QR Code Link to This Post
Welcome to the CL version of MoldHackers.com, your local mold-inspection, testing, air & surface-sampling company offering the lowest mold-sampling prices guaranteed, with next day results using only the latest technology available! We are NOT involved with the remediation process to avoid the rampant conflict of interest created by companies doing so, (a practice illegal in 7 states so far, but not yet in VA or MD) If this is your first time getting an inspection, we cannot urge you enough to use a company NOT involved in the remediation process for this reason. Our company offers unbiased mold-testing and next-day 3rd-party Lab Results with only the latest technology available to collect air and surface samples, including the use of moisture meters & FLIRâ„¢ Infrared Thermal Imaging cameras to detect moisture breeding deadly mold spores inside your walls, floors & ceiling cavities, around windows and door frames & wherever heat or A/C is being lost through uninsulated HVAC ducts & creates condensation for mold to use as its water source.
In a hurry or emergency? Call or Text w questions til 10pm (after-hours texts are answered promptly!) or to Schedule your Appt: (571) 278-8319
Air Sampling is performed to show us ALL the mold varieties in your home and at what levels they are being produced indoors when compared to your outside control sample, to indicate if they are, in fact, growing inside your home, or are just normal levels that come inside every time you go in and out. Your Certified Lab Report is a legal document that will show you how many spores of each mold type per cubic meter are in each area tested. It will also show whether your IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) is above or below a healthy level & will decide whether remediation is recommended or not, (because there are ALWAYS many types of airborne spores outside, as you'll see in your control sample results.)
You may not need an expensive remediation, even if visible mold is noted by a home inspector. No one can legally identify mold simply by looking at it. There are over 147,000 mold species of all colors and consistencies that give off carcinogenic mycotoxin gasses. It is our job to determine whether or not any are growing inside your property, possibly making your indoor air dangerously toxic to breathe, slowly breaking down your immune system & other unhealthy conditions that cause a myriad of different symptoms that vary based on the patient's genetics.
(If you have visible growth or respiratory-type symptoms, it may seem obvious right off the bat, but even in those cases, testing will legally & scientifically document which majority mold types are going airborne, how toxic the mycotoxins they produce are, specific symptoms common to those species, and therefore the best way to eradicate the indoor growth once and for all, by putting a stop to the moisture source that started supporting its growth, before physically eradicating the mold in such a way that will keep it from returning, guaranteed in writing! (Hopefully, this is well before any serious medical problems impair you or your loved ones.) We can take air samples from inside wall cavities too, by taking off an electrical socket plate and sliding an air-collection tube between the socket-box and the drywall, to avoid drilling any holes, whenever possible. When sockets aren't convenient, we'll caulk up any (1/4") holes made for testing purposes so you won't be exposed to whatever may be growing inside.
The gaseous mycotoxins mold gives off through its metabolization process are colorless and odorless, and are what ultimately make us sick from mold, not the spores themselves we breathe in every day indoors and out. Spores themselves are (mostly) harmless (aside from a few exceptions like the killer "black mold" aka Stachybotrys Chartarum you may have heard of in the news). The point is many thousands are always present indoors and out all year during all seasons, but so long as they're not growing inside your home's open-air where mycotoxins become trapped inside with you, (much like being in a garage with a running car) they are generally harmless, aside from the few who are allergic or have asthma or other respiratory conditions, (people can develop asthma from mold exposure too!).
Stachybotrys Chartarum, (black mold) gives off Trichothecene among 7 other mycotoxins that attack the immune system, usually starting with symptoms like lethargy, headaches, loss of hair, dementia, lymphoma, (the list goes on and on, and they change over time greatly depending on the victim's genes) ultimately resulting in death if ignored long enough, and often misdiagnosed by doctors as Lyme disease, or other conditions with similar symptoms. If we do find high levels, you can be medically tested for mycotoxin exposure by a doctor via a Mycotox-Screen Test. Few MDs are familiar with mycotox testing, and they might just refer you to a toxicologist wasting time and money in the process.. (In these cases we can send you a link to order a Mycotox Screen Test that you can fwd to your GP.) Regardless of who gets you tested, the sooner you find out the toxin types and levels in your system, the sooner and safer you can begin treatment to flush them out of your system. Your lab report will also have a list of mycotoxins for each mold type that you can cross-reference with your medical results to see which molds they came from, and therefore the area in your home, office or classroom they came from.
Next business day results, as time is of the essence where one's health is concerned!
Direct surface swabs are used to collect visible growth samples that will tell us exactly whether it is of a highly toxic mold variety or not, or possibly the worst of the worst, (the "black mold" aka Stachybotrys Chartarum), which is quite common indoors after water-intrusion, and could be harming your respiratory system. We can recommend an honest remediation company when needed.
Companies advertising to do both testing & remediation will often go so far as to tell you can't even be present for the remediation "for your own safety", so you won't see that there is no mold hidden inside your walls when they open them up to replace them. This is a HUGE RED FLAG! A proper remediator will encapsulate the affected area within the property to avoid any further spread, so unless the entire property is affected, you can often stay home throughout the remediation.
We will be by your side throughout the process to answer any questions and give you advice anytime you need it, to help you with the best plan of attack, how to remediate mold yourself when safe to do so, depending on the area affected. (The EPA says homeowners can safely remediate mold on their own if the area is 9'x9' or less, so long as they wear the proper protective gear, like Tyvek suits, N95-or better masks, latex gloves & goggles, etc.
If there is a mold problem, the results report from our AIHA-Accredited Lab will confirm it, along with whether the property is safe for habitation if the affected areas can't be otherwise avoided by sealing them off. Results are also CONFIDENTIAL between our co and our clients. We won't share them without your written consent.
Scheduling: Feel free to contact us anytime at the number above with no obligation whatsoever, or email us using the CL-email relay button at the top left of this page to set up an appt with your preferred day & time, address & phone #, and we will confirm the desired time slot's availability, or answer any questions you may have. (Due to real-estate closings that can come up quickly, we will do our best to work early, late, or even on weekends, for your convenience & work schedule.)
Please make sure that at least your zip code and preferred day/time is included in any digital messages so we can figure out travel time to reach your property. We are a small family-owned company that prides itself on honesty and integrity above all else, and believe in word of mouth advertising above all other media!