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Archived Mold Remediation Blog Posts

The Importance of Mold Testing in Real Estate Deals: What Buyers and Sellers Need to Know

7/10/2024 (Permalink)

SERVPRO vehicles on a job site. Mold testing is a critical component of real estate transactions that protects both buyers and sellers.

When you're buying or selling a home, you want to ensure that everything is in top shape for the transaction to proceed smoothly. One critical aspect that shouldn't be overlooked is the presence of mold. Mold testing can play a significant role in real estate transactions, providing peace of mind for both buyers and sellers. Here’s how mold testing impacts real estate deals and why it’s important.

Why Mold Testing Matters in Real Estate

Mold can be a deal-breaker in real estate transactions. Not only can it cause damage to the property, but it can also lead to delays in the closing process. For buyers, discovering mold after purchasing a home can be expensive and frustrating. For sellers, undisclosed mold issues can result in legal liabilities and lost deals. That's why mold testing is a crucial step in the real estate process.

For Sellers: Preparing Your Home for Sale

If you're selling your home, conducting a mold inspection before listing it can provide several advantages:

  • Transparency: Providing proof of a mold-free home or documentation of resolved mold issues can boost buyer confidence.
  • Value Preservation: Addressing mold problems before listing the property can help maintain the home's market value.
  • Smooth Transactions: Resolving issues beforehand can lead to quicker, smoother real estate transactions without last-minute negotiations or buyer demands.

For Buyers: Ensuring a Safe Investment

For home buyers, mold testing is an essential due diligence step:

  • Ensuring the home is free from mold enhances the living environment.
  • Identifying mold issues before finalizing the purchase can save on future remediation costs.
  • If mold is found, buyers can negotiate repair credits, a lower price, or request that the seller address the mold issues before closing.

How Mold Testing Works

Mold testing involves a detailed inspection of the property by certified professionals who will:

  • Identify Signs of Mold Growth: Inspectors look for visible signs of mold growth and areas susceptible to mold, such as basements, bathrooms, around windows, and in HVAC systems.
  • Measure Moisture Levels: Since mold thrives in moist environments, inspectors use tools to measure humidity and moisture in walls, floors, and ceilings.
  • Collect Samples: If necessary, they will collect air and surface samples to test for mold spores, which are sent to a lab to identify the type and concentration of mold present.

When to Schedule Mold Testing

Mold testing is recommended:

  • Before Listing or Buying a Home
  • After Identifying Potential Issues
  • Following Major Repairs

Mold testing is a critical component of real estate transactions that protects both buyers and sellers. It ensures that properties are safe, habitable, and free from mold-related problems that could affect property values. For those involved in real estate transactions, including a mold inspection in the buying or selling process can lead to a smoother, more secure deal.

If you're considering buying or selling a property and need professional mold testing, don't hesitate to reach out to the experts. At SERVPRO of Montgomery County, we have the tools and expertise to conduct thorough mold inspections and remediation if needed. Our goal is to help you make informed decisions and ensure that your real estate transactions are safe and sound.

Recognize Signs Of Mold

7/12/2021 (Permalink)

In as little as 48 hours, mold can become a problem in your home or business when there’s a water intrusion, like a roof leak or a leaking water line. If you have a mold problem in your home or business, your primary focus should be safety. Make sure you avoid affected areas and turn off the HVAC system and fans. Contact SERVPRO of Montgomery County for mold remediation services. Remember, significant mold growth can occur in as little as 48-72 hours. You might notice a strong, musty odor; this may indicate mold hidden by drywall or under carpeting; mold isn’t always visible, but the odor can help identify it. Mold may present a greater risk to children, the elderly, and anyone with respiratory problems. If you suspect mold growth in your home or business, give SERVPRO of Montgomery County a call at (931) 645-1285.

SERVPRO Remediates Mold Damage and Takes Steps to Prevent Future Mold Growth

7/2/2021 (Permalink)

A continuous state of elevated humidity is a primary cause of excessive microbial growth in Clarksville residences and can increase the amount of damage that follows. Other factors, such as the presence of absorbent materials in the home, can also play a role in microbial growth.

Whenever a residence in Clarksville sustains mold damage, one of the aspects examined inside the home includes water sources. Leaky water lines, past flooding events, and saturated ground near the home can increase the amount of humidity the interior of the home experiences. SERVPRO technicians use moisture meters and other devices to locate the sources and areas where moisture accumulated. Once we locate these areas and sources, we can then resolve the situation that caused microbial growth to affect the home.

Mold remediation experts know that the existence of future invasive water can cause the microbial problem to return, rendering mold remediation efforts useless. Once we eliminate these sources, we can then begin removing mold-damaged materials, laundering and cleaning household items and furniture, and caring for the carpeting throughout the home. Walls that harbor mold, even if dormant, need cleaning and drying.

During our work, maintaining a set of controls to keep all mold contained safely affects our labor's overall outcome. This includes the use of plastic sheeting surrounding areas within the home, along with the use of our air scrubbers. Sending microbes outdoors helps keep them from entering other areas of your property.

However, ensuring that moisture sources no longer exist where they should not keep old sources from returning in full force. Effectively starving microbes, their population growth stays under control. Once we complete our remediation work, diligent homeowners know to keep an eye out for leaking water lines, loose connections, and other sources of moisture. Microbes do not need a great deal of moisture to begin growing again and causing future problems.

SERVPRO of Montgomery County is always ready to serve those in our community. Contact us by calling our 24-hour service line at (931) 645-1285. Your family does not need to live with the effects of mold damage in your home.

10 Things to Know About Mold

6/21/2021 (Permalink)

  1. Mold exposures may include health effects.
  2. There is no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control indoor mold growth is to control moisture.
  3. If mold is a problem in your home or school, you must clean up the mold and eliminate moisture sources.
  4. Fix the source of the water problem or leak to prevent mold growth.
  5. Reduce indoor humidity (to 30-60%) to decrease mold growth.
  6. Clean and dry any damp building materials and furnishings within 24-48 hours to prevent mold growth.
  7. You should clean mold off hard surfaces with water and detergent and dry thoroughly. Absorbent materials such as ceiling tiles that are moldy may need to be replaced.
  8. Prevent condensation: Reduce the potential for condensation on cold surfaces (i.e., windows, piping, exterior walls, roof, or floors) by adding insulation.
  9. In areas where there is a perpetual moisture problem, do not install carpeting (i.e., by drinking fountains, classroom sinks, or on concrete floors with leaks or frequent condensation).
  10. Molds can be found almost anywhere; they can grow virtually any substance, providing moisture is present. Some molds can grow on wood, paper, carpet, and foods.

9 Ways to Manage Mold

6/18/2021 (Permalink)

  1. Identify problem areas in your home and correct them. Preventing mold from growing or spreading might be as simple as ripping up carpet in a damp basement, installing mold-resistant products, or repairing damaged gutters.

  2. Dry wet areas immediately. Mold can't grow without moisture, so tackle wet areas right away. 

  3. Prevent moisture with proper ventilation. Make sure an activity as simple as cooking dinner, taking a shower, or doing a load of laundry doesn't invite mold by providing proper ventilation in your bathroom, kitchen, laundry room, and any other high-moisture area. 

  4. Equip your home with mold-resistant products. Building a new home or renovating an old one? Use mold-resistant products like mold-resistant drywall or mold-resistant Sheetrock and mold inhibitors for paints. 

  5. Monitor humidity indoors. The EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity between 30 and 60 percent. You can measure humidity with a moisture meter purchased from your local hardware store. 

  6. Direct water away from your home. If the ground around your home isn't sufficiently sloped away from the foundation, water may collect there and seep into your crawlspace or basement.

  7. Clean or repair roof gutters. Have your roof gutters cleaned regularly and inspected for damage. Repair them as necessary, and keep an eye out for water stains after storms that may indicate a leak.

  8. Improve airflow in your home. Without adequate airflow in your home, excess moisture may appear on your walls, windows, and floors. To increase circulation, open doors between rooms, move furniture away from walls, and open doors to closets that may be colder than the rooms they're in. Let fresh air in to reduce moisture and keep mold at bay.

  9. Keep mold off household plants. They're beautiful and help keep your indoor air clean — and mold loves them. The moist soil in indoor plants is a perfect breeding ground for mold, which may then spread to other areas of your house.