Remediation: What to Look For, What to Ask & Expectations

In this episode, we discuss Michael’s journey to understanding how mold can affect health and why he got into the remediation industry. Once he realized the problem, he did his best to fix it with HomeCleanse and a book, The Mold Medic, to help others learn how to properly remediate. 

Three main issues most remediation companies don’t address are: 

1. Removing mold by the root. Partially treating a mold colony will allow it to just grow back. Fogging, in particular, does not work. We go over the various details as to why.
2. Treating every mold source in the house, not just the original one. Mold spores can easily travel in a home’s air current and settle anywhere else that there’s moisture. That leads to multiple mold hotspots, not just one. 
3. Clean up all contaminates from mold growth, including byproducts. These bacteria and toxins can also cause adverse health effects and need to be dealt with. 

Completing remediation while missing these steps will lead to a continuation of any side effects from mold exposure. We also discuss the importance of creating pressure conditions that do not further contaminate the rest of the house during remediation treatments. 

A great suggestion for finding the right remediation company for the job is to tell them you’re highly sensitive to mold. That way, they’ll begin to weed themselves out if they’re not properly equipped to handle the job. 

We go over how far a remediation team should go to properly treat a wall with mold, including analyzing where the leak came from. While it costs a bit more money, it’s much more thorough and helps ensure the job gets done correctly the first time. 

Testing can go a long way to determining the extent of a mold problem. It creates a roadmap to determine which areas (if any)  need to be tackled first, what the baseline levels are to compare to after treatment, and what exactly is even in the home. 

Give a listen below!

About Elizabeth and Emily:
Elizabeth has traveled the world and returned to receive her Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology, followed by receiving her teaching credential. She taught for 7 years, before becoming a stay-at-home mom; to two beautiful miracle baby girls. Her family knows the consequences of toxic mold firsthand. She is one of the founders of Malachi’s Message. She also serves in the capacity of Executive Director.

Emily studied Journalism in Austin, TX. before she found her passion in helping people build and or customize their perfect home. She loved everything about real estate, that is until she and her family became victims to their home’s toxic indoor environment. Her family suffered greatly and lost their second son Malachi. He inspires her to help people the way she wished someone could have helped them. She and her husband Josh, since their mold exposure, have dedicated their lives to helping mold victims through their company Texas Mold Inspectors in the Houston, TX area. She is also one of the founders of Malachi’s Message and serves in the capacity of Board Chair.

About Michael Rubino
Michael Rubino, Author of The Mold Medic: An Expert’s Guide on Mold Removal, is the authority on mold remediation. As President of HomeCleanse, Rubino specializes in working with people who are immunocompromised or have acute and sustained reactions to mold exposure. Rubino provides solutions that not only get rid of mold sources, but also get rid of the contamination created by those mold sources using his proprietary “Home Detox” method. He is a council certified Mold Remediator by IICRC and ACAC and a contributing member, sponsor, and speaker for the Indoor Air Quality Association.