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  1. #1
    Bob Spermo's Avatar
    Bob Spermo Guest

    Default Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    I have a client that wants a mold evaluation done. Anyone that is interested and is a Texas licensed mold assessment consultant/technician let me know.

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  2. #2
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  3. #3

    Default Re: Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    Good morning, Bob:

    Not wishing to intentionally stir the pot, but that is just how this shakes out…

    The Texas mould regulations have become a laughing stock and the “professionals” it has produced is such a joke as to have entered an whole realm of silliness that is still unsurpassed in this nation. I’m going to pick on Rick's recommended consultant in a minute and demonstrate why the recommended consultant is an example of a poorly trained consultant and is in violation of the Texas regs, but first I’m going to pick on the Texas regs themselves.

    Although there are hundreds, here is just one example of the completely silly situation created by the unenforceable Texas regs. According to the Texas regs, a regular old carpet cleaning company who is going to clean greater than 25 square feet of carpet MUST be licensed and registered as a mould remediator and follow ALL the rules in the regs (including the establishment of a containment and clearance, etc) since carpets typically contain contiguous mould contamination between 10,000 and 100,000 CFUs/g of removable debris and those mould fragments and constituents can potentially affect the indoor air, the mould in the carpet therefore meets the Texas definition of “Indoor Mold” contamination (See Chapter 1958 §295.302(17)). Since the carpet cleaners are conducting “The removal, cleaning, sanitizing, demolition, or other treatment, including preventive activities, of mold or mold-contaminated matter that was not purposely grown at a location.” (§295.302(26)), they are involved in activities that meet the Texas Definition of “Mold Remediaiton.”

    Now, by the way, if a Mould Assessor who also happens to do mould remediation decides to never perform any mould assessments or remediation for projects in excess of 24 square feet, then that consultant can hammer away willy-nilly without licensing since according to §295.303 (b) A person is not required to be licensed under this subchapter to perform mold remediation in an area in which the mold contamination for the project affects a total surface area of less than 25 contiguous square feet.

    HUH? (Y’all)

    It gets worse the more you read... By the way, did y’all know that in Texas, attics and crawlspaces don’t contain indoor air? I'm not joking... Just read paragraph §295.302(16) of Chapter 1958 of the Occupations Code, if y’all don’t believe me.

    Oh – and by the way, since there is no indoor air in a crawlspace, and mould contamination is only that contamination that can affect indoor air, then any assessments of mould in a crawlspace (no matter how big) and any subsequent remediation, is not covered by the Texas regs, and anyone can do it without a license – same applies to attics. OK - makes sense to me ... when I'm drunk... REALLY drunk.

    The more one reads the Texas regs, the more apparent it becomes why no professional organizations supported the regs, and every legitimate mould expert in Texas whom I know refused to comply with the regs and refuses to become licensed.

    Now, onto Rick’ recommendation: Alamo Fire and Water Restoration (who is completely unknown to me, but I’m sure they are very nice people).

    According to Texas regulations, licensed mould guys shall:

    295.304 (11) not make any false, misleading, or deceptive claims, or claims that are not readily subject to verification, in any advertising, announcement, presentation, or competitive bidding;

    and…

    295.304 (12) not make a representation that is designed to take advantage of the fears or emotions of the public or a customer;

    OK – Let’s look at Alamo’s web site:

    Are there particular molds that are more toxic than others?
    Yes. There are 10 toxic molds in particular that you should be aware of.


    Ooopsies… two violations in one sentence. Violation Number 1, there is no such thing as toxic mould – the statement cannot be readily verified (cuz it aint true) and Violaiton Number 2, the only reason to say things like that (that aren’t true) is take advantage of people’s fears. So let’s look at the Alamo toxic mould list, and we see the page is rife with myths, misconceptions, and just plain WRONG and misleading information. For example:

    Stachybotrys sp. - Considerable recent media attention has been focused on the fungi Stachybotrys chartum due to infant deaths in Cleveland from pulmonary hemosiderosis which may be associated with contamination of residences with this fungi.

    Really? The “recent” article was 1994 and somehow Alamo neglected to mention that the study implicating the mould in question was RETRACTED by the CDC in March of 2000 after two international review groups found no support for the conclusions in the original study; in their final report on the issue of “toxic mould” as the cause of the infant deaths, the CDC concluded:

    Both groups of reviewers concluded that the available evidence does not substantiate the reported epidemiologic associations—between household water damage and AIPH or between household fungi and AIPH —or any inferences regarding causality.

    Did Alamo just sort of forget to put that in their web discussion? Or was it intentionally left out, because it would tend to reduce the fear of the reader? I'm just asking, I'm sure it was an innocent mistake - just like Tim Geithner's honest little tax mistake.

    And how about something a little more recent (but still old), such as the position statement by the American College of Occupational and Environmental Medicine who, in November 2002, issued a peer reviewed Evidence Based Statement, wherein they made the observation that:

    ...years of intensive study have failed to establish exposure to S. chartarum in home, school, or office environments as a cause of adverse human health effects.

    Sorry – Alamo’s statement’s are in stark contrast to facts, science, toxicology, epidemiology and the Texas regulations-

    Rick – I’m not picking on you, heck, I’m not even picking on Alamo – just calling it like it is.

    I could go on about the Texas regulations – but suffice to say they became a laughing stock – which is why no other state is stumbling over themselves to use them as a template. The Texas Mold Assessment and Remediation Rules are an outstanding embarrassment to the good people of Texas, and have done nothing to promote professionalism, or knowledge, or competency or in any way protect the Texas consumer or public helath. – Just look at Alamo!

    But that’s just me, here at 9,000 feet, where the air is a little thin, and possibly effects the grey matter a bit…

    Cheers!
    Caoimh*n P. Connell
    Forensic Industrial Hygienist
    Forensic Industrial Hygiene

    (The opinions expressed here are exclusively my personal opinions and do not necessarily reflect my professional opinion, opinion of my employer, agency, peers, or professional affiliates. The above post is for information only and does not reflect professional advice and is not intended to supercede the professional advice of others.)

    AMDG


  4. #4
    Join Date
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    Default Re: Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    Quote Originally Posted by Caoimh*n P. Connell View Post
    Now, by the way, if a Mould Assessor who also happens to do mould remediation decides to never perform any mould assessments or remediation for projects in excess of 24 square feet, then that consultant can hammer away willy-nilly without licensing since according to §295.303 (b) A person is not required to be licensed under this subchapter to perform mold remediation in an area in which the mold contamination for the project affects a total surface area of less than 25 contiguous square feet.

    Caoimh*n,

    Question for you based on the above:

    If I were a carpet cleaner and went in and cleaned 10,000 square feet of carpet in 5' x 5' squares, leaving 1" of uncleaned carpet between those 25 square foot squares, would I not be qualified to clean the entire area as the square footage was not contiguous? Then, as I was through, because 10,000 sq feet would take a while to clean, I would only need to clean that 1" strip between the squares, resulting in me cleaning 10,000 sf ft with no need to be licensed in mold, right?

    Jerry Peck
    Construction/Litigation/Code Consultant - Retired
    www.AskCodeMan.com

  5. #5

    Default Re: Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    Jerry-

    I love the way you think.

    Will you prepare my taxes for me?

    Cheers!
    Caoimh*n


  6. #6
    Join Date
    Mar 2007
    Location
    Fletcher, NC
    Posts
    28,032

    Default Re: Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    Actually, I thought about running two machines bumper to bumper which would 'not clean' a fraction of an inch between the two machines, then, when done, the carpet would have been 'effectively all cleaned' even though 'technically not all was cleaned' because of that fraction of an inch, and I would give a discount off the price to reflect it - presuming that fraction is 1/8", then that would be 0.1 sf 'not cleaned' per 25 sf 'cleaned', or 40 sf total 'not cleaned' for a 0.4% discount off the total price.

    Thereby saving the trip back to clean the 1" stripes (which would 'effectively have been cleaned' anyway ).

    Jerry Peck
    Construction/Litigation/Code Consultant - Retired
    www.AskCodeMan.com

  7. #7
    Bob Spermo's Avatar
    Bob Spermo Guest

    Default Re: Need a Mold Assessment - San Antonio

    Caoimhin,

    Thanks for the reply. I knew there was reason I have stayed completely away from any mold issues! My client is a remodeler who is doing a church member a favor because she is a little on the fruity side. She is convinced her apartment is overrun by mold and to "fix" it she has sealed off all of air conditioning ducts/registers. Obviously the perfect solution for getting moisture out of your house! I told the remolder that I could not find a reputable mold assessor.


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