Posted by Eric Anderson on Mon, Jan 11, 2010 @ 03:45 PM
One of the leading causes of mold contamination in homes throughout New England
is water damage.
With the consistently cold weather we've been having this winter, pipes are freezing and bursting, resulting in water damage in homes and commercial buildings in the traditionally colder areas of the country. To make matters worse, some of the warmer parts of the country have been hit with freezing temperatures lately.
If this happens to you, you may try to clean it up yourself. But we recommend you not try it. Here's why. You'll be successful in removing the standing water from the areas you know are wet, and when you're finished you'll think "that's dry enough. It will dry on its own." But just because it looks dry and feels dry does not mean it is really dry. There will be moisture within walls, under the carpet, and in other places you can't see. And that's all mold needs. A little bit of moisture and a little bit of time. In fact, mold will start to grow within the first 48 hours. Fortunately the cold temperatures will slow the mold growth, but not for long. As soon as the air starts to warm up, the mold will get out of control.
Then you'll be calling your insurance company for mold remediation coverage, and you will be told there is a limit on your mold coverage. It's usually $5,000 or $10,000 depending on your policy, on both the mold removal and the repairs that will inevitably be required.
So you have avoided a small expense and have incurred a large expense.
So what's the moral of the story? If you have water damage, call a professional water mitigation contractor who has both the knowledge and the equipment to do the job properly. Check out the website of Water Out Southern New England http:www.water-out.com.
If you think you might have mold as the result of water damage, call us at Enviro-Clean, or contact me, Eric Anderson, on our website www.envirocleanmold.com.
Bottom line is this: If water gets in your home or business, get the water out as quickly as possible, thoroughly dry the entire area, and have the moisture levels in the structure tested to make sure it's totally dry.
Posted by George Salter on Thu, Oct 08, 2009 @ 09:09
Enviro-Clean recieved a call from a homeowner who had discovered black mold growing and spreading throughout her house. Upon inspecting the home, Eric Anderson found
extensive mold growth throughout the kitchen and dining area, bathroom,
and the stairwell leading to the second floor. Upon further examination
he found black mold growing behind vinyl wallpaper in the
finished basement, as well as in the children's toy closet. It was
apparent that the mold had migrated from the basement area to other
parts of the house following primary traffic patterns.
In conversations 
with the homeowner Eric learned that there had been a
flood in the basement approximately 1 ½ to 2 years earlier. The
homeowner submitted a claim to her insurance carrier, and received a
$2,000 settlement. However, she opted to dry the wet area herself with
a wet vac rather than hire a professional cleaning company.
Eric suggested that the homeowner call her insurance carrier
regarding the mold problem, which she did. The insurance carrier
brought in an environmental engineer who, after inspecting the
premises, confirmed Enviro-Clean's findings.
Enviro-Clean was hired to remove the mold from the house which was
done successfully for a total cost of $32,455. Additionally, the
insurance company paid the homeowner's contractor $107,000 for
follow-up repairs. (This was prior to the insurance company limiting mold coverage to $10,000.)
The moral of the story? Proper and thorough drying at the time of
the flood would have saved the homeowner a great deal of anxiety and
inconvenience, and would have saved the insurance carrier almost
$140,000.