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there was a roof leak (we let it leak for 25 years because we don't get much rain anyway), and the bedroom smells like wet cardboard and mild scent of cigars.
it's gotta be coming from behind the drywall
in order to check where it's coming from, I need PPE when I break open the walls and ceiling
but every retailer has donated their entire stock of PPE, so the construction industry has none left.
Hmm. The excuse for letting the leak continue that long sounds just as rational as the excuse that you can't investigate. You are assuming based on a smell. Not all mold smells. Not all mold is hazardous, but 25 years of water intrusion isn't a good thing for your house. Did it occur to you that a professional remediation company would be able to evaluate, maybe even repair your problem and already have the necessary PPE necessary to do so? Three birds with one stone...I'd call that a win!
My cousin is a Professional Engineer and runs an environmental laboratory specializing in asbestos. He is also a state licensed mold inspector which is very rare. And every commercial building sold in Texas requires a mold study completed--a license to steal.
I'm saying you may have trouble finding a really good mold abatement company that doesn't cost a fortune. A Professional Engineer is an expensive inspector--if you can even find one.
I would get up there and tear out what you suspect is covering up the past leak. If mold is present it can be seen. Often you would just tear up and replace the problem area and fix the roof leak. If you're not comfortable, find yourself a good carpenter do the tear out. You can find mildewcides and mold removal liquids at Dollar General and Home Depot/Lowes.
Depending on what you find, many molds can often be eradicated by tenting off the area and running an inexpensive ozone generator for 3 hours. Just make sure no people or animals are in the house. I have one and it does wonders on odors.
By the way, my engineer cousin specializes in taking water samples from hospitals where legionaires disease comes out of stubbed off pipes after walls were moved or removed. His latest racket is environmental inspections and doing cultures in businesses, offices and restaurants. This will be a big profit maker in the near future for liability's sake after Corovid 19 problems.
And if you ever are going to sell the property, you keep your mouth shut.
The house I purchased recently had mold on the subfloor below the master bath shower. It was "cultured" marble. I negotiated a $3K settlement to deal with the problem.
I popped off the marble, applied thinset in cracks and Redgarded everything in sight. Leak solved. Bleach will rid the mold. I came out $2950 ahead on the deal.
Second. You try to figure out, once things dry out, whether you've still got the stink problem or not.
Third. You open up walls or whatever, dry out what remains wet, clean moldy surfaces with straight Clorox bleach. Let everything dry out.
Fourth. Close up whatever you opened up and patch and re-paint.
No big deal. Really.
If you've been living in a place with moldy/mildewy stink for years, you won't need the full hazmat suit to fix what's wrong.
Honestly I can't decide what's worse the asbestos hysteria or the mold hysteria.
After stopping the water problem. I lost about 500 books and the family room furniture to mold.
After stopping the water problem. I lost about 500 books and the family room furniture to mold.
Sounds like you're insinuating that if you "hadn't" stopped the water problem you wouldn't have lost "about 500 books and the family room furniture..."(?)
That's not what I meant. I, we, didn't use the room and it was stuffed with mold food. End of story.
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