angle of a framed structure or truss system must be scrubbed by hand. And full protective gear must be worn to keep the chemicals off the technician. Further, proper respirators must be worn to avoid breathing the spores when they are released during cleaning. Those paper masks won’t work. It has to be a proper respirator with cartridges designed for mold.

There are some jobs that you can’t reach with the washdown method. There could be too many angles, too many nooks and crannies, or too much difficulty to effectively clean. An example could be a structural framework with mold growing deep into the surface. It would take a million years to scrub it all off, and you still couldn’t get it all. That’s when soda blasting is necessary. Soda blasting is like sand blasting, but sodium bicarbonate (baking soda) is used for the blasting material. This system works well for the underside of roof decking, truss systems, framing, and masonry. It involves the use of an industrial size blaster designed for sodium bicarbonate and a large trailer mounted diesel compressor to power it. It is heavy duty equipment, and it gets the job done. Speed-Dry uses soda blasting to remove mold on tough jobs. To put it in perspective, a 2000 SF house might require 400 pounds of baking soda to blast away the mold on an interior wood frame and truss system.

Mold remediation involves removing mold you can see and mold that is invisible to the eye. The only way to be sure that all the mold is gone is to do certified lab testing of the job site after the remediation. This consists of air sampling tests and surface testing. Speed-Dry does this testing on every mold remediation job, and provides you with the lab results for your peace of mind.