Mold Remediation Before & After Photos

Nick C. from Eckerty, IN knew there was something going on in his crawl space. He had purchased the home a year ago, and began to notice an odd smell. As time went on, the smell only got worse, so he did a quick Google search and reached out to us at Healthy Spaces to do a free inspection. 

We send a System Design Specialist to Nick's home to assess the mold situation going on in his crawl space. In order to prevent mold from growing, the basement and crawl space must be kept dry and without humidity. The key to controlling mold in your basement or crawl space is to eliminate the humidity that keeps it thriving. Nick agreed and Steven, the lead of our Mold Crew, came out and started the process. Our remediation process includes removing all mold-damaged materials, drying out the basement or crawl space, and thoroughly cleaning all surfaces.

Nick noticed the smell beginning to go away and was so thankful that he made the call to Healthy Spaces. 

Our client in Huntingburg, IN was in the process of purchasing a new home that got flagged on the inspection report for issues in the crawl space such as the insulation was falling, moisture, and there was mold on the floor joists. 

Let's first talk about the fiberglass insulation between the joists in the crawl space and the problems it can cause. The ground is constantly breathing. It takes in water during rain and evaporates back up into the atmosphere. This is the reason we install a vapor barrier under homes in order to keep the moisture down. However, without a vapor barrier, this condensation then moves up through the dirt floor and into the crawl space. The exposed insulation over time will soak up the moisture, eventually causing it to sag. And the whole point of installing insulation under the floor is to prevent cold air from the crawl space from entering the home. So once the insulation begins to sag, it causes an air break, allowing that cold outside air a direct path up through the floorboards, making the insulation useless. The gaps also allow the moisture to reach organic materials such as the wood subfloor, creating a perfect environment for mold to grow. 

Now let's talk about what our team did to restore peace of mind for our clients by creating a healthier environment for their new home! Sean and his team first needed to remove all the insulation from the crawl space. Next, our team remediated all of the molds and installed a new vapor barrier, along with sealing up the crawl space vents. By installing a new vapor barrier and sealing the crawl space vents, our client now has a crawl space that's safe, clean, and healthy!

Homeowners in Chrisney, IN were purchasing this home. When they had an inspection done, the inspection report flagged the crawl space for having mold. With one of their children having terrible allergies, they knew that something had to be done before moving into this home. Their realtor told them about Healthy Spaces Fix It To List It program which offers priority scheduling and will only perform a full evaluation on what's listed on the inspection report. 

In the before photo, you can still see the mold on the wood. Mold issues can dramatically lower the value of your home, and any house with significant mold problems will be difficult to sell. Additionally, mold can lead to serious structural damage to your home, which can be expensive and unsafe.

In the after photo, you can see that our product has been applied. It foams on contact with the affected area to provide visual identification of the problems & allows us to clean and restore the structural surfaces in the crawl space. Some companies might only clean with disinfectants, addressing only surface soil load. The problem with this is it only cleans the surface soil load, leaving behind dirt, debris, pollen, mold. The product that we use cleans beyond the soil load and accomplishes total source removal leaving behind a contaminate free surface. 

Homeowners in Chrisney, IN, are now protected from regrowth and will have a drier, healthier space in their crawl space. 

Fordsville, KY, like most of the surrounding areas has two struggles to deal with: high groundwater levels and lots of dirt floor crawlspaces.  The combination of the two creates a crawlspace mold epidemic that has largely been ignored by many residents until the mold infestation is quite advanced.  After all, how often do we really inspect our crawlspaces?  As you can see here, the mold situation in this Fordsville crawlspace was advanced and causing issues like musty, damp smells throughout the home, increased indoor allergies, and more frequent sinus related and respiratory illnesses.  When the homeowners went to inspect the crawlspace, they discovered that mold was growing over practically every surface in the crawlspace.  The homeowners immediately contacted Healthy Spaces to get the crawlspace remediated.

Donnie Stutesville, a mold remediation expert with Healthy Spaces, came out and inspected the crawlspace.  He recommended a three pronged approach to resolving the crawlspace mold and moisture issues: 

1. Remediate the mold and fungus

2. Remove standing water, debris, and the like

3. Seal the crawlspace with a vapor barrier

Donnie recommended both a mold/fungus treatment and a preventative coating to stop regrowth.  He explained that the mold and fungus treatment would need to be scrubbed off of all surfaces to remove the dead fungi and spores, then that debris would need to be removed prior to coating the entire crawlspace with a preventative solution.  In addition, the crawlspace needed a water removal system with sump pump and a dehumidifier.  Finally, the entire crawlspace needed a powerful vapor barrier installed to prevent the crawlspace from becoming moldy again.  You can see in the after photo that the mold removal was successful and the wood looks great with it's clear preventative coating in place!

Homeowners in Evansville, IN were looking at purchasing a home with a crawl space that had issues of groundwater intrusion, relative humidity, and was causing mold growth. 

In the before photo, you can clearly see the fungus growing on the wooden subfloor joists of an Evansville, IN crawl space. The fungus is growing and slowly decomposing the subfloor joist. If left alone over time, the problem could compromise the structural integrity of the subfloor joist. Thankfully, the homeowners were able to work out a deal with the seller who elected to completely destroy the fungus and have it properly removed by Healthy Spaces. 

In the second photo, you can see that the fungus removal has been completed on the subfloor joist. Each joist was individually scrubbed and cleaned on all sides in order to kill the fungus.