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Hurricanes and
Mould
Problems
[Aug. 28, 2003]
Q. About 10
months ago, a hurricane devastated the area where we live in south
Louisiana. We had water damage to our home. Wind driven rain
entered our home through the weep holes in the outside brick of
the house. About a week after the hurricane, we began to smell a
musty smell coming from an outlet located on the outside wall on
the South side of our house. We talked to several professionals
about mould. One person told us that if the water source was
eliminated, mould will not grow. We were also told if we did not
see mould on the interior wall (meaning in the room) mould should
not be present. Were these men correct in telling us this
information? We never did see any evidence of mould, other than
the musty smell.
A.
If mould growth runs out of water for growth, it will go dormant
just waiting for future water availability. In Louisiana,
hurricanes often create massive mould infestation problems, but
so does the
high Louisiana humidity, which alone is usually sufficient for indoor mould
growth in Louisiana or anywhere else in the Gulf Coast. Even the smell of dormant mould can make
mould-sensitive people sick. Just because you cannot see mould
does not mean your home is mould-safe. The worst Louisiana mould is mould
hidden INSIDE walls, ceilings, floors, crawl spaces, basements,
attics, and heating cooling equipment and ducts. Your first step
in mould diagnosis is to mould test the air of your of all of
the air of your basement, crawl space, attic, all rooms, and the
outward air flow from all heating/cooling duct registers for the
possible presence of elevated levels of airborne mould spores, in
comparison to an outdoor mould control test. Alternatively, you
can hire a Certified Mold Professional to thoroughly do entire
home mold inspection and mold testing. Please visit
Certified Mould Inspectors. |
