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Photograph: typical mold on attic side of ceiling drywall after a roof leaks -  © Daniel Friedman Mold in Attics: Media Blasting & Mold Encapsulants
InspectAPedia®  -    

  • When to use or not use media blasting and when to use encapsulants for attic mold
  • How to evaluate the risk of toxic (or harmless) attic mold
Our site offers impartial, unbiased advice without conflicts of interest. We will block advertisements which we discover or readers inform us are associated with bad business practices, false-advertising, or junk science. Our contact info is at InspectAPedia.com/appointment.htm.

This document gives advice on how to find and deal with mold in building attics and roof cavities.

This is a chapter of "How to Look for Mold" which describes how to find mold and test for mold in buildings including building attics or other building roof cavities, including how and where to collect mold samples using adhesive tape - an easy, inexpensive, low-tech but very effective mold testing method. This procedure helps identify the presence of or locate the probable sources of mold reservoirs in buildings, and helps decide which of these need more invasive, exhaustive inspection and testing.

© Copyright 2010 Daniel Friedman, All Rights Reserved. Information Accuracy & Bias Pledge is at below-left. Use links at the left of each page to navigate this document or to view other topics at this website. Green links show where you are in our document or website.

ATTIC MOLD When to Media Blast and Use Encapsulants in Attics

Is there ever a time when the fungicide, blasting, encapsulation method should not be used?

Photograph: toxic mold on pine tongue and groove roof sheathing -  © Daniel Friedman

Toxic attic mold: The photo at the left was identified as a toxic mold that probably should be removed, although the ease of movement of mold spores from an attic down into a living area varies widely from building to building.

Uncertain attic mold: The photo at the very top of this page shows where you may find mold growing on the attic side of ceiling drywall, particularly below roof leaks or in areas of ice dam leaks at a building eaves.

In addition to testing to see what this material is (presuming there is a large area of it), we'd also evaluate the chances of particle movement between the attic and the living space before deciding on an appropriate approach to this moldy attic.

Using media blasting and encapsulants to remove mold in an attic are mold remediation methods which are probably inappropriate for small areas, say less than 30 sq.ft. of contiguous mold, and would otherwise certainly not be used without very good particle and dust containment measures.

If we had a moldy attic area where containment were impossible or impractical, other measures may be needed such as careful piece-meal demolition using negative air conditions in the attic and without passing moldy demolition materials unprotected through other building areas (double bagging, exit through a containment door, or disposal through an opening in a roof or attic gable end wall for example).

If a large area of toxic or allergenic attic mold is found on attic surfaces such as roof sheathing and or rafters, or on the surfaces of the attic floor or floor joists, media blasting may be a rapid and economical cleaning method to remove problem mold provided:

  • Proper particle and dust containment can be set up to protect the rest of the building from cross contamination during the media blasting cleaning process
  • Insulation that has been exposed to mold or which would be exposed to dust from media blasting has been removed. Be sure to review INSULATION MOLD.

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FIND MOLD in BUILDINGS, HOW TO
  ATTIC MOLD
    ATTIC MOLD CAUSES
    ATTIC MOLD IS A PROBLEM ?
    ATTIC MOLD - IS IT TOXIC?
    ATTIC MOLD, WHERE TO LOOK
    ATTIC MOLD, WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE
    ATTIC MOLD, HARMLESS COSMETIC?
    ATTIC MOLD ROOF TEAROFF
    ATTIC MOLD ENCAPSULANTS
  BATHROOM MOLD
  BASEMENT MOLD
  BASEMENT MOLD WATER IMPACT
  BLACK MOLD, HARMLESS COSMETIC
  CARPET MOLD CONTAMINATION
  CARPET TEST GUIDE
  CRAWLSPACE MOLD
  DRYWALL MOLD
  DIRT FLOOR MOLD CONTAMINATION
  ESSENTIAL STEPS IN FINDING MOLD
  FLASHLIGHT HELPS FIND MOLD
  WHAT MOLD LOOKS LIKE
  Black Mold  Brown Mold
  Green Mold  Red Mold
  Yellow Mold  White Mold
  Invisible Mold
  Meruliporia Mold Photographs
  Mildew Photographs
  Recognize Cosmetic Mold
  Recognize Harmless Black Mold
  Stuff that is Mistaken for Mold
  HIDDEN MOLD, HOW TO FIND
  Photo Guide to Finding Hidden Mold
  Hidden Mold Behind Paneling
  Hidden Mold Between Framing & Sheathing
  Hidden Mold in Flooring & Subflooring
  Hidden Mold in Wall Cavities
  Spotting Hard-to-See Mold
  Use of a flashlight to find mold
  Wall test cuts to spot hidden mold
  Light colored toxic molds
  Moisture Gradients and Mold
  Other Places to Look for Hidden Mold
  INSULATION MOLD
  SAMPLE POINT CHOICES FOR MOLD TEST
  SAMPLING MISTAKES
  USING LIGHT TO FIND MOLD
FLOODS & MOLD CLEAN/PREVENT
MOLD ACTION GUIDE - WHAT TO DO
MOLD EXPERT, WHEN TO HIRE
MOLD RELATED ILLNESS
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