Check Homes For Mold Before Buying

[Guest guest]

Check Homes For Mold Before Buying

WKRC 12 - Cincinnati

Video

http://www.wkrc.com/news/local/story.aspx?content_id=32DF8D48-D0E9-

4C0F-A8AC-53103E566023

Mold problems are a widespread worry among homeowners these days,

particularly for someone buying a home. An area man says the house

he just bought is loaded with mold, now he's worried about how his

health will be affected.

When Bose was interested in buying an 85-year-old house in

Latonia, he hired a home inspector. That inspector told Bose that

everything in the home seemed to be in working order, but he did

have one concern.

JASON BOSE: " He could only look at the unfinished side of the house

and there was little brown spots on the wall. He said it could be

moisture but didn't go around and use a moisture meter to tell

whether it actually was or wasn't. " Bose now wishes that had been

done because, after he bought the house, he found evidence of mold

in the basement. A different home inspector said it's clear the mold

has been here for a long time.

BOSE: " We've been here 6 months so there's no way it could have done

this much damage in the time we've lived here. "

Despite the seller's disclosure statement that the basement had been

fixed so it does not leak, look at the mold we found under this rug.

The sub-floor has disintegrated in spots from all the moisture.

BOSE: " Me, my fiance and we have a 20 month old baby. Our concern is

not really with us but with the baby because with her being that

small her immune system is not developed. "

Here in the garage you can clearly see the mold along the garage

wall. When Bose came and toured the house originally he didn't see

any of this because all the mold had been painted over. But now the

mold has come through the paint.

BOSE: " The whole wall hasn't been painted, just in spots and where

you can see the difference in the paint is where the mold is re-

occurring. "

Bose said he should have been suspicious when he found air

fresheners in every room of the house. When he moved in and removed

them, he immediately began smelling the mold.

He's contacted the seller, who denies knowing anything about the

mold. Now, he looking for an attorney who can help him.

Bottom line, be very aware of mold and be sure to thoroughly check

for it-- with a moisture meter-- before you buy a house.

[Guest guest]

I would guess that most buildings have *some* mold in their basements,

somewhere.

That doesn't mean anything. There are HUGE differences in the

situation in different houses.. The thing that will make a building a

'sick building' that makes people ill is chronic water infiltration or

long-term leakage or condensation issues that are not addressed.

The very worst situations usually involve buildings that have water

issues that are not cleaned up, then they dry out for a while, then

they get wet again..

Some buildings need aggressive measures to control humidity because

they were just built wrong or in the wrong place, and without them,

they really will always have problems.

I see a lot of housing these days being built on swampy land that

really should never have been built on because it is very wet. Also,

they use this pressed fake wood that disintegrates when it gets wet..

its made with formaldehyde as well.

If they use wood that has been rained on and into, and not completely

dried out afterward, quickly, then there are also problems. I

constantly see houses being built that are just left open to the rain

and my God, how can they do that and not realize that they are going

to have mold problems.. its almost guaranteed..

The toxinogenic indoor molds mostly require high humidity, (90%) and

time.. (2 weeks or more) to become a serious problem..

If there is a leak inside a wall and its fixed within a few days,

there probably wont be a problem.. But if they let it go for weeks or

months, the problem might end up costing a LOT to fix.. And without it

being cleaned out and all leaks repaired, it just gets worse and

worse..

Take it from someone who knows..

But to find those kind of mold reservoirs, you often have to start

looking inside of walls..

Thats not really feasible in a short house inspection.. unless you are

some kind of expert.