Author Topic: Of black mold and rental properties.  (Read 8501 times)

PAstash

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Of black mold and rental properties.
« on: April 18, 2016, 12:50:02 PM »
I purchased a property that was VERY cheap for the area it was in knowing it had a mold problem. I had the remediation done. I am about to have the basement where the problem was completely cleaned dry locked. then i was going to address the water issues coming in from the outside by replacing some gutters. Thinking this will take care of the moisture problem. so thinking i shouldn't continue to have the mold issue.

This situation is prior to having the issue taken care of.

It has been our first winter there turning to summer. prior to moving in we had the remediation done and after that i scrubbed the walls with a water bleach solution to rid the problem. However after the first winter my SO has had a respiratory infection. she has always had asthma  it's always really bad during the seasons changing. i too have had kind of a stuffy nose it would seem worse then usual.

I am not sure if this is related to the mold. This house was also sitting for sometime before we moved in. i replaced furnace filters every 3 months. I don't want to take a risk against our health however i was planning to make this home we are staying in a rental. i have contributed a significant amount of my resources and time to make this place nice everywhere in the house.  It's in a great area and if i can get this situation under control for the price i purchased it should be a huge payday when we go to sell and should be a great earner as time goes forward as a rental. after remeditation they said they only had a really small reading on the stuff in the basment. to sum up....

1.purchased housed
2.mold remediation
3.remolded house
4.one year went by during winter -> summer season we had flu/cold like symtoms
5.planning to have professional cleaning/water sealing place come in
6.worried out of my mind i made a huge mistake
7. writing this post.

KaizenSoze

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #1 on: April 18, 2016, 12:58:43 PM »
How about the new house being in an area with plants that your wife is allergic? How far is it from your old house?

forummm

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #2 on: April 18, 2016, 01:10:24 PM »
First, fix the water problem. That's causing the mold. Any remediation you do will be pointless if the water can still get in. Do whatever it takes to keep the water out. Then you can remediate. There could also be mold inside walls, inside flooring, inside air ducts, etc. If it was really bad for a long time, it will be hard to get rid of it completely.

PAstash

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #3 on: April 18, 2016, 01:10:31 PM »
we are in a different town. She is a bit of a gardener. She has also always had respiratory issues. (mostly due to her mother chain smoking around her, her entire life. ) So i can't say that the mold is for sure the issue.

TheOldestYoungMan

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #4 on: April 18, 2016, 01:20:25 PM »
If there is carpet anywhere in the house might look at replacing that.  There is almost no chance that the mold is causing an issue.  The health impacts of mold are blown way out of proportion.  Unless your wife is immuno-suppressed or compromised it's far more likely to be something else.

PAstash

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #5 on: April 18, 2016, 01:27:00 PM »
First, fix the water problem. That's causing the mold. Any remediation you do will be pointless if the water can still get in. Do whatever it takes to keep the water out. Then you can remediate. There could also be mold inside walls, inside flooring, inside air ducts, etc. If it was really bad for a long time, it will be hard to get rid of it completely.

i've been leaving a dehumidifier running constantly.

PAstash

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #6 on: April 18, 2016, 01:28:13 PM »
If there is carpet anywhere in the house might look at replacing that.  There is almost no chance that the mold is causing an issue.  The health impacts of mold are blown way out of proportion.  Unless your wife is immuno-suppressed or compromised it's far more likely to be something else.

when we moved in the whole house was a remodel all carpet was removed.

NoNonsenseLandlord

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #7 on: April 19, 2016, 06:42:07 AM »
You can have someone come in and do an air quality check.   They will find mold spores, or not.

clarkfan1979

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #8 on: April 20, 2016, 02:09:25 PM »
You can have someone come in and do an air quality check.   They will find mold spores, or not.

Yes, have someone do an air quality check. They actually test the air in your backyard and compare it to the air inside your house. It's not really so much the air quality in your house. It's the air quality in your house in comparison to the air quality outside. When I had it done, my air quality test showed high levels of a few bad things. However, they were the same level as outside so it technically wasn't a problem. 

My test was $450 for 3 rooms inside and the backyard. However, it's totally worth it. I could have paid an extra $50-$100 for next day results. However, having to wait 3-4 days for results was not a problem for me.

former player

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #9 on: April 20, 2016, 05:07:59 PM »
First, fix the water problem. That's causing the mold. Any remediation you do will be pointless if the water can still get in. Do whatever it takes to keep the water out. Then you can remediate. There could also be mold inside walls, inside flooring, inside air ducts, etc. If it was really bad for a long time, it will be hard to get rid of it completely.

i've been leaving a dehumidifier running constantly.
It is fairly pointless (and expensive) to have a dehumidifier running constantly when you haven't sorted out the problem of water getting into the house in the first place.  The first thing to do is to get the gutters fixed and get the basement fixed.  Then the dehumidifier will be able to get to work really drying the house out rather than just keeping the damp at bay.

Also, if you are living in a part of the world where it makes sense, open the windows in the house as much as you can and air the place through.  The more you can do that, the cleaner the air inside will be - you will get rid of chemical build up in the air as well as mold.

PAstash

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Re: Of black mold and rental properties.
« Reply #10 on: April 23, 2016, 12:00:09 AM »
First, fix the water problem. That's causing the mold. Any remediation you do will be pointless if the water can still get in. Do whatever it takes to keep the water out. Then you can remediate. There could also be mold inside walls, inside flooring, inside air ducts, etc. If it was really bad for a long time, it will be hard to get rid of it completely.

i've been leaving a dehumidifier running constantly.
It is fairly pointless (and expensive) to have a dehumidifier running constantly when you haven't sorted out the problem of water getting into the house in the first place.  The first thing to do is to get the gutters fixed and get the basement fixed.  Then the dehumidifier will be able to get to work really drying the house out rather than just keeping the damp at bay.

Also, if you are living in a part of the world where it makes sense, open the windows in the house as much as you can and air the place through.  The more you can do that, the cleaner the air inside will be - you will get rid of chemical build up in the air as well as mold.

hey thanks for the reply. The problem I am running into is the property cost 59k I've got 15k into it for repairs. completely fixing the water in the basement would cost 7.5k according to estimates I've gotten... I mean it's not worth it right? I should just paint over it and sell the property at this point? it really sucks because it is in otherwise great shape and in a great area. after fixing the water in the basement 7.5k replacement of the gutters would be 1.4kish...

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!