Sara,
Thank you for that exceptional recap.
The house we bought and had remediated is a one story built on a slab. I did an ERMI before we bought it, and the HERTSMI-2 was 10. Asper/pen and Chaetomium were high. The home inspection uncovered deteriorated rubber gaskets around the plumbing vent pipes on the roof and some water stains on the ceiling below those areas.
The first thing we did was have the roof, the vent collars, and the dryer vent which was on the roof replaced. I was present when the roof was being done, because I wanted to see for myself the condition of the decking. The decking was fine except around the dryer vent. That section of decking was cut out and replaced and a new vent installed. The roofer told us that all roof mounted dryer vents will clog and cause damage to the roof and advised us to have the vent rerouted through a wall if at all possible. Due to the layout of the house and the absence of any gable roof lines, it didn’t appear to be possible.
The roofer put a nail through the plumbing line that was located in the attic, causing a big leak that wasn’t discovered until 4 days later, since the house was vacant at the time. There was a lot of hullabaloo regarding that. I tried to work with local inspectors and remediators, but they did not serve me well. I ended up contacting a mold doctor in Atlanta, who referred me to an inspector and a remediator.
I brought the inspector in from FL. He was CIRS knowledgeable and wrote a 66 page inspection report and remediation plan. I contacted remediators to get estimates and sent them the protocol. Two of three gave estimates and only one agreed to follow the protocol. I hired that one against my instincts that were telling me he was incompetent. We consulted with the inspector to get a better understanding of what was needed. Unfortunately, the inspector died unexpectedly before remediation started.
Both the inspector and the remediator who gave an estimate but wouldn’t follow the protocol mentioned the mold dog and the trainer by name. I contacted him, and he brought the dog to do a pre and post inspection to identify the exact
locations of mold sources. The inspector suspected mold under windows and in walls based on inspection and testing. The dog detected mold in the walls under all the windows on the front and back of the house.
When the remediators cut out the drywall, they did not “see” any mold except in the area of the roof leak. I consulted with both the mold dog owner and the other CIRS remediaton exoert that I was referred to after the death of my inspector. They both told me the dog can detect lesser amounts of mold than may be visible and to clean the area. I conveyed that to the remediators and asked them to clean the area just as they would if they saw visible mold there. They replaced drywall and insulation and did whatever cleaning they did. No antimicrobials were used. Only cleaning with fragrance free dishsoap diluted in water for damp wiping, manually scrubbing with wire brush, maybe sanding and HEPA vacuuming.
When the dog returned, he detected no remaining sources of mold. We had the dog check our cars, and he didn’t indicate anything with the cars. However, my mom’s car is very moldy to me. That lets me know that I am more sensitive than the dog, LOL!!!
Post remediation, the remediators cleaned the air and surfaces following the Aerosolver Pure protocol. I think it helped a good bit.
In spite of all that, I still feel symptoms, especially in certain spots. I still haven’t bought an air purifier. Don’t know why I keep putting it off. Need to do that pronto. We replaced the entire central HVAC system rather than having it cleaned. We got all hard pipe ducts (which are loud), an Aprilaire whole house filter, and an UltraAire dehumidifier installed in the HVAC with a fresh air intake duct. I am able to
open and close the fresh air intake. I keep the humidity below 50%. I am very pleased with the dehumidifier.
Everything was removed during remediation. We were advised to remove fans, blinds, popcorn ceilings, and carpet due to the severity of my sensitivity. My inspector said my house rated as mild to moderate for air contamination and said he normally sees much higher levels. He did, however, understand CIRS and that the individual’s level of sensitivity requires a more drastic level of remediation. We also removed cabinets, as the dog detected something in all of them, and they were not solid wood.
There’s still more that needs to be done - gutters added and work done on the brick facade and a better job of sealing around the front windows. All the windows need to be replaced IMO, even though none of the mold experts seemed to think it was needed. There’s no current leaking around the windows, but it still concerns me, as that’s where the bulk if the source contamination was located. I feel symptoms right now sitting by the sliding glass door. Some of the wall was taken out, and the framing stud looked clean. The dog didn’t detect anything remaining, but apparently I do☹️.
We were advised to get ceramic tile or polished concrete. We looked into both, but ended up getting LVP instead due to cost and comfort. I feel safe enough with the dehumidifier to get the vinyl flooring. The issue with that is mold can form between the underside of the flooring and the slab if there’s enough moisture in the slab. Hoping it won’t be an issue. Still haven’t done an ERMI since remediation. Not sure when I will.
Post Edited (WalkingbyFaith) : 6/28/2020 11:17:41 AM (GMT-6)