OT Black Mold

kdink

Discovered some black mold in a closet,  Anyone know of best way to treat the problem before the Boss calls the "guy"!

JohnInCarolina

Nuke it from orbit.  It’s the only way to be sure.

RRP

treating the problem is one thing, but first you have to decide why - which typically means water has somehow gotten in the closet! Is that closet on on outside wall? Is it under a roof where an ice dam may have occurred this winter? By chance is there a race behind the wallboard where water pipes are hidden?

alaskanassasin

I agree with Ron, where’s the moisture coming from?

kdink

It's an outside closet with roof, water came in from there.  That has been corrected but need to address the inside.  Hoping not to have to tear out the plaster walls

Eggdicted_Dawgfan

How bad is it? Any pics? If it’s just a small spot then it’s really not a big deal assuming you have definitely fixed moisture issue. Not worthy of a call to the man IMO. Just google search how to remove black surface mold. There are numerous potions. Bleach, vinegar and baking soda would work too. If it’s more than just on the surface you may need to get a little more involved but nothing you can’t handle. 

kdink

@Eggdicted_Dawgfan,

nolaegghead

Put a mask on, sand it while using a vacuum to remove the dust.  Treat with some fungicide, let dry and paint over with some oil based Kilz or equivalent. 

GrateEggspectations

I feel your pain, as I just had some water infiltrate the basement. The pleasures of the first year of ownership of a “new” home. She is revealing her secrets! (For the record, still no ragrets! sic.)

You’ve got this.

paqman

kdink said:

@Eggdicted_Dawgfan,

Looks like a lot, personally I would strip and replace the plaster walls making sure that everything is ok underneath.

Eggdicted_Dawgfan

That looks pretty bad on the surface. If it were me I’d be too curious to see behind there to just cover it up. But your call, what Nola said would likely be completely safe and never cause any issues. Obviously you need to remove that carpet and make sure you kill/remove any mold in the carpet, pad and subfloor. I’m no mold expert so take my comments lightly. 

1voyager

kdink said:

@Eggdicted_Dawgfan,

Sorry for the bad news, but that has to be removed.

I don't have to cut through the sheetrock/plaster to know that the other side is severely deteriorated. The insulation behind it is probably damaged as is the subflooring under the carpet. There may be rot in the surrounding studs. The only way to know for sure is to rip that section out.

Any other repair besides replacement is putting lipstick on a pig.

PBandJ

Spray with bleach and wipe it down. No need to sand it. You’ll just be sending mold spores in the air. If the drywall is solid, use a good stain blocker then paint. If it’s soft, tear it out. And wear a mask.

alaskanassasin

After seeing those pictures I would call the homeowner insurance.

Mattman3969

I would discourage using bleach on mold because once the chlorine evaporates the remaining water will encourage fresh growth of the mold.  

In your case I would remove the wallboard and investigate. 

nolaegghead

If you have an inspection camera you can look inside the wall.  If you fixed the water problem, personally I wouldn't worry about whatever is in the wall.  It will dry out with time.  

Sea2Ski

I am with @1voyager on this only because the house is new to you. You may think you do, but you may not really know how long it has really been going on.  The previous homeowner may have put the “lipstick on the pig” before the sale. Water is tricky and without knowing the entire situation, there may be more than one root cause. 
Depending on how handy you are, you should be able to do it yourself. If you open the wall, it might be bad and you might need to replace the studs and insulation, and sill plate. That is worst case for the repair, but good confirmation that you really fixed the water problem for sure, got rid of all the mold and a piece of mind it was done correctly. Or best case just confirm you just have to replace the drywall.
The fact it is a closet, if you only have to replace the drywall, but you are not good at it will it really matter?  Will you be able to see how good or bad of a job you did one evening goes back in there?  
There is a reason they say, “if you are going to do it, do it right the first time”. I would not mess around with the mold. There are lots of stories out there....  My vote is to do it the right way, and get a piece of mind while doing so.  

kdink

Sea2Ski said:

I am with @1voyager on this only because the house is new to you. 

@Great_EGGspectations that is new to his house.

@alaskanassasin, Homeowners insurance covers mold?

hoosier_egger

Rip it out and replace it. It’s such a small area, it would be quicker and easier than trying to mitigate the mold

nolaegghead

Thirty bucks.  I'll PM an address where you can send a check with all the money you save....

nolaegghead

If you continue to have a problem...then tear out the sheetrock.

There is mold in almost every old house in the walls where there was a leak.  But somehow we are all still alive.

stv8r

I had that in my ceiling when I had a slight water leak.  Black mildew like substance on ceiling joists. Contractor said I needed full blown mold remediation.  Estimated 10-15K.  He then told me in MD I was allowed to act as my own contractor without a permit.  I said thanks and then got a mask and opened up the ceiling.  Sprayed Tilex on the affected areas and let it dry.  A few days later all was good and had another contractor fix the drywall. Never a peep from him as the Tilex did it's job.  Good luck!

Botch

JohnInCarolina said:

Nuke it from orbit.  It’s the only way to be sure.

Oy.  Send me the closet's GPS coordinates and your CC number, I need to cycle the space lasers' amps once more before CA fire season starts again and I think I can get you a discount.  

JohnInCarolina

Botch said:

JohnInCarolina said:

Nuke it from orbit.  It’s the only way to be sure.

Oy.  Send me the closet's GPS coordinates and your CC number, I need to cycle the space lasers' amps once more before CA fire season starts again and I think I can get you a discount.  

RRP

OT, but not really, I suppose...

I just ordered 9 paper bags for my FEIN shop vacuum. When they arrived they had this stern statement.

WARNING: This product can expose you to chemicals and using this product for drilling, sawing, sanding or machining wood, masonry and metal products can expose you to wood, masonry and metal dust; all of which are known to the State of California to cause cancer and birth defects or other reproductive harm. Avoid inhaling wood, masonry and metal dust or use a dusk mask or with safeguards for personal ptotection.

I have to wonder how much FEIN had to pay for this wording!

Mark_B_Good

kdink said:

It's an outside closet with roof, water came in from there.  That has been corrected but need to address the inside.  Hoping not to have to tear out the plaster walls

Is that dry wall? Bud, I'm sorry to say, but you're going to have to remove all that. Likely the mold is behind the wall, into the studs ... now, without water, mold will dry, but I'm not sure I'd want to leave it like that ... besides all sealed up behind that wall could take YEARS for it to dry up even after leak is fixed. 

I think you need to remove all that, spray on mold treatment agent (there's ones that have tea tree oil in them that are good), let it dry, and then apply new dry wall.

Skiddymarker

Concrobium spray is ideal to control mold, <$10 at Home Depot here in the GWN. Can't beat Zinsser Bullseye products to cover it up.