Importance of Mold Inspection
Mold inspection is a term coined to mean the process of monitoring whether there is any mold growth in a building or not; thus our aim is to provide you with better understanding of what mold inspection really needs to include; the essential factors are as follow:
- first and foremost, mold inspection has to be carried out by some qualified professional, who is especially trained in discovering mold in the hardest to reach places; experience is also crucial in the field of mold inspection;
- secondly, in order to find out some experienced professional you need to research the net and all the companies on offer that practice in your region; the following pieces of advice listed here and the explanation what mold inspection truly is will help you out in determining which is the best fit for your particular case;
- thirdly, the mold inspector, so called, must look for evidence of past or current mold growth as, say, past mold growth could indicate hidden water problem, which could turn into a recurring factor for home water problems even flooding or leakage; mold growth, in general, can cause sensitised people to have some allergic reactions or, in turn, cause otherwise healthy individuals to develop health problems and become sensitised or allergic to mold or mildew;
- moreover, it’s crucial that the mold-growth inspector looks for hidden mold inside the whole of your house especially in the inside walls, some cracks or hard to reach places as mold growth, together with everything else listed so far, could cause structural damage to the property and wood decay on window and door framing, pieces of furniture, to name but a few;
Mold growth – a perfectly natural process?
Of course, mold growth, especially two kinds of mold – Ceratosystis and Ophiostoma – are two types that grow on timber materials inside homes, thus they are referred to as timber mold; they are also found growing on structural framing inside buildings. They grow on the sap of the wood and once the wood dries out entirely they growth process stops; and although these types of mold cause black staining of the wood itself they are not known to cause any structural issues whatsoever. However, if the mold growth inspector that you have summoned spots black staining on wood inside the property, he/she should take samples professionally and send those samples to a mold testing laboratory for analysis in order to determine whether the mold falls into some of the two categories listed above.
Additional mold inspector’s duties
The mold inspector should take the time, after all he/she is being paid for this, to look for sources of moisture inside the property as this is truly essential since some leakage, clog, or pipeline burst could lead to severe damage and residual damage as well. After all, water is the main source behind mold and mildew growth and without the source you will not experience the problematic issue hence the inspector should determine carefully if there is a future source of mold or not at the property. In case the professional does find some moisture source it need to be dealt with immediately since mold starts growing very fast and in case there have been past cases of mold growth that have been eliminated the condition could return to its past state pretty quickly meaning the remediation efforts in the past and the money given will just be considered wasted. So we should never underestimate looking for some moisture source by the professional you’ve hired.
IAQ
Mold investigation also features “Indoor Air Quality” (IAQ) investigation. This is actually the very process of determining what the irritants present in the air at your property are that cause discomfort to the occupants of the living space at question. So by saying we need to find some experienced professional, he/she should be trained in the IAQ investigation process as well. So if you start feeling ill when staying for a few hours in a given room of your property you should immediately inform the mold investigator as this would be a clear sign for them that the air quality in the whole of the building has been compromised.
Reasons for mold inspection
Some of the reasons are as follow:
- in case you or somebody of your family experiences some allergic reaction such as runny nose, sneezing, itchy eyes, to name but a few, this could be a clear sign for the inspector – yes, the mold growth inspector is again the key player in this problem solving ‘game’ – that the room has been contaminated with a certain type of mold;
- for the inspector to verify and for you to calm down that there is not any existing moisture or mold problem whatsoever associated with, say, the new building or flat that you intend to rent or buy for your business plans or family affairs;
- for the inspector to verify and for you to feel calm that all the moisture sources has been successfully cleared out and there is not even a single residual mold growth patch on any of the walls or the ceiling, or crawlspace in your property – in other words that all your mold-growth problems have been successfully dealt with thanks to your persistence and the inspector’s experience and on-time and on-spot actions.
However, in case some specific water problem led to mold growth and this problem is clear, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you need to call in for mold inspection; rather spare the money for, say, roof leakage repair works or the replacing of moldy ceiling tiles with brand new that with last for decades on end without causing you any problems.
Last but not least, plenty of people ask themselves why they should spend money and waste time on mold testing for their properties. The question is recognised by many and reasonable enough still people often forget how hazardous some mold growth at home could be – dangerous for their own and their children and other family members’ health. After all mold is fungus and as such can cause sinus congestion, headaches, skin rashes, throat irritation, to name but a few. Thus be well-aware that it is best to spend time, effort and money on mold inspection and testing before mold really become hazardous for your family’s health and well-being.