What to Expect During Your Mold Inspection
Got a funny smell in your basement but you’re not sure what to do next?
We can help.
Whether it’s an odor that’s got your attention or a black splotch climbing up a wall, your first step is to call Stock Environmental Consulting to set up an appointment for one of our licensed professionals to come to your home and assess the situation.
During that approximately five-minute interview, we’ll ask a number of questions, which could include:
- Are you getting water in your home?
- Is this a new problem or are you just getting around to addressing it?
- How is the health of people in the home? Has anything changed recently?
“Usually we can schedule an appointment within about two business days and sometimes, we can do it on the same day if the schedule allows,” said Wayne Stock, who has over 20 years experience inspecting for mold.
Once we get an idea of what’s going on in your home, we’ll be able to quote you a price and give you a better picture of what steps we’ll take when we come for our inspection. That could include air sampling, inspection of affected areas and whether we think we’ll need to refer you to another trade expert for evaluation
“For example, if a homeowner says they’re getting water in the house but they don’t know where it’s coming from, we might call in an exterior engineer to inspect the foundation or a roofer if it’s coming in from at above,” said Stock.
All of our inspectors are licensed in New York where that is a requirement to perform authorized mold inspections. Similar legislation is expected to take effect later this year in New Jersey, which will require mold inspectors and remediation companies to be licensed by the state and prohibit one from performing the same job as the other.
Some of the more common problems Stock sees are sump pump failure that lead to water in the basement and water coming in through the foundation and finally, there’s a strange odor with no visual red flags but people are starting to get sick in the home. Symptoms can be similar to what allergy sufferers experience, like eye irritations and respiratory issues and usually affect individuals with more compromised immune systems, who tend to be older and younger people.
What happens during a mold inspection?
On the day of the inspection, our inspector will arrive and take the following steps:
- On site interview: Our inspector sits down for a 5-15 minute interview and takes notes on things like: what are your concerns? Where do you see water? Do you feel better when you’re not at home? Do you have odors in different areas? We ask a whole laundry list of questions
- Walk through: We do a thorough visual inspection of the targeted areas to look for noticeable signs of mold growth.
- Moisture reading: Using a moisture meter, we’ll determine if there are elevated levels that could be contributing to mold growth.
- Sampling: We will procure samples of potential mold that we send to our lab, which takes a few days to analyze and send us the results.
Once the results are in and have been analyzed by our team, the inspector will call and give you a straightforward explanation of the results with recommendations for what to do next, which is followed by a written report.
“If there’s action required, we’ll give a list of several mold remediation companies that we’ve worked with to perform the necessary work,” explains Stock. “Then we return once the remediation is complete to make sure the air quality has returned to normal and the mold has been remediated.”
Once we determine the mold has been remedied, we issue a clearance report to verify the work has been completed. “If it’s not, we direct the remediation contractor to clean again,” Stock said. “It’s a safeguard to know that when they’re done, somebody’s checking their work.”
He explained that sometimes the air in the affected area has not been thoroughly cleaned and this ensures that the issue remains contained until completely remediated.
“With mold you can’t shortcut the process. As important as the remediation is, it is equally important to have a qualified consultant evaluate the situation and clear the work,” said Stock.
To book your mold inspection with a licensed and experienced professional, call Stock Environmental Consulting today at (732) 383-5190.