How to Act Fast When You Find Mold in Your Home While Remodeling

There’s nothing more exciting than remodeling a home, except for maybe when you buy a completely new home. When my husband and I first bought our home, I didn’t think that I could be any more excited than was at that moment. I definitely surprised myself along the way.

While I knew our home was in really great shape, there were so many things that I wanted to do to make it my own. I wanted to redo the porch, and install a new chandelier in the dining room. I wanted to paint the kitchen cabinets and an accent wall in the master bedroom. I wanted to install an island in the kitchen, and remodel the basement bathroom.

There was so much that I wanted to do, I soon came to the realization that my eyes were a little bit bigger than my budget. And I also realized as I researched all these projects that I had no idea all of the safety concerns that went along with these projects.

As I looked at do-it-yourself websites, there was one particular topic that I kept seeing over and over again. I read horror story after horror story of homeowners just like me who attempted a variety of remodeling projects and were shocked to find mold growing in their homes.

Be Pro-Active, Not Re-active

One of the most common causes of mold in homes is water leaks from a home’s roof or the home’s plumbing. It is estimated that somewhere around 90 percent of these leaks will result in some sort of mildew or mold growing within the home’s structure. The problem here is that most of this mold is not visible until major remodeling projects occur, and by then, it may be too late. The best thing that homeowners can do is to be precautious.

There are simple things that you can do to avoid mold in the first place, including:

• Address all leaks immediately when they occur in the home.
• Be pro-active and find areas in your home to mold-proof that may be a problem in the future.
• Ensure that your home is properly ventilated in order to prevent moisture build-up.
• Monitor the humidity inside the home.
• Clean your gutters regularly and pay attention to the slope of the ground near your foundation.

Be Prepared for the Unthinkable

If you’re taking on an extensive remodel of your home, including removing drywall and ceilings, then you may need to be prepared for the worst. This is especially true if you’ve just purchased a fixer-upper and have no idea what the whole history of the home is and if there may have been any water leaks at any point in time.

You are a homeowner now, which means you are responsible for anything that you find within the home. There’s no landlord that you can sue for damages with the help of personal injury law firms. If, during the process of demolition, you find visible mold, remove yourself from the area immediately. Unless you’re a certified mold inspector, there is no reason that you should put yourself in harm’s way.

Contact the Professionals

As soon as mold becomes an issue in the home, it is time to call in the professionals. You will need to contact a certified mold inspector who can come into your home and properly test the home in order to understand what kind of mold you are dealing with. They will secure the area, and once they have the test results, they can develop what is known as a mold remediation plan. This plan will, in accordance with the law, determine how the mold will be removed from the home and how the materials will be disposed of once they are removed.