The topic of mold in your home can be a scary one. Both home and business owners need to be careful of mold because it has been linked to health problems and can be harmful to those who come into contact with it.

If mold isn’t properly cleaned up and removed, it can cause allergic reactions and other health issues such as respiratory complications. It can also cause long-term structural damage to your business or home and even impact your property values!

When you find mold, the first thing you need to do is get a mold inspector for professional mold testing. During this process they will attempt to identify what specific type of mold you have and how many mold spores are in the air. This helps them determine how to remove mold properly and prevent mold from entering your home

Ultimately, you’ll need professional mold cleanup and remediation, which involves getting mold levels back to normal. You can’t actually remove mold exposure entirely by yourself.

This is not a DIY activity. You need mold removal and remediation experts who specialize in mold inspections using a professional mold testing kit. Jenkins Restorations has trained professionals who will take the following 5 steps for proper mold remediation to restore you back to normal:

1) Assess the Mold Growth

Assessing mold growth involves more than just looking at what is visibly growing on the walls or in a corner. Mold can be an invisible intruder, growing behind and around what you can see with the naked eye. If you’re actually seeing mold, there’s most likely a more severe mold problem hidden in the walls or under the floorboards.

The source of mold growth is a water or moisture problem. To get rid of it, you need to know where the moisture comes from, the amount of moisture you have,  and how it gets into the home. Mold often accompanies water damage from a leaky pipe, broken water heater, or natural disaster.

2) Calculate the Extent of the Contamination

Mold may not always grow in one area and we have to assess how much contamination there is. By calculating the extent of the contamination we determine how to approach mold removal and cleanup. The goal of mold remediation is to clean up mold growing within the home, and to avoid exposing homeowners to large amounts of mold.

3) Document the Mold Problem and Create a Remediation Plan

Before we begin remediation, a Jenkins Restorations’ team member documents the mold situation with written reports, photos and video. The team supervisor will use this documentation to develop a remediation plan which answers questions such as when work is slated to begin, when that work is scheduled to be completed, who will be performing the remediation, any testing that should be done, and if homeowners will need to be temporarily relocated.

4) Remediate Mold Contamination

Remediation involves cleaning up existing mold while avoiding exposure to oneself as well as homeowners. We also prevent new growth by finding and addressing the cause of the moisture. Based on calculations of the contamination area, we determine the area we will be working in.

Some examples of steps we take to take care of the mold are:

• Repair the water problem. This will help prevent new mold spores from growing.
• Isolate the contaminated area. Close all doors and windows between the contaminated area and other rooms of the home
• Suppress dust caused by mold spores in the home.
• Remove all water and mold-damaged porous materials.
• Place materials in plastic bags to prevent further mold growth and spreading.
• All non-porous materials and wood surfaces that are molded or wet are cleaned.
• Perform visibility test – all areas should be visibly free of contamination and debris — no dust and dirt means no mold.
• Cleaned materials should be dried to allow leftover moisture to evaporate. To speed up the drying process, we use fans, dehumidifiers or raise the indoor air temperature.
• All materials that were moved are replaced or repaired.

5) Determine if Cleanup Has Been Successful

Just because the mold seems to be gone and there is no dirt or dust doesn’t mean that it actually is. Since there are a number of potential health problems from mold, Jenkins Restorations will determine if the mold remediation and cleanup services have been successful.

A Jenkins Restorations team member will revisit the home or business soon after remediation is complete in order to ensure that the moisture problem has been taken care of and there aren’t any signs of recurring water damage. Also, we look for no signs of visible mold, mold-damaged materials or mold odors.

Mold inspection costs are relatively affordable for a professional service and is worth the investment of your and your family’s health.  Technically, the price can vary greatly depending on the size of the home and its location.  You may want to reach out to Jenkins Restorations for your free consultation today!It isn't safe to learn how to remediate mold on your own. It can cause allergic reactions and respiratory complications if not done properly.