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My soon to depart tenants advised me that that the Ohana (bedroom attached to the garage) has some black mold on the baseboard and that it is spreading to things like plastic plants (?!?!). I have never had a problem in there and this isn't even the rainy season. No problem in the main house. Tenant thinks that water is getting in under a door, but I am thinking something in the walls, like water leaking from a roof.
I had a chimney removed about 5 months ago, and the roof was repaired at that point by a competent contractor.
Thoughts and advice would be appreciated.
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Remove the baseboards. Cut Paint and caulk with razor knife, Insert pry bar behind nails and hammer outward on the other end of pry bar, not damaging the drywall above the base trim.cut the drywall out just below the baseboard line. You can then inspect the bottom plate for leaks,wet rot, termites and Mold. you can always replace the base trim with bigger trim if you need to cut up higher.
One Thing I can always be sure of is that things will never go as expected.
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Hey glen
Have you tried colloidal silver? I have a machine that makes it, check with some health food stores, basically it is silver in a micro suspension of water. its actually what kept the English alive. That's why they were called blue bloods, since their silver wear was actually silver. it does amazing things. check it out on the Internet. before you start ripping walls apart. you can put it in a spray bottle and it will kill all molds, you can use it on plants like veggies and such. It works like a natural antibiotic in the human body. It really is amazing stuff.
setting my soul free....
setting my soul free....
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Glen, can anyone get into the attic area to check around the area of the fix? It may be that the fix has shifted & need a little more patch.... (do not know HOW the patched, but most roof patches need periodic checking, as they can become the weak link in the roof....)
Also check to see if the gutters are OK, & that there is no water back-dripping from the facia.
Windows can also be a source of water intrusion... check to see if there is any potential for intrusion there
The baseboard check is a good idea to make sure that your sill plate is still in good solid condition.... killing the mold & leaving the sill plate to rot away would not be very good for the studio structure.
There are many products that deter mold growth, but the first thing is to find the leak & stop the cause....
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Common household bleach kills mold. Mold needs moisture to grow. Find the Water Source and Eliminate it. Poor ventilation and high humidity encourages mold growth. Also, old Concrete slabs can leach water up from the ground to dampen wood framing. Plants growing up on the outside walls and Dirt contacting siding on the outside can be sources of moisture also.
One Thing I can always be sure of is that things will never go as expected.
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Kimo, Lostboy and Carey -- you guys are too knowledgeable to be giving this stuff away for free! Thanks. I will find the source of the leak. Colloidal silver? No, never tried. Will look into it. I am sure I have some bleach on hand. I think you are all right -- I must have a leak that started when the roof was repaired.
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Colloidal silver is very expensive at health food stores.What concentration you use,Lostboystoy, and where did you get that machine?
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I agree with Carey's points and would like to add that when the remodeling was done, a nail may have just nicked a water line. Even a pinprick sized hole will cause damage.
Catherine Dumond
Blue Water Project Management
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copper and zinc will kill mold, mildew,algae.
Bleach and a spray of cold galvanize spray rustoleum repaint.
I have always wanted to experiment with mixing some zinc oxide powder in to regular paint.
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esnap's take is often informed, it's worth a listen.
By the way, I know more secret recipes for the most lethal paints from the dawn of boat building time. . .rot? You must be kidding. There's 200 year old soggy wood out there. . .but don't let your kids touch it!
As a boat person for the last 15 years I can tell you more about mold than you want to hear. I mean really. Hawaii is easy compared to living on a boat.
You will have mold and rot on biodegradable surfaces, and some you wouldn't think so IF and ONLY if there is a threshold of moisture content present enough of the time to maintain life. The spores of the mold are everywhere, and nothing you will do will prevent that. Poison is of course the traditional route, but solves nothing, ultimately. There are two courses of action: seal everything up and maintain the climate at a low enough humidity to keep the scuzz from growing, which I feel is impossible, or to ventilate and remove moisture through natural means--which takes a lot of thought and tinkering with the airflow of a house AND a dedicated heat source. The heat source is important as it's the motor that drives the absorption of moisture from surfaces. You must draw cold air, heat it, which makes it pull water, and gas it off. That is the mechanism to dry a house.
I'll post a few details about how to do it. A tepee is a good primal reference, but we can do better. In my place it involves vents in the floor, and all sorts of crazy stuff that I tune as I go along.
