Mold is one of the big problems that home sellers and buyers in Victoria, Cowichan, Duncan, Nanaimo, Parksville, Qualicum, Courtenay, Comox, Campbell River, and Port Alberni uncover during the home inspection process.
Here are some ways to save a deal with when mold is involved in your transaction. These are common scenarios our mold remediation company, Pacific Decontamination Services, sees regularly when working with real estate agents (buyers and sellers) on a daily basis.
Scenario 1: A few inches of mold is found in a small area of the home and you are worried mold is everywhere.
No need to take a wrecking ball to the entire house when a little bit of mold is found!
Mold only grows where there is water or high relative humidity. If mold is identified around a single window where condensation is present, there is no need to start ripping out walls in other areas of the home that are dry. Focus on the area where the water and mold growth is occurring and remove the mold at its source (e.g. the drywall and wood trim around the window) and eliminating the water source (e.g. window condensation).
Scenario 2: Mold is disclosed in the listing agreement or later identified during an inspection and you are unsure whether you need it tested.
If you already see mold, testing may be a waste of money.
It does not matter what type of mold you have – once identified, all mold should be treated the same way.
Testing can be useful in certain situations such as when someone identifies a moldy-like smell but cannot actually see mold anywhere. In this case, testing can help determine if the smell is indeed mold and the source of the presumed mold. Most of the time though the smell of mold will lead you right to a visible source of mold, making testing unnecessary.
But if you can already see visible mold, most of the time testing is not necessary. Instead, Pacific Decontamination Services can eliminate the mold and mold spores, allowing you to use the money allocated for testing towards remediation instead.
Scenario 3: “Black Mold” is identified and you are concerned that the mold is toxic.
Not all molds are toxic despite what you may hear or read.
Mold comes in a variety of colors. The dreaded “Black Mold” you have heard about so often in the media is not a species or specific type of mold.
Media reports of “Black Mold” often refer to molds that can produce toxins (specifically mycotoxins), such as groups of molds known as Stachybotrys. Note that mycotoxins will not always be produced when these types of mold are present. To put it another way, the presence of mold does not necessarily mean mycotoxins are present.
Much of what we know about mycotoxins is not well understood yet and ongoing research is needed. According to the EPA though, certain types of mycotoxins produced by the molds Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus are shown to cause cancer. However, the EPA goes on further to say that “Aspergillus flavus and Aspergillus parasiticus are not commonly found on building materials or in indoor environments.”
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention also states: “There are very few reports that toxigenic molds found inside homes can cause unique or rare health conditions such as pulmonary hemorrhage or memory loss. These case reports are rare, and a causal link between the presence of the toxigenic mold and these conditions has not been proven.”
Scenario 4: Mold is disclosed or identified and you are not sure what to do.
Not all molds are bad!
Mold is everywhere – in our homes, in our offices and in the fresh air we breathe outside.
Some of the media reports on mold are over hyped and that mold is in fact a natural organism that most of the time makes life better. Mold improves our lives by breaking down dead leaves and trees, helping to make certain types of cheeses, and by being the basis of modern antibiotics like Penicillin.
Despite these useful purposes, too much mold in a home can pose a health risk. How much is too much? Currently, there are no federal guidelines that define exactly how much mold is unhealthy. This useful fact is very important for you to understand.
Even though no federal standards currently exist, generally speaking, you should not be able to see actual mold growth or smell it. If you can, your home probably has too much mold and can be unhealthy.
Scenario 5: Unexpected mold is found in an attic or crawlspace during an inspection.
In real estate transactions, the discovery of mold in an attic or crawl space by an inspector often comes as an unexpected surprise to the parties involved. But mold in attics and crawl spaces do not need to kill a transaction.
Mold in these places needs to be remediated. In extreme cases, it can be a sign of bigger issues such as foundation problems or roof deficiencies. But a buyer who falls in love with a house should not necessarily be shocked if mold is found in an attic or crawl space by an inspector.
These two areas of the home are ripe for mold infestation – studies that indicate as much as 60% of all crawl spaces have mold.
But often attic and crawl space mold goes undetected by the homeowner because these are not places most of us spend much time in.
How to Remove, Eliminate and Remediate Mold in Houses in Victoria, Duncan, Nanaimo, Parksville, Qualicum, Port Alberni, Comox, Courteney, and Campbell River
Pacific Decontamination Services neutralize your mold by applying our eco-friendly, safe chemical into the affected area(s). Depending on the job, we apply our formula by spray and fog. We do not use a tent. The average time of our on-site service is approximately one hour. An additional four hours is required to achieve maximum effectiveness. We ask that you stay out of the premise for approximately 4 hours in total. Read more about how we work.
Pacific Decontamination Services uses the world’s strongest, most effective and safe antimicrobial disinfectant, deodorization and chemical decontaminate. Our professional application will eliminate up to accepted levels of any allergen, germ, bacteria or fungus that it touches. AND as powerful as it is, it is also completely safe.
What do you do next? How do you solve the challenge of mold and associated health hazards?
Call
Pacific Decontamination Services at 778-269-0208 or email
us!
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Comox, Courtenay, Campbell River, and all of Vancouver Island:
