Environmental Issue & Sick Building Syndrome Blog

Mold Occurs When There Too Much Moisture in a Crawlspace

• First priority is drying the crawl space. Direct roof and surface water away from the crawlspace areas of the home
  
• The crawlspace has extremely high moisture. This needs addressed. The exposed soil is a food source for mold.
  
• The soil of the crawlspace will need covered with a moisture barrier. For information about such a system and product, visit: http://www.basementsystems.com/crawl-space/crawl-space-products/cleanspace.html
  
• Dehumidify the home. This is an immediate and easy to accomplish task. Install a dehumidifier connected to a drain to allow the unit to operate and drain without the need to empty a pan. As an analogy, if you do not give a tomato plant water, it makes fewer tomatoes. If you reduce the moisture in the home, the old is reduced.
  
• The surfaces of the crawlspace and basement of the home will need decontaminated and cleaned. The crawlspace and other surfaces with high amounts of mold will require treatment with a high quality moldicide or process such as "ice blasting"
  
• The contents and surfaces of the upper level will need handled and remediated following proper procedures with particular care for personal protection. Handling contaminated contents puts additional mold into the air and places persons at higher risk while the lold is floating in the air from being disturbed.
  
• Workers will need to utilize Personal Protective Equipment and air scrubbing, particularly in the crawl space. Containment will be less necessary that typically because the contamination has spread through the entire property.