We Are The Experts To Call When Your Canoga Park Home Is Plagued By Mold

1/28/2019 (Permalink)

We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster!

Effective Ways Of Dealing With Mold Damage In Canoga Park

If you let mold to grow in your Canoga Park home, it is likely to be a great nuisance. In addition to from the unsightly patches it leaves on perfectly finished surfaces, mold also produces a musty smell. Although these two are the most visible signs of mold infestation, it damages the property in other severe ways. If left to grow unabated for long, mold can eat into organic materials such as wood compromising their structural integrity. We offer professional remediation services to help restore your home to preloss state.

Before trying to fix mold damage in Canoga Park, it is essential to know the cause. All cases of mold infestation involve excess moisture, so it is essential to identify the moisture source if it is not apparent. In many cases, leaking plumbing lines or fixtures provide the necessary moisture to fuel growth. Other cases may involve relatively high levels of humidity in the house. Our SERVPRO technicians check infestation patterns and use advanced equipment such as thermal cameras to identify the moisture sources in confined spaces.

Several approaches can help remove mold from the affected property. The best approaches are those that are not too labor-intensive, produce long-term results and cause limited or no damages to the underlying materials. Our SERVPRO technicians use various advanced procedures like dry ice blasting which is highly effective in removing embedded mold from OSB, wood studs and plywood among other surfaces. We also use soda blasting which is equally useful on many surfaces without causing abrasion or any other type of damage.

Mold can cause health effects especially through inhalation of contact with the residues. It is therefore essential to protect people from the debris during the removal processes. Our SERVPRO technicians create containment barriers with plastic sheets to prevent mold residues from spreading. Containing the residues only in the affected areas also reduces the necessary cleanup efforts.

If your property is infested with mold colonies, call SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills at (818) 998-1500. We’re Faster to Any Size Disaster.

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Our Experts Explain Why It Is Better To Remove, Rather Than Kill, The Mold Infestation In Your Canoga Park Home

12/19/2018 (Permalink)

Finding the right solution for mold growth in your home is a struggle that many homeowners have to face throughout their life.

Dead Mold And How It Can Still Pose A Risk To Canoga Park Homes

Finding the right solution for mold growth in your Canoga Park home is a struggle that many homeowners have to face throughout their life. From DIY websites suggesting that you can accomplish mold removal on your own to cheaper services offering to “kill the mold” instead of removing the organism entirely, settling on services like our professionals provide can often be a difficult decision to make. However, there are reasons why this is better than the other choices that are available to you to remove the mold from your property.

Understanding what is involved in these other methods of removal, much of them leave the potential for mold damage in your Canoga Park residence. Ultimately, the ideal solution is to remove the organism completely and thwart its ability to continue damaging your property in the immediate future. However, services that offer to kill the organism without removing the dead mold pose continued threats to your property, and with good reason: dead mold colonies and debris can still affect the health of those people and pets living in the house.

The professional removal that our SERVPRO team provides works to leave no mold debris and damage behind for your family to face. The test for mold allergies utilizes a dead spore to test a body’s reaction. If this single dead spore can agitate a body enough to generate a determination of allergies, imagine what a widespread area of your home full of spores and debris could allow.

Our SERVPRO professionals work to provide entire removal services for our customers to truly make the situation “Like it never even happened.” We remove materials if they have gotten too badly damaged from the spreading organism and work to prevent further mold growth in other areas by our effective containment strategies and antimicrobial solutions that can get sprayed on framing, studs, beams, and other structural elements that could still be at risk for spreading spores.

There are shortcuts to removing mold that still put your family at risk of potential health effects, and then there is professional remediation. Give our SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills rapid response team a call anytime you need us at (818) 998-1500.

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Bell Canyon's Mold Damage Technicians Talk About Remediation In Attics

9/4/2018 (Permalink)

If organic materials stay wet for more than two days, microbial growth can start to take place.

Mold Damage Technicians Talk About Remediation

The roof on your Bell Canyon home is a part of the structure that receives a lot of abuse. If your roof ever leaks it is possible that mold damage can occur. Over time roofing materials wear making it easier for storms or objects to create holes in your roof. During a storm, rainwater drills onto your roof and if there is a hole, water enters the interior of your house making mold damage likely to occur.

Most buildings have an attic that sits in between their living area and the underside of the roof. Attics are a common place for mold damage in Bell Canyon to occur for several reasons. First, many attics have elevated temperatures and humidity levels anyways because they sit above the living area of the home. Fungi tend to settle in humid areas that receive little sunlight, just like most attics. Attics are usually not finished with flooring and wall materials, so they contain a lot of bare organic materials such as paper and wood.

In many cases, the source of a moisture problem inside an attic is a leaky roof. Over time roofs get more susceptible to damage and being the source of a water leak. If water gets into your attic and you do not notice it, the problems can get much worse the longer the issues go without being mitigated. If organic materials stay wet for more than two days, microbial growth can start to take place.

Once a fungus develops it starts buildings structures called hyphae. Many times hyphae are what give mold a black or fuzzy white look. Once hyphae develop, they grow in all three directions on the contaminated object. As the hyphae spread out across and into an organic substance, they let off spores that are used for the fungi's reproduction purposes. These spores can become airborne and float around until they settle and contaminated a previously unaffected area.

If mold ever contaminates your attic, it is possible that spores can get into the ventilation system of the house and possible cause microbial growth in other regions far away from the source. If you ever notice that fungal growth occurs in your home, call SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills at (818) 998-1500 24 hours a day.

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Stressing Air Quality Through Mold Remediation In Your West Hills Home

8/10/2018 (Permalink)

Mold spores exist in every environment that we encounter on a daily basis on a microscopic level.

Stressing Air Quality Through Mold Remediation

While most West Hills homeowners can appreciate the possibility of mold growth in their home, few realize just how likely the situation is. Mold spores exist in every environment that we encounter on a daily basis on a microscopic level. They are everywhere throughout the home and throughout other environments where we spend a great deal of time like our vehicles and workplace.

Understanding more about the widespread nature of mold spores in the environment can help a homeowner to appreciate just how close they always are to mold damages in their West Hills residence. Combating this omnipresent microbial force can seem daunting, especially when you discover an active mold colony growing in your home. That is where the mold remediation technicians at SERVPRO can help you.

Air quality should not just be a concern when you have active colonization in your home, but it is a dire priority for the remediation technicians looking to remove this colony and restore the damages. Preventing the spread of these spores to new areas can isolate the current problem. This isolation often occurs with the use of air scrubbers.

This equipment can trap active spores, dirt, contaminants, and bacteria present in the environment and prevent it from spreading around your home from the affected area. The machine allows our SERVPRO remediation technicians the ability to work exclusively in the damaged areas to effectively remove the present colony and remove any materials that became unsalvageably damaged.

While there is no way to remove the mold spores from your house entirely, we can temporarily prevent active spores from leaving the colony area and seating elsewhere in your home. With dehumidification and drying efforts, present mold spores naturally occurring in the environment do not have the appropriate conditions to colonize once remediation completes.

Preventing mold from growing in your home might not be something that everyone can do. With environmental changes that can happen rapidly, you might not realize there is a problem until the spread of the colony is out of control. Trust in the experience of our SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills technicians to remove this threat and return your home to safer conditions. Give us a call today at (818) 998-1500.

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Musty and Foul Odors Are Often a Hint of Mold Damage in Your Winnetka Home

5/4/2018 (Permalink)

A musty odor can often be the first sign of mold damage in your home, if you think you are dealing with mold damage call SERVPRO to remediate.

SERVPRO Can Quickly and Thoroughly Remediate Mold Damage Found in Your Home

Mold damage can become a real issue when it goes unchecked for extended periods of time. However, mold growth is not always visible at first. For example, a roof that is on its last leg may leak rainwater into your attic. Over time, this water can lead to mold growth, as mold spores thrive in a moist environment. If you do not enter your attic regularly, it is easy to be ignorant of the problem. In these situations, it is not too late to call for professional help.

A musty odor can often be one of the first significant signs of mold damage in your Winnetka home. Mold spores are omnipresent; there is no way to truly rid your home of them. However, they are harmless until they come in contact with moisture. As a mold colony feeds on moisture, it grows and has the potential to cause rot to the structure of your home and health effects.

One of the first things SERVPRO can do when our employees arrive at your home is put up a barrier to keep the mold spores from spreading when we start the remediation process. Mold can be tackled by our SERVPRO techs through cleaning, antifungal agents, and disinfectants.

SERVPRO can handle the odor of mold through the use of advanced industrial tools. Our techs can use air scrubbers to get the odor out of the air that first alerted you to the mold in your home. Air scrubbers utilize HEPA filters to trap and contain spores, effectively neutralizing the particles that caused the foul smells in the first place. Another tool our team can use in these situations is a thermal fogger, which can dissipate the spores and eliminate the malodourous particles.

If you smell mold in your home, do not wait. Reach out to SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills at (818) 998-1500. Whatever the time, we can send our technicians to your home as soon as possible.

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Fighting Mold Damage In Your West Hills House

4/4/2018 (Permalink)

Mold Spores in West Hills Can Lead to Mold Damage--Call SERVPRO for Cleanup and Remediation

SERVPRO Possesses the Tools, Equipment, and Skilled Technicians for Mold Remediation

High humidity is a common condition to contend with for your West Hills home at certain times of the year. While this can make your time outside muggy and moist, it also can cause a lot of dampness and moisture in your home as well. Even with a controlled temperature from appliances like your air conditioner, excessive condensation is a typical result of treating highly humid, hot air in the environment.

While this might not initially seem like that big of a deal, dampness and moisture in your house assuredly is something worth your concern. In a short time, dampness in the air combining with warmer temperatures can activate spores in the air and cracks and crevices and form colonies of mold. Given the links between the presence of fungal growth and health effects for those exposed to it, the discovery of mold damage in your West Hills home should be dealt with as expediently as possible.

Our SERVPRO team gets uniquely trained to restore and remediate all varieties of mold and fungus using the latest equipment and strategies proven effective. Each of our specialists gets certified to the high standards of restoration set in place by the IICRC. This fact makes us an excellent choice to handle the current mold damage that you are facing in your home and the most efficient option for bringing your home back to its former condition.

From the moment that our SERVPRO specialists arrive at your home, we set up immediately to block off the area where mold is actively growing and thriving. When it comes time to sand or scrape these places or remove portions of materials for later reconstruction, negative air chambers, and air scrubbers (with HEPA filters) help prevent the spread of active spores to new areas of your home.

Drying the area is a crucial element to combat the current mold growth, and to keep this disaster from reoccurring. This result gets achieved through the use of air movers and large dehumidification equipment. In situations where the source of the moisture is difficult to discern, continuing dehumidification on your own may get advised.

Finding mold in your home is a cause to spring to action. You do not want to let the organism continue to spread and damage the structural integrity of your home or any of its contents. Trust the IICRC certified mold remediation specialists at SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills to help you set things right again. We can be reached anytime by calling (818) 998-1500.

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Finding Mold Damage In Your Winnetka Home

1/4/2018 (Permalink)

Mold Remediation by SERVPRO Ensures Happiness for Winnetka Homeowners

Remediation of Mold Needed? Call SERVPRO

Southern California is known for some excessive humidity all year long, but what you might not realize is how this same common weather occurrence could be dramatically impacting your Winnetka home. Without proper maintenance of the moisture that is present in your home, coupled with mold spores that naturally exist in the air that we breathe, the conditions have been met for mold to start growing in your home.

Mold damage to your Winnetka home might not seem like that big of a deal, as many people have encountered that familiar musty odor and sight of spotty mold all throughout their lives. The more that gets understood about the fungus, and its relative health effects that it can cause families who become exposed to it, the more critical it is to get the situation resolved quickly.
 
Handling this situation on your own is not advisable, as your efforts to remove the mold colonies will very likely not remove the entire hyphae of the fungus and you can be circulating more spores in the process. Our SERVPRO remediation specialists are trained and certified to the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) standards.
 
This extensive training familiarizes our antimicrobial remediation specialists in the various types of mold that exist, the proper protective equipment to use, and ultimately the process for completely removing mold colonies and preventing further spread of the colonies. With the use of HEPA filters and negative air chambers, spores in the air become neutralized throughout the remediation process. Scrubbers get employed to deep clean areas where colonies have been detected to eradicate the entire fungal organism.
 
Dehumidification is an integral part of the process and one that ensures that the conditions are no longer adequate to support growth. The removal of moisture from the air is something that the homeowner gets encouraged to continue after the remediation process is complete, to deter any future conditions which could be suitable for mold to grow again.
 
If you have encountered a musty smell in your home, or spotted mold growing on surfaces, call SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills. Our experienced IICRC certified remediation specialists have the expertise and equipment to handle the issue. Give us a call anytime at (818) 998-1500.

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What To Do And Avoid When Dealing With Mold Damage In Winnetka Homes

11/2/2017 (Permalink)

Mold Develops in Winnetka, Remediate with SERVPRO, Not Bleach

Professional Mold Remediation is the Answer to Secure Your Property

There are many things to check, repair, and keep in shape when you are a homeowner. Caring for your Winnetka home is very satisfying, and naturally you want to deal with any problems as soon as they arise, to keep your home safe and pleasant for you and your family. One problem that most householders face at some point is fungal growth. Mold damage is usually easy to spot thanks to the tell-tale black and green patches and musty smell. What is not always easy is knowing what to do when you find it. Thankfully, SERVPRO is here to help.
 
We understand that you do not want mold damage in your Winnetka home, and so of course if you spot the fungus you want to get rid of it straight away. That is why we have put together this handy short list of what to do and what to avoid when you see signs of fungus in your house.
 
Do not use a fan in mold-infested areas. We have heard rumors of people using fans to try and disperse mold, and it is enough to give any remediation expert nightmares! Fans blow the microscopic mold spores into the air and make it easier for them to travel and start new colonies.
 
Do no use bleach or other chemicals. Sometimes using bleach or other chemicals makes the problem worse – it is far better to talk to a remediation expert. The water in the bleach can feed the colonies with fresh moisture. The hyphae (roots) of mold are typically not affected by the disinfecting qualities of bleach.
 
Do not focus on killing the mold. It is challenging to exterminate fungus; in most cases, it merely goes dormant and can “wake up” again when conditions are right.
 
So what should you do? The best thing is to call SERVPRO. Professional mold remediation is more efficient than DIY efforts. Experts believe that mold may have some health effects. We equip our IICRC-certified experts with protective clothing and respirators so they can handle fungal growth safely. We have the equipment needed to set up containment and vent contaminated air, which is much more efficient than merely wiping.
 
For help with mold problems in Winnetka, Bell Canyon, West Hills and surrounding areas, call SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills at (818) 998-1500 today.

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Assessment and Planning Before Mold Remediation in Canoga Park

10/21/2016 (Permalink)

Mold Remediation in Canoga Park Gets Help from SERVPRO

SERVPRO Mold Damage in Canoga Park - What to Look for and What's Next

Before we start to break out the cleaners, change filters or (especially) start knocking down drywall, our inspectors need to know exactly where and how far a mold infestation has gone.

To determine how far mold damage has gotten in a Canoga Park home, SERVPRO sends in an inspector trained to the Institute of Inspection Cleaning and Restoration Certification (IICRC) standards. Immediately on arrival, we will ask you the following questions:
1. Have you seen any mold contamination yourself?
2. Do you or have you smelled a strong musty odor?
3. Have you had previous problems with mold, no matter what the size of the contamination?
4. When did your water damage occur?
5. Have you seen any mold in your HVAC system?
If you answer yes to any of these questions and give permission, we'll begin an inspection of your home immediately. We have meters that measure air quality and allow us to quickly zone in on the source of the mold.

Once that is determined, we'll quickly deploy our remediation crew to isolate the mold infested areas. If your HVAC system is free of mold, the first thing we'll do is seal the vents to prevent any possible contamination from the cleaning process.
Next, we'll set up a series of exhaust fans that will blow any loose spores out of your home as we clean out the infestation. If we don't do this, there is always the chance that airborne spores could settle into a previously unaffected room and begin the problem all over again. This negative pressure method is not always necessary to combat the remediation process.

With the fans in place, our technicians will use cleaners and anti-fungal agents to kill every spore we can find. If we suspect that the mold has gotten behind a wall or into crawl spaces, we have devices similar to bug bombs that will force anti-fungal agents into every nook and crack. Portable foggers can cover large expanses of enclosed areas.

If we need to remove damaged drywall or other property that can't be salvaged, our technicians will do that before they begin cleaning. This demolition helps to prevent missing areas that could be behind or underneath furniture from being treated. Drapes, curtains, and blinds will be removed and cleaned outside your home. Many remediation services, if not a result of massive fungi infestation, can limit extensive removal of window treatments.

Living in the San Fernando Valley is a dream for many people. A mold infestation can rapidly turn that dream into a nightmare. For SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills, getting you back into your home isn't just a job to us. Our employees and managers are all local residents, and we are dedicated to helping our neighbors regain that "California Dreamin'" as fast as we are able. Call us at (818) 998-1500 to get started.

Winnetka Mold Damage Calls for Professional Help

3/16/2016 (Permalink)

Mold Containment Is a Vital Step in Remediation

SERVPRO Remediates the Mold Damage to Your Winnetka Property

Winnetka mold damage is a serious issue. These fungi and mold spores can affect the quality of the air in your home. Mold produce mycotoxins and mold spores that cause health effects. Here are the top 10 steps to eradicate damage caused by mold.

1. Consider hiring a certified mold remediation company to rid your home of mold successfully. More than a 10 square foot patch indicates a heavy infestation.

2. Find all sources that could be extending your problem. For example, check for flooding, leaks in voids or under cabinets, or areas where puddles of water can be absorbed into carpeting or porous drywall.

3. Using a store bought test kit gives inconsistent results. Hiring a professional company like SERVPRO ensures that mold infestation points will be discovered, if present. If you visually see mold colonies or smell that strong, musty odor, there is no need for mold testing. Inspections should be for the discovery of colonies, sources of the water leaks that allow for mold blooming, and an action plan for mold remediation.

4. Monitor yourself and others for any health symptoms. If there is a strong odor of mold or large visible growth, consider temporarily staying in a safer place until the remediation is completed.

5. If you vacate your home or business, do not take any personal belongings with you until items have been decontaminated. SERVPRO technicians will set up containment barriers to isolate infested areas thereby reducing the likelihood of cross-contamination and spreading of mold spores to new areas of the structure.

6. Our IICTC-certified technicians wear protective biohazard suits, booties, gloves, and a mask complete with a HEPA filtration system.

7. We do not use bleach to kill mold. Specially formulated cleaning products help to attack and destroy the existing mold colonies while sanitizing the surfaces.

8. Technicians remove all materials to be salvaged and safely discard all mold damaged building materials by wrapping to prevent further contamination. We can pack and ship items to our facilities for cleaning and disinfecting in severe cases.

9. Air scrubbers help to remove airborne mold spores. Chemical and thermal foggers reach accessible and hidden pockets to destroy, disinfect, sanitize, and deodorize the structure.

10. A final inspection and walk-through verify the successful remediation of the mold infestation in your home.

SERVPRO technicians possess the industry leading equipment, expertise, and experience to once again return your home to a clean and healthy state. Winnetka mold damage is a serious issue that calls for a professional service so that when you and your family return home it will be "Like it never even happened."

We’re Highly Trained Mold Remediation Specialists

SERVPRO of Canoga Park / West Hills specializes in water and mold damage restoration, the cornerstone of our business. We have the training and expertise to safely handle any mold situation in Winnetka, Canoga Park and Bell Canyon. Call us 24/7 to help. (818) 998-1500