How to Deal with Mold
Bloom Environmental has a lot of experience and expertise in dealing with mold. This requires remediation as well as preventative measures. Here is how we would go about it.
Crawlspace Preventative Encapsulation
Standing water in a crawlspace needs to be dried out, often with a sump pump. Gaps and cracks should be sealed as well. After installing a plastic vapor barrier, with it sealed at all seams, it should be attached to the walls and sealed at the top. It the HVAC lines are present, or a dehumidifier is installed, supply air inducers can be added. Lastly, draining the perimeter of the home is also a great preventative measure.
Preventative Basement Waterproofing
With a basement, removing a concrete slab (approx. 12 inches) along the perimeter from the wall might be necessary. A corrugated pipe, roughly 4 inches, would be installed on a slope, connecting to a sump pit that has been excavated. This slope would require a ¾ hp sump pump discharged out of the basement and away from the house. The trench dug for the job would be backfilled with stone. A hydro-channel drain to direct the water into the drainpipe would be installed, along with weep holes at the base of a block wall. The concrete would be replaced.
Remediation
Determining the source of the mold is the most important step prior to remediation. Preventive measures may be pointless if what is causing the moisture is not repaired. To keep mold spores from leaving the remediation area, as well as impacting other spaces, containment barriers would be set up. This is standard for Bloom Environmental to do inside any home or business. To ensure that dust, airborne debris, and of course mold spores can be removed from the affected area, negative air machines with HEPA air filters will run continuously. This is important since remediation can disturb the spores, making them airborne. Trained in industry standards, our technicians will professionally clean the area being remediated. This could include hand scrubbing, HEPA vacuuming, and even demolition, depending on the project. Lastly, we will apply an antimicrobial disinfectant to the area. We can also seal it with a mold-inhibiting primer.
To learn more about how this affects your family and home please call us at 812-327-1127 for a free estimate today.