Watch Out For Avoidable Mistakes When You Face Mold Damage In Milwaukee

10/10/2019 (Permalink)

Mold Damage In Your Home

The buildup of indoor moisture from high relative humidity, plumbing, and roof leaks may lead to mold damage. When the relative humidity is kept low, chances for condensation to take place reduce, and that means there are no appropriate conditions for fungi to grow. Mold spores cannot thrive without the presence of water in your Milwaukee property.

It is necessary to take precautionary measure when dealing with mold damage because it can cause health effects. Our SERVPRO technicians assess the level of contamination and choose the right Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the job. When the area is extensively contaminated, we prefer a half-mask respirator, full body suits, and chemical resistant gloves. For light levels of contamination, an N95 respirator can be good enough.

We are careful not to spread the contaminant to clean areas, and if we have to disturb the mold when cleaning the site, we make sure containment procedures are already in place. Containment also helps limit mold exposure to the occupants and our SERVPRO team. If the area we are working on is small, we practice limited containment. Otherwise, we do full containment when the area is more than 100 square feet.

After disturbing the mold, spores and dust might settle on porous and non-porous surfaces. When that happens, we do damp wiping and HEPA vacuuming to do the removal. We first determine the airflow direction and clean areas towards that path, and the cleaning process starts from the structure's top towards its bottom.

When drying the items and rooms, our SERVPRO technicians first remove any wet objects from the area to speed up the rate of evaporation and after that setup dehumidifiers to lower the humidity. Moisture meters provide initial readings of overall humidty at the start of the job and will be monitored to ensure the project is complete.

At SERVPRO of Milwaukee North, We’re Faster To Any Size Disaster whether it strikes your home or business property. Call us at (414) 354-7566 when you need to be served by a proven industry leader.

Mold Damage Can Rapidly Grow in Your Milwaukee Home's Attic

10/10/2019 (Permalink)

SERVPRO Thoroughly Remediates Mold Damage

Microbial growth in any home needs special care when it spreads. Airborne spores can cause health effects in Milwaukee residents, and the winter months do not slow microbial activity a significant amount. During the colder season, the flu, colds, and allergies can all cause confusion and disagreement regarding the best treatment for individuals suffering runny noses and other undesirable symptoms.

Milwaukee residents can eliminate one source of the sniffles by hiring professional mold damage experts to remediate an attic overcome by microbes. Although your family may rarely enter the attic, air ducts can carry spores away from the attic and into the living spaces of your home.

Remediation by SERVPRO's IICRC-certified technicians can help reduce the microbial population to reasonable numbers. Part of this involves washing and treating damaged materials and cleaning mold-inundated belongings stored in the attic. Because many attics do not include drywall materials, removing materials does not happen at the same level commonly found for living areas of a home.

Attics can easily harbor hidden mold, so we use devices that can detect higher levels of moisture. These areas easily allow microbial populations at very rapid rates. After locating all mold growth, cleaning the surfaces of microbial activity, and then treating the area, helps prevent any further damage.

Finding the source of water that permitted such growth to occur in the first place lets us stop any additional water from coming into your attic. These sources can include slow drips from ice damming, overhead water lines from new appliance's installation or remodeling of your home, leaks around the chimney, or other sources. Each source never precludes the presence of any others, so we always check thoroughly to ensure we find all possible sources.

SERVPRO of Milwaukee North always keeps the equipment and tools ready to combat mold damage and provide excellent mold remediation services to our local community. If the moisture from winter storms overfed mold in your attic, call us at (414) 354-7566. Our services are available 24/7 year-round.

Important Facts To Prevent A Mold Infestation From Taking Over Your Home In Milwaukee

10/9/2019 (Permalink)

Facts That Can Help You Prevent Mold Damage From Harming Your Milwaukee Home

Some microbes can easily cause costly harm inside your house in Milwaukee. SERVPRO wants to help you prevent this from happening by giving you some information about mold and mildew that helps to keep these microorganisms under control.

Once your property in Milwaukee suffers from mold damage, you might be surprised at how effortlessly it can spread from one region to another location. Here are some facts about microbes that can shed some light on these prolific but tiny living things that we share our homes with, no matter where we live.

First, complete eradication of mold and mildew is not possible. No matter how much we try, nor which equipment types we use, mold and mildew, and their spores continue as a presence in almost every inch of the planet. As tiny as they are, the weakest air currents and deposited elsewhere. They travel on clothing, pets, food, books, bags, and anything else that goes from one place to another.

Second, it is not their absence that protects your home from mold damage, but the elimination of excess humidity. Elevated amounts of water vapor in the air give microbes the necessary changes in their environment to gain access to cellulose. Without moisture, microbes cease to grow. SERVPRO uses special tools to measure the amount of moisture your home's structure contains and also how much water vapor the air holds. Part of our work involves reducing these so mold cannot return after we finish remediating your home.

Third, after an incident involving a water loss, you only have 24 to 48 hours before mold and mildew begin forming in visible patches. Containing the water and drying the affected area prevents this growth from occurring. This is why we use not only air movers to dry out saturated interiors, but also air scrubbers. Trapping microbes coming into the area can significantly reduce the amount of mold and mildew we see later.

Household bleach contains substantial amounts of water, and microbes get a drink from its contents. When used on porous materials like drywall, only the water molecules are small enough to pass through the pores of the drywall coverings. The bleach's molecules are too large to do this and remain on the surface. Bleach cannot penetrate to kill microbes hidden in a wall. Now provided with fresh water, microbes unexpectedly but quickly proliferate.

SERVPRO of Milwaukee North wants to help homeowners protect their property from invasive microbes that cause mold damage. When you find mold damage more massive than the size of a twin mattress, you need experts like those at SERVPRO. Call us at (414) 354-7566 any time, day or night, year-round.

House Mold: Types and Solutions

4/24/2019 (Permalink)

Mold Containment to prevent the spread of spores throughout the home

House Mold

Mold growth is typical in a variety of climates and homes. There is no shame in having experienced these types of problems. However, while not uncommon, mold comes in all shapes, sizes and species, and it can be beneficial to understand the kinds of household molds and how to prevent or treat them, ensuring a safe and clean living environment for you and your family.

1. Food Mold

Food mold is likely the most common type of mold, and most people experience it as bread mold. You may look in your bread drawer one day, and everything is fine, but the very next day you see areas of green and black blotches on some of the pieces. This type of growth is natural and likely unrelated to any particular underlying problems in your home.

2. Surface Mold

Another common type of house mold is surface mold. As the name implies, the mold growth is restricted to the surface of an object. This type of mold may be remedied quite easily by using certain over-the-counter cleaners. However, it is essential to make sure that the mold issue is indeed surface and does not penetrate the drywall or framing.

3. Mold Infestations

A mold infestation typically occurs in areas with significant water damage or spaces with high humidity levels. Unfortunately, a problem like this usually requires deep penetration of the structure to ensure that the area is clear of the infestation before restoration.

4. Mold Remediation

Whether you only suspect a problem or have the water damage to prove one, it is beneficial to call a mold remediation specialist in the Milwuakee, WI, area. Mold can be invasive and dangerous. Specialists are certified and capable of remedying your problem quickly and efficiently without risking the safety of you or your family.

Mold growth is common in homes, and while food mold and surface mold are relatively simple and easy fixes, mold infestations can be dangerous and present a more substantial risk to the integrity of your home. When dealing with large mold problems, it is likely best to hire a professional.

Mold doesn't have to be a scary thing!

2/14/2018 (Permalink)

In recent years, mold seems to be a buzzword in DIY world that people freak out about.  They make you feel like it is everywhere in your home!  There is no need to freak out but instead become informed.

Mold is naturally occurring and as the years progress our houses become better sealed up from outside air.  This reduces ventilation and increases the opportunities for mold to occur if the environment is warm, wet or humid.

Mold on drywall and wood can be dealt with by removing and replacing the affected area and is a great solution as long as the humidity, water leaks and temperature is taken care of.  The most important factor with removing and replacing is that the area is contained and that there are air scrubbers that can clean the air and remove airborne mold spores.  If air scrubbers are not used then the removal will allow all the mold spores to become airborne, which can be filtered through an HVAC system all through the house.

Mold on tile and tubs can be treated by store purchased Mold Stain removers.  This is only for a small area and these removers should not be used on wood/drywall.

If you watch DIY shows they make you feel like mold is everywhere!  We hope that a little information goes a long way to calm your mold fears!

SERVPRO of Milwaukee North does free inspections to check on any of your mold concerns, just keep calm and give us a call.

Fixing the Mold Moisture Source

2/9/2018 (Permalink)

When SERVPRO of Milwaukee North gets called into a mold job one of our first questions is, where did the water or moisture that contributed to the mold come from?  Many times it was a leaky roof or leaky pipe that went unnoticed for a length of time or a water loss that was cleaned up incorrectly.  The second question is, did the water problem get fixed?  This is a very important question as if we do a mold mitigation job and the water source is not fixed the mold will come back!  As a restoration company that guarantees all our work, we cannot guarantee anything on a mold mitigation job if a water source is not fixed!  So we are more than happy to wait for our customers to fix the water problem before we help them out!

Containment

1/25/2018 (Permalink)

With mold remediation, there are a few things that have to be done but one of the most important things is called containment.  Our technicians make a sealed off section with plastic around the area to be remediated in order to prevent mold spores from traveling to other places.  In this sealed off area the demolition and the removing of affected material begins. During the demo, mold spores will be in the air so an air scrubber is run during and after the whole process to ensure that no renegade mold spores survive.  Any affected materials are put in a sealed bag to be removed and disposed of and technicians have to be vacuumed to be sure no mold spores exit containment with them.  After the job is done, containment is broken down and disposed of properly. SERVPRO of Milwaukee North guarantees our work so sticking to these steps helps us do the job right!

What About Mold Spores?

12/27/2017 (Permalink)

Mold Spores need three things to grow into mold and removing any one of these can reduce or eliminate new mold growth:
1. Nutrients - Dust or Dander
2. Moisture 
3. Warmth

Food sources for mold in buildings include cellulose-based materials such as wood, cardboard and the paper facing on drywall and organic matter such as soap, fabrics and dust-containing skin cells. A basement or crawl space, a leaking roof or a leak in plumbing pipes provide the moisture to start mold growth. Insufficient ventilation may accelerate moisture buildup and visible mold colonies may form where ventilation is poorest.

If there are mold problems in a house only during certain times of the year, the house is probably too airtight or too drafty. Molds grow best in warm temperatures, 77 to 86 °F.  HVAC systems can also produce all three requirements for mold growth creating a difference in temperature encouraging condensation or with the dusty air movement through the system.

Here are some steps to help prevent mold in your home.
- Stop and fix any water leaks - fix leaky pipes, prevent seepage, have rainwater drain away from house & ventilate enclosed areas
- Keep surfaces clean - dirt promotes mildew
- Keep surfaces dry - reduce moisture with dehumidifiers, keep humidity in home below 40%
- Routinely check problem areas like steamy bathrooms, kitchens, roofs, windows, laundry rooms, anywhere that has had a leak previously

SERVPRO of Milwaukee North provides free inspections if you ever think you have a water or mold problem!