10/30/2008 West End Place. Nashville, TN

When entering the unit the musty smell was medium to low.  There are signs of moisture damage across the ceiling and around a sprinkler in the bedroom; there is also black mold on the ceiling above the shower and black mold found behind the water heater in the closet with the HVAC unit.  The owner stated that this room was unoccupied most of the summer and the moisture was not discovered right away; once they found it the carpet and most items in this room was very moldy.

Sanitization and Remediation

Bedroom/Bathroom:
·    Remove all furniture from the bedroom and wipe down each item thoroughly with solution and set in the dining room area for sanitization.
·    Set residential air sanitizers in strategic locations throughout the home to eliminate existing spores that occur normally and will be excessive once the spraying begins.
·    Place a commercial blaster at the air handler to eliminate any spores in the ductwork throughout the process.
·    Contain and vent the bedroom/bathroom separately from the rest of the home since the major contamination is in that area.
·    Set commercial air sanitizing units and a 20” box fan for circulation in the bed/bath area.
·    Ventilation shall be at the front window of the bedroom.
·    Remove drywall from the ceiling around the sprinkler in the bedroom, and back toward the bathroom as much as necessary to expose any and all contaminated framing materials.
·    Remove the drywall from the ceiling, above the shower/tub and possibly the divider wall between the bath and closet.
·    Remove the drywall from the ceiling above the water heater and possibly the divider wall between the bath and mechanical closet.
·    Remove any decay, or rot from any exposed wooden members that are necessary and not structural.
·    Saturate the exposed materials with solution to eliminate all fungi in these areas.
·    Spray oxidizing solution repeatedly until no signs of mold remains, drying between applications.
·    Remove and dispose the carpeting and pad in the bedroom and spray oxidizing solution on the floor surface to eliminate any growth.
·    Remove, bag and dispose of all drywall and any insulation, and all loose debris from the premise.
·    Wipe down all solid surfaces to remove any dead mold spores and vacuum all areas with hepa vacuum system.
 

The Chemical Issues to Think About:

Many Mold Removal Companies prefer chemical based products such as "Anabec Chemicals" to kill mold.  But let me explain why American Mold Solutions do NOT add these caustic chemicals to your living environment.  In the case of Anabec and many other chemical based products have their own information guides state that it is not for use on clothing. . .long time exposure to off gassing has not been studied, and the effects on humans is unknown.  Also, the person(s) using these chemicals are supposed to be fully trained on the proper use and safety to the occupants, so the home owner has to "trust" that the person using these products are experts.  But there is more than just the live growing mold, the mold spores are microscopic and spore normally that's how they reproduce, but they spore like crazy when touched or disturbed, plus the microscopic dead spores in the air,  as well as all this occurring in an enclosed area would give anyone pause to think, "is this the best for my family and my home"?
Most chemical based products and bleach are just surface cleaners; mold embeds itself into the pores of the wood or other materials in order to "break down"; molds job is to breakdown dead plant matter back to dirt.  So it has to be removed from the pores as well.
Sanding of wood materials is often recommended but you can't keep sanding without compromising the framing/wood member at some point.  Also there is no way to know if you have gotten below the contamination.  It is microscopic and can't be seen by the human eye, just because you can't see it anymore doesn't mean you have removed it all.  And when sanding you are blowing out lots of live microbial growth and wood fragments which makes the clean up inside very hard and these fragments become airborne and spread throughout the home cross contaminating all areas.
American Mold Solutions utilize an all natural approach to kill and remove the microbial growth, while at the same time cleaning and sanitizing the air to remove any spores from migrating all over your home.  And most importantly, tracking down the exact cause of the mold in the first place.  Our goal is to keep you and your family safe, remove the source, remove the damage, and clean the air and surfaces for the best results.
So if for your own safety if someone recommends a particular chemical based product, get the name and go to the manufacturers instructions and educate yourself, this will also open up many questions you can confirm with the potential remediation company.

1/24/2008 - Citation Way - Murfreesboro TN

Citation Way – Stewart Creek Farms – Murfreesboro, TN   January 24, 2008

New home in first year warranty has tiles coming up in the handicap shower stall with seat.

There are signs of mold and moisture on the framing materials behind the new framed seat, the floor decking under the seat and appears to go under the tile mud base in the pan.  A small amount of contamination on the framing appeared minimal and the tile grout outside the shower curb showed signs of moisture.  The curb is exposed and has a couple of rusted nails to the front, and is an indication of long term moisture and is questionable.  Moisture had puddle under this area on the vapor barrier in the crawl space.

All aspects of remediation were preformed; removal of all contaminated materials, spraying oxidizing solution to eliminate spores that embed themselves into the materials, utilizing air sanitizers to clean the air and a final cleaning to remove any spores that will settle as dust during this process.  The shower seat had not been properly installed, and even with detailed instructions this shower was rebuilt the same as the original application, needless to say this voided the warranty and remediation had to be redone and was completed the second time May 7, 2008.  The tiled shower looked great but due to the improper construction under the tile it just did not work either time.

Final lab reports indicate no elevated levels exists after completion in both cases.

8/3/2007 - S. Margin, Franklin TN

South Margin St. Franklin TN  August 3, 2007

Small area off a class room has mold.  Bathroom leak from above seems to be the moisture source.

Placed containment over the main door to the lobby area also sealed the exterior doors except for the exterior door to the back stairwell.  Removed the remaining ceiling drywall and the remaining wall drywall about 3 feet up.  Spray treated all exposed wood members approximately six times to remove all the fungi that have embedded into the pores.  The particle board and the decking under it were removed to the floor joist, in the wet area.  Only the particle board in the closet was removed, the plywood decking sprayed clean and the floor system underneath appeared fine.  Dusted, damp wiped, vacuum and damp mopped the entire areas, upstairs and down.  Cleaned all loose articles that were in the downstairs art room in case they were in the closet.  This job had to be done quickly to ready this area for students returning this month.

Final lab reports indicate no elevated levels exist upon completion.

5/18/2007 - Peytonsville Rd., Franklin TN

Peytonsville Rd – Franklin, TN  May 18, 2007

Purchasing home and have discovered mold in the crawlspace, from an air conditioning

condensate leak dripping down from the second floor.  Also discovered mold behind wall

paper in many different areas throughout the home.  This home has sat vacant for a few

years and has contamination throughout .    

Bonus Room:  Mold and decay found under the window.  Wood Paneled Den: Mold and decay found under the flooring of the bay window area.  Removed the floor decking in this bay area to treat the floor joist below that were not accessible from the crawl space.  Dining Room: Mold and decay found around the opening to the kitchen and in the ceiling from the condensate leak above.  Also under the windows of the front wall.  Removed about a foot of the floor decking off this wall to treat the floor joist below the damaged plates.  Kitchen:  Removed the cabinets and flooring below, removed drywall behind the cabinets to expose and treat the plates.  Breakfast Nook:  Removed baseboards in the bay area and drywall up to the windows to expose damage.  Removed the floor decking to treat the floor joist below the damaged plates, not accessable from the crawl space.  Hall closet:  removed as much as possible to expose the wooden members for treatment.  Living Room:  Lots of mold and decay found under both windows pulled the drywall from the entire front wall, and side wall to the fireplace, to expose wooden members to the top plate for treatment.  Hall:  Treat drywall around the exterior door to the deck.  Master bedroom:  Removed base boards to treat plates, also removed floor decking in several suspect areas.  The inside wall at the floor had damage from a leaking vanity in adjacent powder room and some floor area in the walk in closet from the adjacent laundry room.  Powder room:  Removed baseboards, sink, vanity and commode, stopped the leaking, removed sub flooring and treated entire area.  Laundry Room:  Removed wall paper, removed drywall on one wall that was pitted from the mold, removed baseboards.  All wood members in this room was sprayed but in good shape.  Foyer:  pulled baseboards and found damage, front wall drywall was pulled to the first band and it was very contaminated, continued to pull drywall to the ceiling and around the corners to exposed and treat all wooden members in this area.  Upstairs Master:  The front wall was very contaminated.  Pulled all drywall to the ceiling and outside wall to the fireplace.  All wood below the windows and the plate had to be replaced; AMS cleaned all salvageable wood in this wall.  Removed about a foot of the floor decking off this wall to treat the floor joist below the damaged plates.  Front bedroom, repeated the same process as the master on the front wall.  Removed baseboards and drywall in closets that were adjacent to the closet with the leaking HVAC unit.  Removed baseboards, sub flooring and some drywall in the closet areas.  Back Bedroom:  Removed baseboards and drywall from the back wall at the window, and interior wall behind bathroom tub, and the wall adjacent to the attic space from a chimney leak.  Hall Bath:  removed the baseboards and drywall at the short tub wall, removed floor tile and treated area accordingly.  Hall Closet: removed all possible contaminated members around the HVAC unit and hall floor decking, and treated all accessible members.  All wall papered rooms in this home was contaminated.  AMS removed wall paper from these areas and treated the walls as necessary.  This was a huge job that took about a month to remediate and this home was about 5000 square feet.   Lab reports indicate no elevated levels exist after completion.

3/12/2007 - Alexandria TN

High Street – Alexandria TN  -

Home Inspector found mold in the crawl space there are low spots around the foundation that need to be filled to shed water away from the foundation. There is also a water heater in the crawlspace that had a small leak on a solder joint that was spraying up onto the floor system and a large amount of microbial growth was found in this area.  Spray treatment of all joists, gurters, decking and bands repeatedly drying between applications has successfully removed all contamination.  No damage to any wooden members under this home was found during this process.  AMS installed a 6mil vapor barrier in the crawl space based on standard construction procedures. 

NOTE:  No testing is normally done in a crawlspace, it is usually a visual and AMS recommends having the original home inspector to re-inspect for final.  Crawlspaces, attics and garages are considered outside space and since they have outside air flow to eliminate heat and humidity, testing is futile and expensive.

 

 

2/11/2007 - Poteat Pl., Franklin TN

Poteat Place, Franklin

Homeowner reported odors in house, thinks from crawl space.  There appears to be some damage to the floor decking around the drain pipes and under a shower.  I can see the lath and mortar base from underneath.  One wet area to the back of the home is from a pipe leaking.  It is a slow leak and needs to be repaired.  AMS placed a bucket under this dripping drain line, what appeared to be a small leak upon inspection, is actually a large leak when the tub is used, the bucket was full after the weekend.  The dryer was never vented to the outside the home.  The dampness towards the front of the home appears to be coming in around where the incoming water line penetrates the foundation wall and has not been sealed.  Rain over the weekend made the crawlspace wet again because of the incoming water line.  Inspected the exterior front of the home where the water line enters and there is a downspout dumping water in this area allowing the water to wick back down into the crawlspace.  During the remediation AMS found a water line that is run through an air conditioning supply boot.  This water line must be rerouted around this boot.  Cold air on a hot water line or hot air on a cold water line, will condensate inside the line.  All water leaks were repaired and the crawlspace cleaned thoroughly.

.  NOTE:  No testing is normally done in a crawlspace application, it is usually a visual and AMS recommends having the original home inspector to re-inspect for final.  Crawlspaces, attics and garages are considered outside space and since they have outside air flow to eliminate heat and humidity, testing is futile and expensive.

1/10/2007 - Rutherford - SpringHill Tn

Rutherford Dr., Spring Hill –

Home inspector found mold in the crawlspace.  The dryer vent had come loose and was blowing warm moist air throughout the area creating microbial growth. 

Spray treated all joist, band, plate, gurters, plumbing and duct insulation surface.  The mold sprayed out very well for the most part.  There were heavy areas that did leave some staining on the lumber but no activity was noted.  No damage was found in this crawl space.  NOTE:  No testing is normally done in a crawlspace, it is usually a visual and AMS recommends having the original home inspector to re-inspect for final.  Crawlspaces, attics and garages are considered outside space and since they have outside air flow to eliminate heat and humidity, testing is futile and expensive.

10/4/2006 - Tweeters - Cool Springs

Commercial - Tweeters – 1728 Galleria Blvd.

The cutting room was the area with the most activity.  Even with the removal of most of the effected wood, there were still signs of mold in the wood that remains.  The musty smell associated with mold was not very noticeable.  There is a shipping/receiving bay area before entering this room that shows some signs of mold also.  The only moisture source found has to be from the HVAC registers, condensating when the humidity enters from outside, when the bay door is opened. 

When the bay door is closed and the sun hits it there is a huge heat gain across the entire surface of this door for several hours.  The heat radiates into the room three to four feet.

There is also signs of mold in some of the small media rooms around the supply registers in the ceiling.  In the showroom there are several ceiling tiles with obvious signs of moisture.  It was noted they have had some roof leaks in the past.

Two or more of the ceiling tile stains appear to be where a can light is located near or under an HVAC supply line.  The heat from the can light causes the un-insulated duct to condensate at that point and drip onto the ceiling tile.

This is a 12 hour/3 day accelerated clean up process.  All the spraying shall take place while closed and will be performed while the structure is unoccupied.  Starting at closing (9:00 pm, Saturday Night) and ceasing 1 hour before opening to the public the following day (11:00 am Sunday.)

Final test results indicate no elevated levels exist upon completion.

 

7/17/2006 - Clinic - Franklin TN

Commercial – Childrens Clinic - 9^th Ave. Franklin

Call indicated mold was found in a utility closet where water heater is located.  The utility closet is in a common hall and a small area of mold can be seen on the wall and ceiling.

There were three leaks found in this utility closet.  There are two, on the main valve that comes out of the wall, and drips onto the floor, mops, brooms and dust mops.  The other leak is from the same water line that goes up the wall and makes a 90 degree turn across the ceiling.  There is a slow leak on the sweat joint of that 90degree (elbow) copper fitting.  Also this copper fitting/pipe is against a metal stud, there must be a separation in these two metals.  To my knowledge only brass and silver can be used against copper, any other metals will corrode the copper rapidly.  AMS did place a small green rubber spacer between the pipe and metal stud until repairs can be made.

Containment was set at the end of the hall at the open station area, and also at the stairwell near the exit door.  Containment was broken on Sunday afternoon when the cleaning crew arrived.  Not sure how long these barriers were down.  It does not appear to have affected the remediation or the final testing. 

The drywall in wet areas should be a product called “green board.”  This is a required code in residential applications, in all wet areas, baths, kitchens; laundries etc. must use this green board.  This clean-up process was performed while the structure is unoccupied.  Starting on Saturday, at closing and ending before opening on Monday.

Lab reports indicate NO elevated levels exists upon completion.

June 17, 2006 - Condo's Franklin TN

New Construction – 4 Three Story Condo Units – Franklin, TN

Builder has a mold condition in the basement on the firewalls between units.  Purple fabric covered drywall was suppose to be mold resistant.  Builder had tried a mold killer chemical and was not successful. 

These units were still under construction and not completely dried in, there were no mechanicals and still on temporary power.  The full basements are below grade and allowed the rain to collect, during the construction process and with no power the sump pumps were not operable to eliminate the water.  This has allowed the moisture, as well as the mold, to wick up these fire walls.  There is also visible manifestation on the first floor fire wall.  After a thorough inspection there are several areas of concern.

 All active growing molds were treated with an oxidizing solution, which burns  the mold and kills it and bubbles it out of the pores it has grown into.  When this process occurs the mold spores very rapidly trying to reproduce as fast as it can and it appears to be smoking.  The total cubic feet of air is also cleaned during the entire spraying process and continued until final test results are received from the lab.  The air sanitization equipment used creates hydroxyls, which oxidizes all living airborne contaminants such as mold spores, germs, bacteria, viruses etc.  The ionization of the air sanitizers utilizes the moisture in the air to clump all the fine contaminants together to make them heavier than air and drops to the floor. 

Each unit was cleaned and cleared by the lab and flipped back to the builder in 15 days.  This was a huge job since there was no HVAC for air circulation, so 12 20" box fans were used per unit.  It is close to impossible to clean stagnant air so keeping all the fans running plus the air sanitizers and air scrubbers just using temporary power was hard until the builder added a second temporary electric box to handle the load.

Lab reports indicate no elevated or toxic molds exist upon completion. of each unit.

 

 

 

 

February 1, 2006 - Porter Ave.

 

Porter Ave., Nashville, TN

Stachybotrys mold was reported in the bathroom area.  Also possibly the kitchen cabinets.

Definite mold growth on the wall around the tub and floor where vinyl was pulled back.  There is also mold on the floor of the kitchen sink cabinet. 

The swab/tape test in the kitchen and bathroom passed on first testing.  The first whole house air test failed, which indicates there are airborne spores throughout the home not just in the contained areas.  Containment had to be dropped and the total cubic air sanitized within the home to eliminate the stachybotrys mold spores that had permeated the entire area.

·    AMS did have to put plastic over to roof to try to prevent melting snow from dripping into the powder room.  This was only temporary, after the weather broke AMS was able to tar patch around the bathroom vents to eliminate any water infiltration and complete the remediation.

2006 - 9th St Nashville

N. 9^th Street, Nashville: 1/27/06

Home buyers home inspector reported microbial growth around the window unit and the wall above the fireplace.

Also found mold on the floor system under the carpet the location of the window unit and above the water heater that was located in the crawlspace.  Water runs down and all areas around the visual mold has to be checked.

Over the fireplace once the wall was sprayed the paint pealed off indicating the moisture had penetrated the drywall, removed the drywall and exposed the brick chimney and cleaned all the brick and mortar joints accordingly.  The framing members on both sides of the chimney was deteriorated and had to be removed.  We were able to clean and save the old mantle to be reused.

The window unit had to be condemmed and disposed of because of contamination, we had to remove the baseboard, drywall, window stool and trim to expose the framing members for cleaning.  Pulled back the carpet and the hardwood was also contaminated to the point we had to remove that section of hardwood.  And surprisingly there was a second layer of hardwood that had to be removed back to the original floor decking.  Cleaned the floor decking as well as both layers of hardwood that had been removed so it could be reused to save home buyer material cost to replace. 

No upfront testing was performed on this home since it was vacant and visual mold was present.

Confirmation from the Lab that remediation was successful.

NOTE:  EPA Mold Guideline Booklet “A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home” states on page 13, In most cases, if visible mold growth is present, sampling is unnecessary.  Unless health issues are present AMS chooses to save the funds for upfront testing and apply them to the final to reassure all parties there is no longer elevated levels.

 

12/5/2005 - Westhaven

Westhaven - State Blvd. Franklin, TN – 12/5/2005

Builder called and needs the microbial growth, found by the home inspector, in the crawlspace to be removed.  This happens during new construction until you get the home dried in water can and will get into the crawlspace, builder had to remove the water and eliminate off site drainage. 

NOTE:  No testing is normally done in a crawlspace, it is usually a visual and AMS recommends having the original home inspector to re-inspect for final.  Crawlspaces, attics and garages are considered outside space and since they have outside air flow to eliminate heat and humidity, testing is futile and expensive.

2005 - Timberdale

Timberdale Ct. Nashville, TN -  5/10/05

Homeowner was having health issues and wanted testing completed to see if it was mold.  Test results came back containing high level of mold spores including stachybotrys mold.  A thorough inspection was done to find the source and it was the main trunk line of the supply from the HVAC was comprised of duct board.  The HVAC contractor that had installed the duct work had installed a humidifier at some point, which was the moisture source absorbed inside of the duct board and had created microbial growth.

AMS addressed all three aspects of mold: first we removed all the contaminated duct work, secondly we cleaned the air and all airborne contaminants that occur naturally with microbial growth.  Last we cleaned all surfaces throughout.  HEPA vacuumed all soft surfaces, and wiped all hard surfaces with an all natural cleaner.  We continued to run air sanitizers and air scrubbers throughout the entire process to drop and clean all contaminants from the air and surfaces. 

Confirmation from the Lab that remediation was successful, no elevated levels and no toxic molds remain.

This situation did result in a law suit where the owners sued the HVAC contractor.  Their original HVAC proposal stated they would use hard metal ductwork.  Instead they just put in duct board as the main supply line, and then later added the humidifier.  This resulted in the HVAC contractor settling with the clients out of court once their legal counsel realized the pictures of the old duct board would implicate their client.  Duct board is egg yellow and the pictures showed this duct board at this residence was black with microbial growth.

9/30/2005 - Belmont

Belmont Blvd. Nashville, TN  -  09/30/2005

There is a closet in a classroom with possible microbial growth and needed it checked immediately. This is a day care facility and the staff was concerned for the children.

This was an interesting job.  The moisture source could not be traced initially.  This closet was in behind the entry door, with no known moisture sources in the area.  The closet used to be an old coat closet and was converted to a storage closet when shelves were added over the old wall paper that definitely had microbial growth.  Once the shelves were pulled, it was obvious that whomever installed the shelves nailed a ledger board into the ductwork that went up inside the wall to the second floor.  When the cold air crossed the nails and the nail heads in the closet were warm, they condensate onto the old wall paper and with no air flow or light it was a great place for mold to manifest.

Confirmation from the Lab that remediation was successful, no elevated levels and no toxic molds exist.

2005 - High Rise Condo

Test results from Bellevue – Condominium High-rise 1^st floor unit

The test results did have the "Black Mold" present, but please keep in mind there are over 30 thousand kinds of mold with most of them being dark in color only the lab can determine if it is truly toxic "Black Mold"

Stachybotrys and Chaetomium molds were found in both rooms. 

Effects on humans from Wikipedia.

Stachybotrys:

Depending on the length of exposure and volume of spores inhaled or ingested, symptoms can manifest as chronic fatigue or headaches, fever, irritation to various areas including the eyes, mucous membranes of the mouth, nose and throat, as well as other symptoms such as sneezing, rashes, and chronic coughing. In severe cases of exposure or cases exacerbated by allergic reaction, symptoms can be extreme including nausea, vomiting, and bleeding in the lungs and nose.

Chaetomium:

Chaetomium spp. is also encountered as causative agents of infections in humans. A few cases of fatal deep infections due to Chaetomium atrobrunneum have been reported in the immune compromised host.   Other clinical syndromes include brain abscess, peritonitis, and onychomycosis.

After AMS remediation.

Final Testing 7/6/2005:     #1 Living Room     #2 Bedroom

No toxic molds found only common molds.  Air testing consists of at least 2 test, inside in the area of contaminants and one 10 ft outside the entry door.  Inside usually has to be equal to or less than outside; outside test tells the Lab what spores come in as you go in and out.  Both inside tests are significantly less than outside and no toxic molds present.  Confirmation from the Lab that remediation was successful.

This situation did result in a law suit where the owners sued the condo association, since the association is responsible to eliminate moisture sources from the HVAC chase.  Instead they just changed out the ceiling tiles once the mold was visible and did not correct the moisture source.  This resulted in the association settling with the clients out of court once AMS depositions were complete and negligence on the part of the association was established.