Tips for Northern VA Homeowners When Selecting Mold Companies

Mold can cause health issues such as itchy eyes and nose, stuffy nose, and difficulty breathing. This can make respiratory and allergies worse for Northern Va household members. Once you see mold, you need to move quickly to remove it and its source; otherwise, it will continue to grow. Choosing mold companies to rid your Northern VA home of mold growth can be a tough decision. Here are a few tips that should help in your decision—

Experience. Having the proper training and education is one thing, but on–the–job experience gives you confidence in mold companies to do the job right. Only consider mold companies in Northern VA who have been in business for a long enough time to have plenty of experience in their field. Question them about their knowledge, and be sure to ask to see before and after pictures and before and after test results.

References and Reviews. Mold companies should be able to provide you with references. If not, walk away. Look on the internet for reviews for any mold company you are considering.

Equipment. Question the mold companies about the equipment they use during the process. Be sure they use the latest effective equipment and professional–grade tools to do the job. Mold often grows in hard–to–reach places. With the right equipment, mold companies can handle complex jobs.

PPE. Make sure the mold companies’ technicians wear personal protective equipment. You want a mold company that takes health risks seriously and protects its employees. 

Certification and Warranty. Check to see what certifications mold companies have in Northern VA. Certification programs have the extra education and qualifications that other mold companies don’t have. Look for certifications specific to the services you require at your home in Northern VA. Make sure they offer a warranty on the work they do. If not, keep looking.

Insurance. Only hire mold companies who are fully insured in Northern VA. This protects you both. A company that is not fully insured is one you need to walk away from.

Envirotex Environment Services checks off all the boxes. Envirotex has over 20 years of serving the Northern VA area; the company’s owner Mr. Freeman gained his environmental experience and knowledge serving his country. 

How to Control House Mold Inside your Great Falls, VA Home

Moisture control is the key to controlling house mold inside your Great Falls, VA home. By following these suggestions, you should be able to control house mold within your home.

  • Once you notice any water leaks or spills inside your Great Falls, VA home, you must act quickly. If you act quickly and dry damp areas or materials within 24–48 hours after a leak or spill, house mold will most likely not grow.
  • Roof gutters should be regularly cleaned and repaired at your Great Falls, VA home. 
  • The ground around your Great Falls, VA home must be sloped away from the house. This allows the water to drain away from the house and won’t allow water to collect around the foundation of your Great Falls, VA home.
  • Make sure your air conditioning drip pans are kept clean and drain properly.
  • Try to keep your indoor humidity low; if possible, keep the indoor humidity below 60 percent; between 30 and 50 percent is ideal. You can measure your home’s humidity with a moisture or humidity meter, an inexpensive instrument you can pick up at your local Great Falls, VA hardware store.
  • If you notice condensation or moisture collecting on your walls, windows, or pipes, wipe dry and reduce the moisture or water source. Condensation could be a sign of high humidity.

How to Reduce Humidity at your Great Falls, VA Home to Prevent House Mold

  • Vent clothes dryers and stoves to the outside to prevent moisture.
  • Use dehumidifiers or air conditioners when needed.
  • Run the bathroom fan or open a window in the room when showering or bathing.
  • Use exhaust fans or open windows whenever you cook, run the dishwasher, or do dishes by hand.

How to Prevent Condensation Inside your Great Falls, VA Home to Help Control House Mold

  • Increase ventilation or air movement. You can do this by opening doors and windows when practical. Use fans when needed.
  • Cover up cold water pipes or other cold surfaces with insulation.
  • Increase the air temperature inside your Great Falls, VA home.

Following these suggestions should help prevent house mold from growing inside your home. Any signs of house mold should be taken care of quickly so that it doesn’t spread throughout your home.

If you have any questions concerning house mold or any other environmental issues at your home in Great Falls, VA, call the professionals at Envirotex Environmental Services.

Mold Treatment for Bathrooms in Virginia Beach, VA

Mold is a frequent condition of homes in wetter climates, but some areas are prone to developing mold, even in dryer climates. Wherever there is moisture in homes in Virginia Beach, VA, mold can grow. Bathrooms tend to be the worst areas for mold growth, and without mold treatment, it can totally get out of control. Mold develops in the grout between ceramic tiles in your bathroom. This type of mold treatment can be done by spraying it down with a bleach–based cleaner and wiping it off.

Mold in bathrooms in Virginia Beach, VA homes without the proper ventilation could be behind your walls and in your ceilings. Having a professional company such as Envirotex Environmental Services come to your Virginia Beach, VA home and evaluate your situation is your best bet. Once determined, mold treatment can help you rid your home of mold. Sometimes moldy materials may need to be removed and discarded, such as drywall, depending on the amount of damage.

 An excessive amount of humidity in Virginia Beach, VA homes can breed mold growth. Newer homes often have more mold growth than older homes because they are more tightly insulated.

Mold treatment will include using specialized cleaning products to clean all moldy surfaces. If there is mold growth on your drywall or if you have any mold–related materials that cannot be adequately cleaned, these will need to be discarded and replaced.

Mold treatment should only be done by homeowners in Virginia Beach, VA who have small areas of mold. Any more than a 3×3 feet area should be left to a professional mold technician.  

With specialized equipment such as thermal imaging, mold technicians can look behind the scenes to find your problem source without demolition. The moisture source causing your mold problems will need to be remedied, or any mold treatment will only be a temporary fix.

Some molds can be hazardous to one’s health. Please don’t try to remove excessive mold; leave it to the professionals.

If you have any questions about mold issues inside your Virginia Beach, VA home, call the experts at Envirotex Environmental Services.

How Mold Companies in Gainesville, VA Keep Families Safe

Anytime you are faced with mold growth in your home in Gainesville, VA, remember for all the mold you can see, there could be that much more that you cannot see. Hiring mold companies for mold growth at your home protects your family from the harmful damage that mold can do to a Gainesville, VA home as well as to the family who lives there.

Any place where water is found can develop mold as well as excessive amounts of humidity in a Gainesville, VA home which can condense and cause mold growth. Newer homes have a higher rate of developing mold because they are more tightly insulated than older homes in Gainesville, VA.

Areas of your home which are more susceptible to mold growth include—

  • Attics
  • Crawl spaces
  • Basements
  • Interior walls
  • Around chimneys
  • Kitchens
  • Bathrooms
  • Laundry rooms
  • Under sinks
  • Under window unit air conditioners
  • Ducts
  • Furnaces
  • Near foundation air vents

Mold companies such as Envirotex Environmental Services take the guesswork out of determining whether your Gainesville, VA home has any mold growth. You may be smelling musty odors from different areas of your home yet not notice any mold growth; letting this go for too long can develop into a much bigger scenario along with the added costs, plus the health issues mold causes that could place family members in danger.

A mold company can come to your home in Gainesville, VA and do a visual inspection first, then going from there with their special equipment, including thermal imaging. This high–tech diagnostic technology can quickly detect and identify moisture sources that are causing your house to smell musty.

Your mold company can make recommendations for fixing your moisture problems and removing any mold damage from your home, making your home a much safer environment for your family. The repairs needed to fix your moisture problem may be done by a sub–contractor instead of the mold company or whoever you choose to do the repairs.

Just removing mold–damaged materials from homes in Gainesville, VA by mold companies is only part of the solution. Getting rid of the source causing the mold growth is just as essential so that the mold will not come back later.

Keep your family safe by calling the experienced team at Envirotex for all of your mold–related issues.  

Keep Your Family Safe with Mold Treatment in McLean, VA

At the first signs of mold growth at your home in McLean, VA, you should call in a professional mold treatment company such as Envirotex Environmental Services. Mold is something you don’t want to procrastinate about getting rid of at your home. Mold treatment is necessary to protect the health of family members and the structure of your home and possessions.

Mold treatment may start with a mold inspection. Although you might be able to visually see some mold growth at your McLean, VA home, frequently, there is that much more that you can’t see. With specialized equipment, mold and its water source can be found, and then recommendations can be made to remove the mold and fix the source of moisture. Without these two mold treatments, you will forever be fighting a losing battle at your home in McLean, VA.

If you have experienced any leaks, flooding, or high humidity conditions for long periods of time, mold treatment is essential to rid your home of this nasty, smelly growth. Over periods of time, mold growth can contribute to asthma and allergies for family members costing more in medical bills, not to mention the mold treatment involved to eradicate mold from your McLean, VA home.

Mold treatment should only be handled by professionals who have the experience and knowledge to safely and effectively remove the mold from your McLean, VA home. They know the safety precautions to take to keep your family safe.

These professionals wear special disposable clothing, including respirators and goggles to protect themselves from coming in contact with the mold or breathing in mold spores that are released when disturbed. They will set up physical barriers and negative air pressure to keep mold spores from spreading throughout the rest of the house in McLean, VA.

During the mold treatment process, your family will be asked to leave until the mold treatment has been completed and it is safe for your family to reenter your home in McLean, VA.

If you are faced with mold inside your McLean, VA home, call the experts at Envirotex today and let their mold treatment team make your home safe for you and your family.

Prevent Damage with Mold Treatment in Northern VA

Mold is quite familiar to homes in Northern VA, especially in the humid summer. The most common mold develops in the grout between the ceramic tiles in your bathroom. A simple mold treatment used by homeowners is spraying the grout with a bleach–based cleaner and then wiping it off. If this is an ongoing problem, you might want to put new ventilation fans in your bathroom.

Anytime you have a leak or flooding inside your Northern VA home, you run the risk of developing mold growth. Getting mold treatment early to prevent it from spreading will save extensive damage that mold can cause in a home. It only takes about 48 hours of moisture to turn into mold.

Anytime you have damp clothes lying on the carpet or up next to a wall or other surfaces, the moisture over time will develop into mold. These are things that can easily be prevented. But sometimes, you may have a leaky roof that wasn’t noticeable until after severe damage had been done. In this case, mold treatment from a professional environmental company such as Envirotex is necessary to completely rid your Northern VA home of mold damage and make your home safe for your family.

Breathing in mold spores that float throughout your home when there is excessive mold inside your home is not healthy for your family. Those with asthma and allergies will suffer the most. Northern VA homes that are infested with mold can trigger the start of continuing health issues. Mold treatment is essential in these cases in Northern VA to protect the health of your family.

A professional mold treatment company can give you an assessment of the damages and the necessary steps to eradicate mold from your Northern VA home. They will map out a plan for the entire process and take all the safety precautions required to protect you and your family from exposure to mold spores released during the mold treatment process.

Call Envirotex Environmental Services as soon as you notice any signs of mold inside your home in Northern VA. They will be glad to help you with mold treatment or any other environmental issues you might be experiencing.

Risks of DIY Black Mold Removal in Alexandria, VA

If you have signs of mold growing inside your Alexandria, VA home, you should seek out an environmental company such as Envirotex for immediate mold removal. Mold can grow at a fast rate, and you don’t want to let it get any worse. Mold removal is not for the do–it–yourselfers.  

There are many types of mold, the worst being black mold, known as Stachybotrys chartarum, also as Stachybotrys atra. Black mold releases mycotoxins which can cause health problems. One such health concern is mycotoxicosis which is mold poisoning. Other health concerns are—

  • Changes in mood
  • Aches and pains
  • Memory loss
  • Nosebleeds
  • Headaches

Symptoms from mold exposure are higher at risk for—

  • Infants and children
  • Older adults
  • People who have a weakened immune system
  • People who have allergies or asthma

Black mold removal on your own can lead to dangerous health issues. Black mold removal specialists are trained in methods to eliminate mold and, with advanced techniques, can identify any hidden mold that you can’t visibly see in your Alexandria, VA home.

If you attempt to do black mold removal on your own, you may release mold spores throughout the rest of your home in Alexandria, VA, which would make the mold problem that much worse.

Mold can hide in places in your Alexandria, VA home that you might not be aware of, such as air vents. You could miss vital areas that are infected with mold growth. Black mold removal of all mold is necessary for complete remediation.

Without the high–tech equipment to handle toxic black mold, you are putting yourself and your family in harm’s way. Professionals use personal protection gear, air filters, and containment systems for black mold removal in Alexandria, VA.

Calling in a professional team like Envirotex will guarantee your black mold removal is done effectively and safely at your home in Alexandria, VA. Once the team is completely finished, all mold–related items will be disposed of properly.

A professional environmental company will also recommend that you repair the issues that are causing your home’s moisture resulting in mold growth at your Alexandria, VA home. Without fixing the problem, it will only return.

Crawl Space Mold Removal in Virginia Beach, VA

Foundations for homes in Virginia Beach, VA are vital for your family’s safety and well–being. Sagging floors can result from falling floor joists underneath your house in the crawl space. This happens because of open space vents or doors, humidity, and excessive moisture causing wet wood and rotting.

Mold could be growing under your Virginia Beach, VA home in your crawl space, which eventually, if left unattended, could lead to excessive damage. Crawl space mold removal would be necessary, along with taking care of the issues causing the moisture.

Mold removal is pointless unless you fix the moisture problems; otherwise, the mold will keep returning, again and again, causing more damage to your foundation at your Virginia Beach, VA home.

Mold thrives in warmth and especially in humid climates. If you have standing water or any condensation in the crawl space, mold growth is bound to happen. Mold grows on organic materials, including drywall and wood. Mold feeds on these organic materials as it moves across these kinds of surfaces. Mold loves cellulose, and wood floor joists tend to be 40 to 50% cellulose making them highly vulnerable to mold.

Any mold you find in your crawl space in Virginia Beach, VA should be handled by a professional mold removal company such as the team at Envirotex Environmental Services. Mold removal without the proper equipment could be dangerous to your health and those around you. A mold removal company has the necessary equipment to handle mold removal safely and effectively to protect your family in Virginia Beach, VA as well as themselves.

Before the mold removal, you may encounter damage to your foundation and will need to make all the necessary repairs in your crawl space and a plan to fix the moisture issues causing mold growth and possibly wood rot. If you don’t fix the problems, mold removal will need to be done in the short future at your home in Virginia Beach, VA.

If you have mold growing in your crawl space, call the experts at Envirotex Environmental Services. Let these professionals come and look at your mold–related issues at your home in Virginia Beach, VA and make recommendations for a plan to rid your home of all mold.

Mold in Home in Alexandria, VA: How to Tell

Mold is part of the fungi family which releases tiny spores that float through the air. The spores from mold in homes in Alexandria, VA can enter your home in several different ways, such as—

  • Windows
  • Doors
  • HVAC systems
  • Clothes and shoes
  • Pets

The conditions have to be just right for mold spores in homes in Alexandria, VA to grow. These spores may latch on to different materials such as carpet, paper, wood, and fabrics. Mold in homes in Alexandria, VA prefers areas with lots of moisture and very little light, including places such as sinks, showers, bathtubs, close to leaky pipes, around windows, and in basements, crawl spaces, and attics.

There is a variety of mold in homes in Alexandria, VA. The only way to know which type is growing inside your home is with mold testing, where samples will be taken and sent away to a lab for analysis. Regardless of the type of mold, you should hire a professional mold removal company such as Envirotex Environment Services to rid your home of all mold and the source causing the mold in home.

How to Tell if There is Mold in Homes in Alexandria, VA

Mold will start out in little spots, but it can spread very quickly. It can be black, white, spotted, and almost any other color. It may appear to be cottony, velvety, or powdery. So if you notice any spots and you aren’t sure what it is, here are some ways to tell if the spot may be a sign of mold—

  • The spot has a musty, earthly smell to it.
  • The spot is located near a source of moisture where there is little light.
  • If you drop bleach on the spot, it will lighten its color in a few minutes.
  • If the spot goes unchecked and it still continues to grow. Stains and dirt will not grow.

Mold in homes in Alexandria can put your family at risk. Mold spores that could be floating inside your home are easily inhaled, causing a whole lot of health issues. Call the experts at Envirotex for any mold problems you might have at your home in Alexandria, VA.

Mold Treatment for DIY Homeowners in Virginia Beach, VA

Mold treatment by a professional Virginia Beach, VA environmental company is recommended because trying to remove mold on your own could make matters worse and cause potential health risks. If you do decide to do it on your own, some common mistakes to avoid include—

Bleach Should Not Be Used as Part of Mold Treatment

Using bleach for mold treatment is a widely believed myth. Although bleach may change the color of the mold to a clearer or whiter shade, unfortunately, it will only create an environment for the mold to continue to grow at your home in Virginia Beach, VA. Not to mention, you could ingest bleach fumes and airborne mold spores, neither of which is healthy. Normally after three or four months of using bleach, the mold will return.

Products to Use for Mold Treatment at Homes in Virginia Beach, VA

Borax is a white powder you can purchase at most Virginia Beach, VA grocery stores in their laundry detergent section and should be used in home mold treatments. Mix a cup of borax to one gallon of hot water and apply the solution to the moldy area. This mold treatment should not be used on porous materials such as drywall because it will absorb water easily and exacerbate your mold issue by keeping the drywall moist.

Once you apply the borax solution, scrub the moldy area with a rag or wire brush until all mold is removed. Wipe the site and allow it to dry thoroughly. If need be, you can repeat the application of the borax solution. Mold treatment with borax prevents any new mold growth, so there is no need to rinse it away fully. Afterward, run a dehumidifier or a fan to help dry out the area within 24–48 hours.

Avoid Mold–Resistant Paint

Mold–killing paint may look like it solves the problem, but it does not eradicate the mold. It can still grow beneath the paint, and eventually, it will come back. Painting can make mold removal more difficult, and the health problems that mold can cause will continue because the mold is still there in your Virginia Beach, VA house.

Once you get rid of the mold from your home in Virginia Beach, VA, take care of any moisture that is causing the mold growth, and the area is thoroughly dry, you can apply a mold–resistant paint.

Do–it–yourself mold treatment should only be for smaller mold growth areas at homes in Virginia Beach, VA. On a safer note, it is best to leave any mold treatment to the professionals such as at Envirotex Environmental Services. Using a professional service will guarantee a cleaner environment for your family.