Mold isn’t something you expect to find in your home or business, so it’s understandable to have a surprised reaction when you encounter it. Your first reaction may be to head to the store for the strongest spray cleaner they carry, but is it a good idea to attempt mold removal on your own? It may look harmless, but mold is much more dangerous than it looks and cleanup should be left to the experts for several important reasons.
Mold spores are harmful to property and health. The spores may float harmlessly through the air, but when they combine with moisture and a water source and begin to grow, they create a hazard that not only destroys personal property, but creates health issues. They irritate eyes, nasal passages, and lungs, even people who don’t normally have allergies. People who already have allergies or asthma experience worsening symptoms. Without proper protective equipment and training, it’s too easy to spread the spores to other parts of the building or contaminate yourself or others.
It’s difficult to find all traces of mold on your own. What you see on a wall or furniture is usually only a small indicator of the extent of the mold growth. If it has had a chance to get into hidden places, such as inside the walls of a building, it can grow and spread virtually undetected without specialized equipment, which is usually only available to professional mold removal technicians.
DIY mold removal is difficult. There’s much more to the project than just removing the mold you see on the surface. You can’t wipe it away with an ordinary household cleanser, or worse, paint over it. Unless you repair the source of excess moisture that lead to the mold growth, it’s going to keep coming back, and you’ll have to keep cleaning it, over and over. Eventually it may get to a point where you can’t keep up, or you become ill.
Professional Mold Removal
Any time you discover mold in your home or business in Alexandria, VA or Washington, DC, call the highly trained mold remediation professionals at ServiceMaster National Capital Restoration. Industry guidelines specify that any visible mold growth over 10 sf (approximately 3’ x 3’), should be remediated by a qualified contractor trained and certified in mold remediation and following the EPA and/or BSR-IICRC S520 Standards and Guidelines. We know mold grows in as fast as 48 hours after a water leak, so we’re available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to respond to emergencies, contain damage, and begin restoration work. We use the InstaScope system to find mold even in hidden places, and our Trifect mold remediation system eliminates all traces of mold from your home or business, safely and effectively.
Mold remediation costs vary, depending on the extent of the infestation into the building and the amount of damage done to personal property.
