Mold Removal and Testing in Cortez, Colorado
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Your home or business can become infested with Mold growth quickly due to water leaks occurring from roof leaks, plumbing, etc. Mold can start to grow in 48-72 hours after water intrusion. If you think you may have Mold in your home let us perform an inspection today.
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Mold and Water Damage Information You Need to Know Now-
While mold requires high humidity and/or wet surfaces in order to grow, it also requires a food source. Indoors, many molds grow on leather, paper and some building materials. Molds can also grow and thrive on bio-film such as cooking grease.
The most effective way to prevent mold growth on water damage losses is to begin the drying process quickly. Restoration companies who are aware of possible mold growth problems usually know how to dry structural materials with heat, air movement and by lowering the indoor relative humidity. This is an effective way to dry a building because material removal is minimized and mold growth is retarded.
Knowing how to determine exactly what is wet during a water loss is a critical part of the job. If areas of moisture are overlooked, molds and bacteria can grow. To protect your property and health, all of the moisture must be found and dealt with. CARE uses moisture sensors, as well as infrared technology, that is capable of "reading" wallboard, masonry and wood to find hidden moisture that is often impossible to detect any other way.
Sometimes water flows down the inside of wall cavities. Other times standing water will wick up a wall. Unless water stains appear this moisture could go undetected until molds and odor problems occur. This is one of the reasons a professional is equipped with the proper instruments to detect and locate wet areas before the drying process begins. Today's restoration is more than drying wet carpets.
Let me explain the different types of water damage. The Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration (IICRC) have developed the industry standard for water damage mitigation. The IICRC S-500. This document classifies water damage into three categories; Category 1, category 2 and category 3.
Category 1 or clean water is that in which the source of the water is from a clean water source such as a plumbing supply line.
Category 2 or gray water damage is that in which the source of the water may contain chemicals or other contaminates that could cause discomfort or sickness to the occupants. Some examples of this would be an appliance discharge, a broken waterbed or fish tank or overflows from toilet bowls.
Category 3 or Black water contains pathogenic agents and is grossly unsanitary. Examples include Toilet backflow that originate from beyond the toilet trap, flooding from seawater, ground surface water or rising water from rivers and streams. Category 2 water that is not removed promptly, may be re-classified as category 3 water.
When a sewage backup affects a structure, a unique set of restoration techniques must be employed to safely handle the situation. Federal, state and local government agencies agree that the best protocol of restoration is to follow the published standards and guidelines developed by the IICRC.
During sewage backups or other "black water loss", large amounts of bacteria can enter the interior environment and pose potentially serious health risks to the occupants. In fact, the bacteria introduced to the structure could stay active for up to one month if left untreated. Advanced restoration methods are employed to rid the structure of all traces of sewage and make the structure clean and safe for occupancy.
In a black water loss, care must be taken to not disturb the bacteria in the water and make it airborne. When bacteria are contained in the water and not sent airborne, it is not easily breathable by restoration workers or occupants. This means that doors and windows should remain closed during clean up. The typical fans and blowers used to dry a structure that has experienced a "clean water loss" (non-sewage) should not be used in the early stages of a sewage clean-up project.
Negative air machines, equipped with HEPA filtration, are utilized to remove bacteria and other contaminants from the air during restoration work. Standing water and bulk sewage must be extracted with self-contained vacuum equipment with proper waste holding tanks. The waste is then disposed of at a sanitation station or, authorized dumping facility. Hard surfaces that are impacted must be cleaned and sanitized. Soft structural materials such as carpeting, carpet paddings, plaster wallboard must be removed and properly disposed of. Any material that absorbs substantial amounts of moisture and cannot be adequately cleaned must be removed.Once contaminated materials have been removed a second application of sanitizers must be applied to all work surfaces.
There is much more to water damage restoration than is often imagined. When water damage strikes, most people are concerned with the wet carpets, which are usually a soggy mess. An experienced restoration contractor has many other concerns. After all, he knows anyone can rent or buy fans to dry a wet carpet. In fact, in recent years, carpet and carpet cushion have been designed and manufactured to withstand water. Using special microscopic textures on carpet fiber, many carpets are made to prevent molds from growing.
Today, with the widespread use of drywall vs. plaster, engineered wood products vs. wood, and the use of vinyl wall-coverings, moisture can become trapped and provide the needed environment for mold growth. Appropriate management of these water problems is the key to reducing microbial growth to help to ensure the health of building and its occupants.
If you currently have an emergency situation, call us at 247-2626 or 564-0800 and we will dispatch a crew to your location usually within the hour. If you have other questions or would like to schedule an inspection, we invite you to give us a call and our trained customer service staff would be happy to assist you.