Once someone is faced with significant mold damage, their next thought is almost always, “Great, how much is this mold remediation going to cost me!” I know that was certainly my first thought after our basement flooded while we were away. By then the water had completely drained away, but we were left with a terrible mess. The mold was covering everything up to about the three foot level, I actually asked and they said the mold line grows UP from the water line so we didn’t actually even have three feet of water in there, but the job was much more of what we could solve. We needed to hire some professionals, and that meant a lot of money, or so we thought.
If you’re lucky enough to have limited mold damage, you may be able to clean it up yourself. If the damaged area exceeds about half of a sheet of drywall (four by four feet), you’d better get professional help. Even if the mold is removed, the debris alone poses a health hazard and must be removed. If there isn’t a significant amount, you can ventilate the room with fans and open a few windows (or allow the air to move in some other way). That is, of course, after you’ve killed any mold spores with a vigorous wash and bleach. Let’s assume that this option will not work and let’s get to the point: how much will it cost to hire a professional to remove mold correctly?
The two main factors will be the area to be cleaned and how deep the damage is, this mainly depends on how long the mold has been growing, but also on the particular material. Typical work may include scrubbing walls, ductwork, or more. On the low end, you may only spend around five hundred dollars, but that number can be considerably higher. If structural damage has occurred, which is not uncommon where uncontrolled flooding occurs in wood-framed structures, costs can run into the tens of thousands. The average job that would include both cleaning and air filtration for a typical crawl space will range from $2,000 to $6,000. Please note that structural damage will significantly increase these costs. It can be tempting to cut corners with mold removal projects, but the consequences far outweigh the potential benefits.
When there’s already been significant water damage (and significant repair costs), it’s always tempting to avoid costs by cutting every possible corner—for some, cleaning up mold seems completely doable without the help of a professional. Don’t fall into this trap; There is no substitute for a proper mold removal project!
Thank you,
george everest