Silica Dust In Your Home Can Mean Harmful Exposure
What is Silica?
Silica: A hard, unreactive, colorless compound which occurs as the mineral quartz and as a principal constituent of sandstone and other rocks.
If you have undergone home renovations where crystalline silica is present, you could be at risk of some damaging effects that exposure to this compound causes, mostly involving damage to the lungs.
During renovations that involve work such as sandblasting, masonry, grinding, or sawing, be sure that your contractor is taking the necessary steps to contain the worksite dust. Silica can exists in materials such as stone, tile, brick, concrete, and drywall.
Should you need Silica, Quartz, or Vermiculate materials and dust removed and cleaned from your home or property, please call a remediation professional. Remediation Group, Inc. provides these services in the state of Georgia and follows the standards put in place by OSHA.
Call our office today to schedule a free property evaluation at 404-214-1470.
Maintaining your home and protecting your family from avoidable disease are two good reasons to assess the potential impact of mold on your home. Many families wait until mold contamination is very high before acting to correct this problem. In most cases, an ounce of prevention can avoid untold expense left in the wake of unattended mold infestation.
If mold is found in your home, there are two potential paths of remediation. The degree of contamination will determine which path is recommended. The remediation process can be either invasive or non-invasive. Non-invasive remediation is generally less involved, requiring minimal reconstruction and repairs following the process. Therefore, it is less expensive.
Non-Invasive Remediation
This remediation process consists mostly of HEPA vacuuming, sanding, surface wiping and HEPA air filtering. Most building materials contaminated with surface mold (wood, glossy painted wood, glass, metal, ceramic, etc.) can be effectively decontaminated with this non-invasive process and pass third party environmental assessment and testing. The main cause of surface mold is the increase in relative humidity (Rh) inside the structure. In these cases, non-invasive remediation is generally the best option for your home.
Invasive Remediation
This remediation process consists of removing and discarding porous building materials that cannot be decontaminated through non-invasive means. Moisture infiltration typically causes moisture to penetrate walls and generate mold inside wall cavities. Generally, this is caused by moisture entering your home’s exterior envelope through compromised roofing or siding or through an interior water source, such as piping or faucets. Seepage, flooding and leaks create a tremendous mess for the homeowner. These problems result in severe material damage that many times requires some level of invasive remediation. From a cost perspective, the labor of invasive remediation is slightly more expensive, but what truly drives up the cost of this remediation is the reconstruction and repair necessary following the removal of mold damaged building materials.
Mold is tough and all it really needs to continue growing is moisture (i.e.; water or humidity). Mold can even begin to turn up in a matter of one day. We suggest you take these preventative steps to ensure you are tackling a problem before it begins or gets out of hand.
Maintain your property by performing any necessary repairs and maintenance.
React quickly to pipe leaks and moisture infiltrations.
Dry up the moisture quickly (within 24-48 hours) – do not wait on your insurance agent or adjuster for advice.
Determine if there is moisture trapped between building materials (wood floors
and subfloor, drywall and sheathing, cabinets and floor, etc.).
Contact a mold remediation specialist to evaluate your property if professional structural drying is required.
Taking proper steps to dry your property quickly and effectively is your responsibility. It is important to create a dry environment to prevent mold from growing and causing further mold damage.Waiting on your insurance company to determine how to deal with your water damage is not advisable if you want to prevent mold from growing on your property. Follow these simple tips to prevent mold and mold damage from becoming an issue in your home or business.
Ponce City Market is often referred to as the coolest new attraction in Atlanta. Its development has been covered extensively, and its opening is eagerly awaited. Not as well known are the challenges faced during construction of this massive landmark.
Ponce City Market is a historic building: originally constructed in 1926, the building was home to Sears Roebuck and Co. retail store, warehouse, and headquarters until 1979. Despite attempts by the city of Atlanta to relocate offices there, the building has been largely uninhabited since the 80’s. A building of this size and age requires a significant amount of remediation and restoration before it is safe to inhabit. Remediation Group was honored to work with the development and construction firm Jamestown on this important project. Remediation Group worked for months to scrape and blast every inch of Ponce City Market to ensure that it would be ready for the apartments, retail shops, food court, and schools that will occupy the space.
Remediation Group is thrilled to see our hard work pay off as Ponce City Market opens to the public. Restoring Ponce City Market wasn’t easy, but it was well worth it! Take a sneak peak inside construction with our photos below.
This gorgeous and unique mansion is located in the Kirkwood neighborhood at Atlanta, not far from downtown Decatur. The post-Victorian home features a traditional floor plan with a large and functional kitchen, two sitting rooms, and spacious bedrooms. Unfortunately this hidden 1910 gem fell into disrepair. The home likely suffered from decaying wood, slight water damage, and mold growth. Luckily, this mansion was scooped up and renovated for 16 months. The restoration focused on preserving the home’s original character while adding modern amenities. The result is stunning: a beautiful Atlanta home packed full of historic charm.
Remediation Group, Inc. is making an impact in Atlanta!
Welcome to our blog, Remediation Response, where we will document our work in the city and keep you updated on remediation, restoration, and reconstruction in Atlanta. For our first post, we would like to introduce you to a few of our projects that are improving our city.
PONCE CITY MARKET
I’m sure you’ve heard of Ponce City Market, the massive mixed-use development planned inside the former Sears, Roebuck & Company building. The design features apartments, restaurants, a marketplace, and retail shops. It is all very glamourous, but have you considered the shape this old building was in before construction started? Remediation Group, Inc. took on the giant task of scraping and blasting every inch of this structure to ensure it will be safe to inhabit.
CARE AND COUNSELING CENTER OF GEORGIA
A burst pipe in the Care and Counseling Center of Georgia, located in Decatur, put this important center out of business. Luckily, Remediation Group, Inc. came to the rescue! We performed water mitigation and structural drying to ease the damage from the burst pipe. Then we took it a step further and used our brilliant reconstruction department to make this building as good as new!
GIRL’S INC. IN ATLANTA
Girl’s Inc. in Atlanta is an after school program that prides itself on teaching young girls the skills to succeed in life. Unfortunately, one Girl’s Inc. location was deemed uninhabitable due to a mold infestation. To the rescue yet again, Remediation Group, Inc. successfully remediated the mold and reconstructed the commercial facilities into a club anyone would want to spend time in. The girls were thrilled, and our team left the project with big smiles and good memories.
Remediation Group is working around the clock to make our city cleaner, safer, and better than ever! Stay tuned for more project features, updates, and news on Remediation Response.
Many families wait until mold contamination is very high before taking action to understand and correct the issue. By assessing the potential impact of mold in your home, you can help ensure that your home is properly maintained and protect your family from preventable negative health effects. Who wants to deal with the headache and expense of a mold infestation? By educating yourself and taking a few precautionary measures, you can potentially avoid hefty costs due to unattended mold growth.
If you find mold in your home, there are two potential courses of action you can take. The necessary mold remediation services, either invasive or non-invasive, will be determined by the degree of mold contamination. Non-invasive services are generally less involved and require minimal reconstruction and repairs following the removal process; therefore, these techniques are less expensive. Often, early detection of mold contamination leads to non-invasive work conditions for you. This is just another reason to call a mold removal company early!
Invasive services are more involved and are required for more serious mold infestations. Significant clean up and some reconstruction is usually needed after the completion of the removal. Due to the increased removal and replacement of building materials, this method is more expensive. If your mold removal professional recommends this method, swallow the costs and do it! Waiting to perform this kind of work can be very detrimental to the structure of your home and the health of your family.
NON-INVASIVE REMOVAL
An increase in relative humidity inside your home can cause mold to grow on walls, furniture, and other surfaces. For example, a damp basement can create an environment that is perfect for developing mold. Basement mold removal can be achieved through the non-invasive process. This service process consists mostly of surface wiping, HEPA air filtering, sanding and HEPA vacuuming. Several common situations, including mold removal from basement walls, can be easily solved using these methods. Most building materials (metal, ceramic, wood, glass, glossy painted wood, etc.) contaminated with surface mold can be effectively decontaminated using the non-invasive process. After treatment, affected areas can then be assessed and cleared by a third-party Indoor Environmental Professional.
INVASIVE REMOVAL
This removal process consists of removing and discarding porous building materials that cannot be decontaminated through non-invasive means. For example, invasive mold infiltration can happen when moisture penetrates walls. This can cause mold to grow inside the wall cavities. Compromised roofing or siding or leaky pipes or faucets can allow moisture to enter your home’s exterior envelope. These problems can result in severe material damage that many times require invasive mold removal. From a cost perspective, the labor of invasive removal is more expensive. The increased cost is due to the reconstruction and repair necessary for following the removal of mold damaged building materials. When mold contamination has escalated to the point that it requires invasive removal techniques, it is important to call a certified mold remediation contractorimmediately to obtain an estimate for mold removal services. The cost of remediation is worth the benefit.
For mold removal services in Atlanta, RGI is the right choice for your family and home! Give us a call today to set up a free property evaluation!
Visible surface mold growth is common in many crawl spaces in the Southeastern United States. The development of mold contamination requires an environment that this section of the US fosters with its damp climate combined with today’s new porous construction materials and low budget building designs. Crawl spaces used to be vented in order to lessen opportunities for mold contamination. In reality, venting may have made the problem worse. It allows moist, warm, outdoor air laden with spores and water into the crawl space. Microorganisms contained in the soil are also given the opportunity to get inside. In older homes, the mold contamination is common because of this construction. Today, the practice of venting is in decline. However, mold continues to grow despite best efforts to address it.
6 Steps to Crawl Space Mold Damage Removal
Remediation Group, Inc. utilizes a 6-step process they created to safely, effectively, and, most importantly, permanently remove mold contamination from crawl spaces (and other areas). RGI’s trusted process complies with New York City Health Department, IICRC, and EPA Standards and Guidelines.
These are the general steps RGI follows to fix the crawl space mold damage removal:
In order to prevent cross contamination, set up negative air pressurization inside the crawl space.
HEPA vacuum all surfaces (joist, sub floor framing, etc.)
Wipe all surfaces clean (ductwork, framing, conduits, etc.)
Agitate the affected surface by sanding, scraping or blasting the first layer with dry ice of affected wood framing. Such agitation techniques ensure complete source removal of mold spores and their root system from the contaminated wood framing. This is a key step!
Wipe all of the surfaces from step 3 again.
Apply a clear anti-microbial wood coating to the newly cleaned wood surfaces.
When hiring a contractor or mold professional, be intentional about choosing a contractor who guarantees that his or her work will pass visual inspection and surface sampling by third party inspectors. Work worth investing in will be able to be certified by third parties.
QUICK FIX
Unfortunately, no fogging techniques that offer quick and convenient mold damage removal treatments are presently available. These products may promise quick, cheap and easy results; however, they have been proven to be completely ineffective and therefore a waste of money. Don’t fall victim to claims of quick fixes and miracle solutions!
Put your money to good use and call Remediation Group, Inc. today to schedule an evaluation of your crawl space or other contaminated area. RGI will provide a free detailed estimate with easy to understand square footage pricing. Rest assured that we will treat your home as if it were our own, providing reliable and sustainable care.
RGI is the right choice for mold remediation for your home and family!
