Water & Mold
Water damage and mold
How water gets in, what to throw away after a flood, when mold needs a professional, and what FEMA's rules mean for a flooded house.
10 answers
- After a Flood: What to Throw Away and What You Can Save Federal guidance: discard porous items soaked by floodwater that can't be cleaned and dried within 24 to 48 hours, including drywall and insulation.
- Crawl Space Moisture: Vented vs. Sealed Crawl Spaces The building code allows a vented crawl space or a sealed one with a ground vapor retarder and a way to dry the air. Closing the vents alone is neither.
- FEMA's 50% Rule: What Substantial Damage Means for You If local officials find repairs cost 50% or more of a flood-zone home's pre-damage value, it must meet current flood rules, which can mean raising it.
- How to Tell If You Have a Hidden Water Leak Read your water meter before and after two hours with no water running. If it moved, you probably have a leak. Then narrow down where it is.
- Ice Dams: Why They Leak Into Ceilings and How to Stop Them Ice dams form when heat escaping into the attic melts roof snow that refreezes at the eaves. Air sealing, insulation and ventilation keep the roof cold.
- Is Black Mold Dangerous? What the CDC and EPA Say Black mold usually means Stachybotrys, but color can't identify a species. The CDC says all molds should be treated the same way and removed.
- Mold in the Attic: What Causes It and How to Fix It Attic mold grows where the roof deck stays damp: warm, moist air leaking up from the house, fans venting into the attic, or roof leaks. Fix the source first.
- Water Damage Categories 1, 2 and 3 Explained The IICRC S500 standard sorts water by contamination: Category 1 clean, 2 significantly contaminated, 3 grossly contaminated. Here is what each changes.
- Water in the Basement After Rain: Causes and Fixes When a basement leaks after rain, start with surface water. Grading, gutters and downspouts come first; drains and waterproofing come after.
- Wood Rot vs. Mold: How to Tell Them Apart Mold grows on the surface of wood and mostly stains it. Rot digests the wood and weakens it. Both need moisture, and wood kept air-dry does not decay.
The EPA’s rule of thumb is to dry water-damaged areas and items within 24 to 48 hours; in most cases, mold will not grow if wet materials dry in that window (EPA).