Attic mold question

[Mike Lins]

Hello All,


My name is Mike. I'm new to the forum and a new home owner. I have a rather odd situation and am in need of a little advice.


Last December we had a record rain event where we live. Due to the excessive runoff, we ended up with 4-5 inches of water under the house, in the crawlspace area. I used a sump pump to pump most of it out, but was unable to get the last inch out, so I let it evaporate out on its own. Long story short...I believe my heating system pumped all that warm moist air into my attic through some 3-in ducts that were left over from a couple old floor furnaces that had been removed. Roof was cold and it all sweated on backs of the roof decking and 1X4's and causes some spotty green mold in certain sections of the roof.

I've been in the attic prior to this event and I know for certain this is new growth and that tere are no leaks in my roof. I plan on having a guy come out soon and wire brush and vacuum the mold spots off. I do have two gable vents and plan on getting some box vents installed to help ventillation and prevent a future event.

What else do you guys recommend I do to prevent this mold from returning? It's a 75 year old house and until now, my ventilation has been sufficient as to not have a mold problem. What other preventative measures should I do to prevent future occurrences? I'm afraid the mold might return later since the spores might be embedded in the wood rafters.


Thanks!IMG_5375.jpgIMG_5378.jpg

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[Brian Hannigan]

Hi Mike Lins and welcome to InspectionNews!

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[Raymond Wand]

More info required.

1. Is there a vapour barrier installed under the insulation in attic?
2. Open soffit and roof vents?
3. Dirt floor in crawlspace? Perimeter vents? Good site drainage?
4. Any exhaust fans terminated in attic?

Without more info it is most likely that moisture is moving from the crawlspace up through house and into the attic. Mould thrives on food source (wood/cellulose), moisture, and proper temps.

I would avoid letting anyone use a wire brush to remove mould. Why? Because it will just distribute mould spores, and you must correct the conditions creating favourable mould conditions. The best method to remove mould from surface is dry ice method.

There are many posts and answers on this forum.
If you do a search for 'mold in attic' you will get several hits which will aid you further. Here are two strings from this forum asking the same question as you have.

http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_i...ht=attic+mould

http://www.inspectionnews.net/home_i...ht=attic+mould