Mold Removal & Control in Commercial Facility in Neptune
Challenge
We were sent out to a commercial warehouse in Neptune, NJ to handle a mold problem. Upon inspection, we confirmed that there was significant mold growth on the interior side of an exterior foundation concrete wall. This wall was built below grade (ground level), so it is often surrounded by water-saturated soil. With the level of annual rainfall and snow in New Jersey, along with a high water table, the level at which the soil is completely saturated with water, our residential and commercial structures are surrounded by dangerous, property-damaging groundwater throughout most of the year. With this building, groundwater had slowly trickled through the porous concrete, eventually causing mold growth on the inside wall.
Mold is a living, breathing fungus. To grow, it requires excess water or moisture, air, and some organic material as a food source. We often find mold growth on processed wood, especially ceiling tiles and drywall. However, as we saw here in this warehouse, mold can also readily grow on inorganic material like concrete, even though it is not, in and of itself, a food source. How can mold grow on something like concrete that is made of non-living material like gravel and sand? The simple one-word answer is dust. For mold, even small, microscopic quantities of dust are a sufficient food source. Dust can be made up of virtually anything that can be broken down into particles small enough to be moved around by air current. Dust can include a variety of materials, including some which are organic, like plant pollen, spores of molds and other fungi, dissolved insect fragments and waste, and wildlife animal hairs. In residential homes, dust can include animal dander from pets and even flaked-off dead human skin. The accumulated dust on concrete wall surfaces provides more than enough organic material for mold to grow provided that there is sufficient moisture.
Solution
First, we treated the area with our EPA-registered antimicrobial solution called Mold Abatement Polymer Solution 1, or MAPS 1. This product attacks mold on a cellular level and kills it instantly. We then used our mold stain remover, scrubbed away all the excess mold staining, and then applied our patented sealant MAPS 2. This application encapsulates the surface mold is growing on and renders it harmless and non-allergenic. MAPS 2 is also moisture-sensitive and will reactivate whenever it gets wet to prevent future mold growth.
It is far easier to control moisture than it is to control dust, which is around us all the time. To prevent mold growth from reoccurring on concrete, correcting a moisture problem may require multiple steps. For example, if there is an exterior moisture issue, you may need to redirect downspouts or slope the ground away from the wall. At a certain point, however, excavation and drainage projects can become prohibitively expensive. It is sometimes easier to focus on ways to keep the inside area dry. Also, concrete is a poor insulator. It can become quite cool in the winter causing airborne moisture to condense on its surface. There are various ways to reduce the indoor relative humidity in buildings or rooms built with concrete walls including increasing the air temperature, increasing ventilation, and dehumidification with a commercial-grade dehumidifier.
