Nobody likes the look or smell of mold. Even if it was a harmless aesthetic problem, it would be well worth the investment to hire a mold inspecting company in order to figure out how to get rid of your mold problem. Unfortunately, household mold is much more than just ugly. It can be dangerous in multiple ways, especially to populations that are somehow immunocompromised or already have a respiratory disease.
It is also quite common for people to have mold allergies, and even if you don’t have a particular sensitivity to mold, it is well known that having mold in your house can cause you to sneeze, cough, and even stay up at night with an irritated throat. Mold can also be dangerous for people who have diseases like Lyme disease or CIRS, as it can make the symptoms of those conditions worse. Other reasons for getting a mold inspection include getting a house ready to sell or rent to new tenants, or if you are just tired of being embarrassed by the mold problem you’ve been facing in your home. It is best to go ahead and take steps like hiring an inspector as soon as you start to notice mold in your home, as mold will only get worse and harder and more expensive to deal with the longer you wait to take aggressive action. Also, having mold may mean that you have other problems in your house, like leaking pipes or a rotting foundation, and trying to address the mold problem will help you discover those other problems and save you money and time in the long run.
Whatever the reason for getting a mold inspection, it’s very important that you choose the right company and inspector to do the job for you. Some inspectors don’t do their due diligence in finding the real source and extent of the mold problem, while others will take too long or do unnecessary things to drive up the bill they can charge you for. At Termiguard services, you can trust that our mold inspectors are licensed and certified, highly professional, and extremely knowledgeable in their field of work. But whether or not you choose to work with Termiguard to address your mold problem, you should know a few things to evaluate any mold inspector on.
Signs of a Good Mold Inspector
Lab Testing
You may have reached out to a mold inspector because of mold you can see and smell in your own home, but the problem may go beyond what you can sense with your naked eye and without special training. That’s why it is crucial for any mold inspector you hire to have access to lab testing, and for them to be willing to share a lab report with you about the mold that they sample in your home.
Most good mold inspectors will want to take either air or physical samples in your home. This involves them taking a sample from the air or from growth itself in order for them to send it to a lab for analysis. By doing this, inspectors can be sure exactly what type of mold you are dealing with. Air samples in a house with a mold problem can also help provide a spore count, which will help you and the inspector understand the extent of your mold problem.
You should only ever hire inspectors who use third-party lab results. Although some mold lab tests can be conducted on-site, the best accuracy and thoroughness can only be achieved by shipping off the sample to an independent lab and waiting for them to send it back with a full report. It is also best if the mold inspector uses a third-party lab to test the samples because this helps avoid a conflict of interest — you can feel confident that a lab result is true when the lab itself doesn’t benefit from there being or not being a certain type or amount of mold in your home.
Certifications
One of the most important qualities in a mold inspector is the certifications they have. At Termiguard, all of our mold inspectors are certified by NORMI (National Organization of Remediators and Mold Inspectors), and you really should not work with inspectors who do not have a certification from this organization. Because NORMI is specifically dedicated to licensing and regulating mold inspection and remediation, it is the gold-standard certification to have in this line of work. Only hire inspectors who can prove to you that they have been approved by NORMI, and that will go a long way to justifying your trust in them. NORMI does not certify inspectors who are likely to cheat you or do not know what they are doing.
Reviews
Much like hiring other household services, it’s important to look at the reviews for a company or individual inspector before hiring them to do a mold inspection. You should look for reviews about things like timeliness, thoroughness, value, and honesty. It is important to trust your mold inspector because they will be giving you information that you may not have the expertise to independently verify on your own. Usually, if there is a mold inspector who is prone to exaggerating or misleading their customers, you should be able to find some mention of this kind of thing in online reviews. Testimonials from real customers on the company’s website are a great resource, but if you want to be extra sure, verify with the external reviews of the company on a website like Yelp or Google.
Breadth of Expertise
This article has so far drawn your attention to many factors which are important to evaluate how good at inspecting any given mold inspector actually is. But it may also be important to know what they can do outside of the mold inspection. The actual process of getting rid of a mold problem is called mold remediation, and at Termiguard we are experts at both inspection and remediation.
At Termiguard, we are happy to conduct inspections whether you use our remediation services or not, as well as vice-versa. You should be wary of inspection providers which only offer inspection and remediation together, as there is the possibility of a conflict of interest there. You should see whether your inspector is happy to provide you with multiple referrals to different remediators. If so, it may be a bonus that they themselves also provide remediation, as it may indicate further expertise on the topic of household mold in general.
Free Consultations
Any good mold inspector should be willing to give you a free consultation so that you know what you’re getting into before you purchase an inspection. Prices will often vary depending on the size of your property and the likely scale of the mold problem, so it’s good to get a rough estimate of the cost beforehand. At Termiguard, we always are happy to provide a free consultation via phone before a mold inspection, with no pressure to purchase.
General Tips
When looking for the right mold inspection company, it can be useful to search the topic on review sites for initial ideas of which one might be the best in your area. Another good way to find a reputable mold inspector is to talk to a general contractor or another service provider whom you already trust and have a relationship with. These types of providers will often know of several mold inspection options which you can trust to be affordable and effective. In general, it’s very important to ensure that your mold inspector will be thorough. Other than lab testing and NORMI certifications, you should ask how long the inspection will take, whether they plan to go in your crawl space or basement, and what type of tools they usually use. The answers to these questions will help a lot in determining how serious the mold inspectors are about their work.
Next Steps
Once you’ve had the inspection, you may not need to do anything if the inspector doesn’t find any widespread mold or moisture problems. In the event that you do need to take action, though, a lot of these same steps will be useful in helping you find a mold remediation specialist. Termiguard does offer both inspection and remediation, but feel free to shop around to other remediation services once you have had your inspection. We feel confident that we provide the best remediation in the area, but we are happy to help you address your mold problem in any way that you wish.
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