Mold Mitigation

If your home gets flooded, it's imperative that you ripped out all your carpeting bedding and Furniture as soon as possible. Get a sheetrock knife and cut off sheetrock if a four foot level even though you may have had one foot of damage. Rip out the sheetrock to get the insulation out of the wall. The installation will act as a sponge and the water will creep up the wall. Get fans in every room if possible turn on your air conditioning system and crack your windows. Do not under any circumstances leave the house closed up. Get a licensed mold professional to test you home BEFORE you close the walls back up. Bleach is NOT the cure all!!!!! Get a clear mold test before re-rocking!!! Use a local GC, and get referrals!!! If you need recommendations for mold remediation and gc's, please call or PM me. Get on the list now so you are not waiting forever for someone.

How long before I should start gutting my home?
In March we came across homes that after 2 weeks had not been gutted because people were on a list waiting for their GC. Let me start by saying that if you have a GC that says it's okay to keep your home wet for 2 weeks or more than 48 hours waiting on him, get another GC!!!!! Once you have gutted, and started he drying process you can wait as long as you want, but until then, don't wait on a contractor because he is costing you money every hour you wait!!!!

Do you recommend leaving a couple inches of Sheetrock for proof for insurance?
No, just document with photos, try to get time stamped.  I believe most phones now encrypts time stamp of the time and date in the file. Date/time as well as GPS location in most cases is encrypted in the descriptive meta data of the photo. There are some apps you can use to see it. 

Should we take out wood flooring if it lays back down after dried? 
 Although your wood may look fine, under your wood floors if there is any moisture, mold will grow, it may take months to show it self and you may never see it but just find your allergies and sicknesses get more frequent. I recommend taking out all carpet, and wood. Tile can stay because there is no organic material for mold to grow on. 

If you had roof leaks, there is similar problems. Attic insulation, especially if it jean or cellulose insulation, will mold. You have to get the wet insulation out ASAP. Once complete, make sure anything wet is dried and follow the other recommended steps in my previous post. 

What about cabinets? Should they be removed?
Unfortunately this is a question that is hard for people. I say ALL lower cabinets need to go. If someone says different, you are more than welcome to take your chances. Sheetrock wicks moisture, and in doing so it gets between the Rock and the back of the cabinet as well as below the cabinet. This is a perfect breeding ground for mold. Many cabinets can be saved if you are careful and then the kick plates and sides can be re-skinned once dry. It is very difficult to get most counters off in one piece though. I know this is a place many people try to save money and really fight to not do, but you should remove them. 

Should I mitigate the mold myself?
I already see a bunch of posts that talk about how to mitigate mold yourself, and some that talk about not taking out cabinets. (Just take out swollen shelves and open doors to dry out). BE CAREFUL!!! If you will mitigate yourself, do yourself a favor and get your home tested before you close the walls. Lower cabinets SHOULD come off. Even if you save them, they should come off so the area between the cabinet and wall dry. Don't believe everything you read.