Learn How Moisture Degrades A Building Structure

Learn How We Treat Moisture on Different Types of Materials

Moisture is a home’s worst enemy. It causes mold to form on building materials, which decomposes them over time — resulting in costly damage and potential health issues. It is important to have a basic understanding of how moisture degrades a building’s structure.

How materials react to moisture depends on many factors, such as porosity, permeability, absorption, moisture-holding capacity, evaporation rates, and susceptibility to damage and microbial growth. Although many building materials such as plaster, stucco, and fiberglass are not generally conducive to mold growth, most others are. Below is a list of building materials and how moisture can affect them.

Meet Robert Ky: Company Founder & 31-Year IICRC Certified Mold Removal Expert

Robert Ky, founder of Certified Mold Removal Serving NJ, NY, PA, CT displays his IICRC & MICRO certifications with 31 years of abatement knowledge. — With three decades of certified mold removal expertise, our owner, Robert Ky (IICRC & MICRO Certified), develops complex remediation protocols that safely restore your structural integrity and indoor air quality throughout NJ, NY, PA, and CT.

Mold Remediation Services: How we Treat Each Type of Surface

Brick and Cinderblock: These materials do have high absorption characteristics, however, like concrete, they do not create a favorable growing environment for mold. It is important to make sure all mortar joints are properly tooled to help prevent water absorption. Once brick or cinderblock gets wet, it takes an extended period of time for them to dry out, which can cause mold to form when given the right set of circumstances.
Concrete: Concrete is one of the least predictable materials in the mold remediation industry. Not all concrete is the same. It comes in different thickness’ and some is more porous than others. Due to these variations, it is often unpredictable how concrete will act when moisture is introduced. Concrete does not create a favorable growing environment for mold, however, it will grow, especially when other building materials are in contact with wet concrete.
Drywall / Sheetrock: Drywall is extremely porous, which means it easily absorbs water. It’s an excellent source of food for mold and should be removed whenever left wet for more than 48 hours.
Glass, Plastic, Ceramic and Porcelain: These building materials are non-porous and mold rarely grows on them. However, moisture will often degrade these materials if left for long periods of time.
Metal: Metal building materials such as soffits and metal beams are non-porous, making them less susceptible to mold growth. However they do tend to rust when water is introduced for an extended period of time.
Insulation: Insulation is considered porous, therefore it easily absorbs water and should be replaced, not dried when wet.
Laminate Flooring: While the visible surface of laminated flooring is non-porous and does not invite mold growth, the underside is made of fiberboard and if this gets wet it will deteriorate causing mold growth.
Oriented Strand Board (OSB): OSB is similar to solid wood, therefore when the moisture content exceeds 16%, they should be removed rather than dried.
Particle Board / Fiberboard: These materials easily absorb water causing them to swell and loose their strength. Mold easily forms on these materials, therefore they should be replaced when wet.
Plaster and Stucco: These materials are similar to concrete and in most cases mold can be removed, restoring these surfaces to normal.
Plywood: Plywood is similar to solid wood, therefore when the moisture content exceeds 16%, they should be removed rather than dried.
Solid Wood: Examples are framing, flooring and trim. These materials are considered semi-porous and when the moisture content exceeds 16%, they should be removed rather than dried.
Vinyl Tile (VCT): While these materials are non-porous, meaning they do not absorb water, often water leaks through between the tiles causing trapped moisture below the floor. In these cases it is best to remove the tile to dry down the sub-flooring below.

Meet Thomas Candella: 18 Years IICRC Certified Mold Remediation Supervisor

Thomas Candella, regional mold remediation supervisor Serving NJ, NY, PA, CT displaying his IICRC & MICRO certifications with 18 years of cleanup supervision experience. — Regional mold remediation supervisor Thomas Candella has been directing abatement crews throughout NJ, NY, PA, and CT for 18 years. His IICRC and MICRO training ensures all S520 standards are upheld on every cleanup project.

Mold Removal, Testing, Inspection, and Remediation Services Since 1995

Certified Mold Removal is one of the most established mold inspection, testing, and remediation companies in the tri-state area. Since 1995, we’ve been providing low priced comprehensive service, are certified, licensed and fully insured mold removal specialists. For three decades we’ve been aiding homeowners in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, New York and Connecticut with expert attic, basement, bathroom, kitchen and crawl space mold removal services!

Basement mold remediation will most likely involve the removal and disposal of the affected wall, floor, and ceiling surfaces. Then, we clean and decontaminate all salvageable homeowner contents. HEPA air scrubbing machines are also used to clean up airborne mold issues in your basement, as well as any cross-contaminated rooms in your home.

Bathroom mold removal services quite often involve similar procedures as your basement. Attic mold remediation steps involve taking down and hauling away any contaminated insulation, and treating the affected wood wall, floor, and ceiling surfaces throughout the attic. Kitchen mold removal will often require us to uninstall countertops, disassemble kitchen cabinets and appliances, and remove flooring and ceiling materials. On the other hand, crawl space mold remediation activities will involve the removal of wet, damaged insulation, as well as cleaning and decontaminating your wall and ceiling surfaces throughout.

As you can clearly see, the course of action for each area of your home varies from job to job. What’s important to remember is that at Certified Mold Removal, you have a trusted partner to deal with these issues. So, regardless of where you are in the tri-state area, you can count on us for fast, same-day mold testing and inspection services. With three decades of mold removal, inspection, testing, and remediation experience, you will feel at ease knowing that we are on this problem for you and your family! To see independent reviews from hundreds of our clients, view our Google Business Profile page.

Meet Eric Thoroughman: NJ, NY, PA, and CT IICRC Certified Mold Inspector

IICRC & MICRO certified mold inspection and testing specialist Eric Thoroughman serving NJ, NY, PA, and CT. — Regional mold inspection and testing analyst Eric Thoroughman has been providing accurate IICRC certified assessments to create remediation plans throughout NJ, NY, PA, and CT for 27 years.

CALL NOW FOR SAME DAY MOLD INSPECTION & TESTING SERVICES

Testimonials

Michael W.

The team I had was awesome. They had the job done in half the time and it looks great. All aspects of the job were handled very professionally. All my questions were answered to completeness. Highly recommend.

Debbie T.

This company is the best. Everyone is caring and professional. They were quick to respond. Scheduling was quick. And they helped to ease my worries as one can imagine with mold. Would recommend them in a heartbeat.
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Ila S.

They did a very good job and were very thorough. They were very professional and cleaned up after they were done. They answered any questions I had and it was a pleasant experience working with them. I would highly recommend them and I would definitely hire them again if I needed them.
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Shane M.

Called as I suspected potential mold. They were out the next morning to get it tested. Confirmed a few days later it was bad mold, explained the job and what was next. Worked around my schedule and came on time and completed the work promptly. The section of wall where the mold was looks good as new and the workers were great to deal with. Hopefully I never have to worry about mold again, but will certainly reach out to certified mold removal if I need to.
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George N.

Everything went very smoothly! The inspector was at our house within hours after my first phone call! He was very professional and thorough. Lab results were fast, and we got the phone call promptly, and everything was explained. The remediation was scheduled within days! The crew was out at hour house as scheduled and they were calm and professional. Everything went without any problems. I would have no hesitation to recommend this business to family and friends.
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Lilly Pham

We had a mold problem in out Monmouth County NJ home and called Certified Mold Removal to help us with it. My daughter was getting sick and they came and did mold testing the air in the house to see how bad the mold was. Then they came back and cut out all the mold walls and cleaned everything up before putting it all back again. They did this very good. They also cleaned the air and the air duct vents in our home. Now my daughter is not sick and we are very happy with Certified Mold Removal. Eric Robert and Thomas are all very nice and we would use them again if we have future mold problem. We live in Middletown

Susan Langan

I can’t say enough positives about Certified Mold Removal! Eric is amazing at explaining while he’s inspecting in terms that are both easy to follow (for us non-mold experts) while also displaying his deep knowledge of mold problems. The report that Robert sent us two days later was very through and easy to read. It answered all of the questions my landlord had and was enough to get him to take action to fix my problems. Thank you so much Certified Mold Removal!
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Connie Cherry

I am writing this review because it is refreshing to hire a mold removal company that knows what they are doing and I think they should be commended for it! I contacted Certified Mold Removal after my own exhaustive efforts to handle the slight moldy smell in my bedroom closet failed. I thought that a damp set of shoes I found had caused my problem. After finding mold growing on several pairs of shoes in my closet, I ended up throwing some out but then cleaned a few that had a minimal amount mold with rubbing alcohol and then left them in the sun to air out and dry. Then I had the carpet ripped out and painted the room. After all of this, I could still smell a musty moldy smell in my bedroom.!?! At my wits end, I called in Certified Mold Removal. The mold inspection technician Eric ran some mold testing and found that there were elevated levels of mold in the air and the sample from the back side of the wall found the problem! They then fixed my problem by tearing out the moldy wall and ceiling and by bringing in some large machines that cleaned the mold from my air clean, and I could not be happier! My problem has been solved! Certified Mold Removal are definitely the company to call if you have a mold problem in Bergen County NJ! I strongly give Robert and Eric my highest recommendation!

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Moisture on Building Materials Results