Careless Mold Remediation: Neglected Precautions Led to Risk of Airborne Contamination
We hired a mold remediation professional for our basement, expecting them to be thorough and careful, especially since they charged three times more than a contractor for demolition alone. My primary concern was preventing the spread of mold to other areas of the house, particularly the first and second floors where we live, and keeping our living spaces clean.
Unfortunately, when I checked the work around 1 PM (they started at 9 AM), I found several issues that were concerning. Although there was a plastic seal at the basement entrance, it was hanging wide open when I arrived, with no one going up or down the stairs at the time. This was alarming because it defeated the purpose of having the seal to begin with.
As I went further into the basement, I noticed that none of the vent holes were sealed, despite the fact that sealing them is supposed to be the first step to protect other areas of the house, according to their own guidelines. By the time I checked, they had already demolished the bathroom. Although they had sealed the gap inside the bathroom (where the insurance company had cut the drywall 1 foot from the bottom in the adjacent furnace room, leaving a large gap along the walls), they left the bathroom door wide open.
and right outside the bathroom door, I found that the rest of the gap in the wall was left unsealed. This rendered their work inside the bathroom pointless, as debris and dust could easily enter the furnace room through the unsealed gaps.
The fact that the vents and door remained wide open throughout the process made me very angry because preventing mold from spreading upstairs was my top priority. Overall, it felt like they cared a little, but not nearly enough. In the end, hiring this company seemed pointless, especially considering the cost was three times higher than just hiring a contractor for demolition.
Additionally, we encountered a tricky situation regarding the dehumidification. When the representative spoke with my husband about the quote, my husband distinctly remembers being told that the job included 24-hour dehumidification. I even called to confirm this before deciding to proceed, and I was assured that they would dehumidify for 24 hours and continue if necessary until the basement was dry. However, this was not written in the contract, which we overlooked. In the end, the representative claimed he never said that, and we must have remembered incorrectly, which was very frustrating.
I don't have much time to constantly check their work, but their careless attitude makes me doubt how careful they are in doing the job. Since mold isn't always visible, it's hard to tell if they've thoroughly removed and cleaned it. I can only hope they did, though the space did look quite clean after they left. However, this still needs to be verified.
- Approximate cost of services:
- $3,785.00
- Company Response
Hello, We are extremely sorry that you believe the work was done in inappropriate manner.
The original site walkthrough we did, the area was already pre cut by your previous contractor/insurance as per the conversation on site. The area was pre cut with the molded drywall and left on the basement area, all uncovered, We cleaned up the left over debris in the main living space area and treated the exposed concrete for the mold and a respective exposed areas. Your concern of the vent being covered could of been with the previous contractor release of spores. During our application in the common area it was sealed closed during spray down and clean up. In regards to the bathroom demolition, the bottom half of the drywall cut by others was completely sealed off by our team as well as along with the upper higher cavity of the ceiling where the ceiling tiles were removed. The concern with the exterior opening of the wall outside the demolition area of the bathroom is invalid, as there was a zipper door with 6 mil dust proof poly along with the room door being closed, under HEPA filtered negative air machines, there were no unsealed gaps from the area of demolition to your furnace, only time such concern can be raised, it was when your other contractor made the cuts on the drywall.
In regards to the discussion with your husband on site there was not at anytime a mention of any dehumidifier being placed on site post removal of building materials, HEPA units were ran during all procedure and all areas of mold removed and cleaned, at no time also anything over the phone was mentioned, as we back tracked our calls and had not had any conversation over the phone in regards to the dehumidifier post removal, as humidity and mold was removed, they should been placed on site when water was first in and sitting around. Further review with office staff over the phone, emails or text messages, there were no such mention to you or your husband.
Lastly, I am sorry that you felt that way and believe you needed to check on our teams work and believe to know more on procedures needed to be taken for mold removal. We strive on hardworking and integrity and it has showcased in our 15+ years in business. We believe the statement of procedure mentioned is unfair to the work provided.Best Regards and wish you well
AMC Team