How Do You Know if Your Mold Remediation Contractor is Good?

Wrong Way To Do Mould Remediation

The mould remediation industry in Canada has taken off over the last decade or so. When we started air quality testing, mould inspections and mould testing in the Toronto area there were only a handful of large environmental companies doing mould assessments and only a few asbestos contractors dealing with mould removal. Toronto has seen a huge spike in contractors willing to do mould removal…many don’t know what they are doing.

Just yesterday we were called in by one of our residential clients in the Toronto area that was concerned about how the mould growth in his basement was being removed by a contractor hired by his landlord.

I have been doing air quality assessments and mould inspection in the GTA for about 18 years, never have I seen a worse mould remediation contractor like this.

The mould removal contractor was cleaning up mould growth in the basement bathroom and kitchen area. None of his workers was wearing the proper Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) needed to protect themselves. In fact, one worker was wearing anything at all, another had on her own clothing and just a half-face respirator, the third had a disposable suit and no respiratory.

The containment meant to protect the unaffected areas of the home from travelling mould spores was even worse! They had a partial mould containment in the bathroom, but it had a large opening where personnel and mould spores could come and go as they please. The kitchen where mould was being removed from a wall, had absolutely no containment.

THIS WAS EXACTLY THE WAY NOT TO REMOVE MOULD GROWTH!

If you’re having mould growth issues or having a contractor in to remove mould growth make sure you do the following to protect you, your family and your home.

1. Have a mould inspection done to figure out if you have mould, how severe is the mould issue, where is the mould located and what it the mould remediation scope of work to properly and safely remove it.
2. Make sure the contractor properly and fully sealed off the area that has the mould from other portions of the home that have not been affected by mould. Mould spores can be aerosolized from the affected area and cause secondary mould growth damage somewhere else in the home or building if these precautions are not taken.
3. Make sure the contractor and all their staff are properly trained and certified. Either IICRC or ACAC certification for specifically mould remediation.
4. Make sure the contractor is properly insured to do the work.
5. Most importantly, after the mould remediation has been completed, have a Mould Remediation Clearance Assessment performed to make sure the contractor did the work as intended and that airborne mould spore activity is normal again.

If you have any doubts that the mould removal contractor in your home does not meet any of these above standards and requirements to be able to perform proper and professional mould inspection Mississauga, Toronto, Oakville, Burlington…then give us a call.