Is There Money in Mold?

CBS News’ magazine “48 Hours” recently ran a segment called “Black Mold: Creeping Destruction” about the alleged devastation of mold in residential areas, plummeting home values and creating health concerns for homeowners. Time magazine’s website recently profiled a lawyer who claims to have filed more than 300 moisture- and mold-related cases during the past six years. Even Erin Brockovich, a woman better known for successfully taking on large utility providers for polluting water, is coming out in force against mold, reports USA Today. She has spent upwards of $500,000 to rebuild her dream home after mold allegedly gave her family respiratory problems, and she now is suing both the house’s builder and former owner.

The newest issue to top the indoor environmental awareness charts is mold contamination — both in residential and commercial buildings — and so far, sensationalistic media coverage has left many in the cleaning industry wondering what to make of the topic.

The general public isn’t sure whether to panic or pull out the bleach. Many distributors’ customers, on the other hand, are trying to determine if this is a field in which they could prosper.

Media hype notwithstanding, some recent reports of mold contamination seem serious. For instance, several insurance companies in Texas have petitioned the state insurance board to allow them to drop mold coverage from standard water-loss insurance, and instead create a new category. The insurers contend that claims resulting from mold, especially after flooding, could overwhelm them.

While most indoor environmental quality (IEQ) experts disagree on the extent and nature of today’s mold problems, they agree that mold presents a unique health risk and a need for educated cleaning professionals to identify and mitigate problems. As with other relatively new specialties, such as crime scene clean-up or disaster restoration, mold remediation can be profitable if done properly. But not every customer may be cut out for the job.

Fact from Fiction
It may seem, from the increased attention paid to mold in buildings, that infestations and related illnesses have recently skyrocketed. That may be true to a point — “airtight” facilities built in the 1970s to save energy costs often don’t allow moisture to escape, creating prime mold growth conditions. But improved science, and increased effort on the part of the U.S. government and IEQ consultants to educate the public, may be the reason for increased awareness two decades after the problem began.

For instance, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been collecting anecdotal data for the last 20 years about mold-related illnesses, but only recently has put information on its website.

“In my opinion, a lot of people probably have experienced health effects from mold but didn’t know it. Now that we know more about mold, it’s easier to make that connection,” explains Melinda Allen, vice president and education/training director of Video-Aire Enviro-Mold, a mold-remediation and duct-cleaning company in Ft. Worth, Texas.

The problem many building owners and managers have, though, is a lack of well-documented research regarding the illnesses mold exposure can cause. And it’s tough to say just how much of a mold it takes to trigger symptoms. The more distributors know about mold and how it affects building owners, the more they can develop a valued partnership.

The Center for Disease Control doesn’t offer long-term-effect information because the topic is too new. In fact, the agency’s reports regarding a recent “bleeding lung” disease incident in Cleveland were reissued multiple times as new information was discovered, leading some mold remediation experts to find the study inconclusive, says Charles Cochrane, principal of Cochrane Ventilation, Wilmington, Mass. He believes that although there are some legitimate cases of mold-related illness, there is some hype.

Mary Smith, director of the EPA’s Indoor Environments Division, believes mold is a problem. However, she agrees people shouldn’t panic. In fact, Smith says she recently told a reporter doing a story on toxic mold to stress that not all mold is deadly.

That said, there still are some known, documented potential health risks from mold. The most common symptoms of mold exposure often resemble symptoms of other conditions, such as asthma or hay fever. The CDC reports minor reactions include nasal congestion, eye irritation or wheezing; a school in Illinois recently was shut down and the facility manager fired after students and teachers had these reactions. More serious effects can include fever, shortness of breath and lung infections.

The EPA lists opportunistic infections in sensitive individuals as a threat. For example, if some individuals inhale Aspergillus spores, mold actually could start growing in their lungs. Certain molds also can cause conditions such as athlete’s foot and yeast infections in healthy adults.

A 2000 New York City Department of Health report also states that health effects can be grave when coming in contact with certain dangerous molds, whether with single heavy exposure or more long-term exposure. The report, based on a study including renovation and cleaning workers, states that people may be at risk for developing Organic Dust Toxic Syndrome after a single heavy exposure to dust-contaminated fungi or mold, which will produce flu-like symptoms. Another potential result is Hypersensitivity Pneumonitis, an immune-mediated disease that requires repeated exposures to the same causative agent and can result in permanent lung damage.

But such information must be kept in context to not cause hysteria. For example, most mold is not toxic, and most people aren’t sensitive to mold.

However, there is a point at which all people would be affected by mold, says Jim Holland, a certified restorer, water-loss specialist and founder of Restoration Consultants, Sacramento, Calif. He compares mold immunity to sun exposure: People with fair skin burn faster, yet, at a certain point, almost everyone feels some effect. And if there are large amounts of highly toxic fungus throughout a building, all of the occupants might eventually be affected to some degree.

So restoration professionals are realizing that not all illnesses are well-documented, so they shouldn’t rule out any symptom occupants might complain of when handling a known mold exposure.

Seeing Green in Mold
With frightening reports popping up across the country, many distributors might see an opportunity to educate their customers on a hot indoor environmental quality topic. “But it only creates a long-lasting, meaningful opportunity if you’re educated and can be a valuable resource to your customers,” says Steve Ashkin, owner of Healthy Housekeeping Solutions, a consulting firm in Bloomington, Ind. “If you use mold just for marketing purposes, you’re headed for trouble.

“The challenge is to not get caught up in hysteria,” cautions Ashkin. “Yes, if you have Stachybotrys in a school, you should shut down the school and remediate it, because exposure is life-threatening. But just because something is molded doesn’t mean you should jump.”

He cites the asbestos crisis of the ’70s and ’80s as an example of how building owners and their service providers can get caught up in remediation hysteria. Many media reports have questioned whether toxic molds will be the next asbestos-type scare, but Ashkin believes that the only thing the two have in common is the potential for unwarranted concern. While there are cases in which asbestos removal was justified — if the insulation wasn’t intact or if the building was being renovated — panic drove thousands of American businesses and schools to fix a non-existent problem, he says.

Before the focus moves to mold clean-up, Ashkin suggests first learning about problematic molds. Then distributors can show their customers how to properly test a sample to determine the type and toxicity before spending time or money on fixing it.

Now may be a good time for distributors looking to expand their product lines to consider mold remediation — because the field is so new, there isn’t a lot of competition, says Allen. Plus, as facilities move toward “one-stop shopping,” distributors can diversify into this area to supply their existing customers.

The mold-remediation business is “fledgling, but potentially lucrative — and risky,” explains Allen. “If you do it wrong, you can make it worse.”

For example, a big mistake is removing the mold without fixing the moisture source. If there’s hidden condensation or a plumbing leak, the mold will grow back. Another mistake is not completely removing the mold. If the mold is not removed or conditions cause it to return, the building’s structure could be damaged, or people could become ill, Allen says.

To avoid making these mistakes, training is available for those who want to learn. Because of the increase in mold-related problems, the Institute of Inspection, Cleaning and Restoration recently added mold abatement courses to its Water Damage Restoration Technician certification program found at www.iicrc.org.

Knowing When to Say When
Knowing the procedure for removing mold is a matter of training and education. But unfortunately, knowing what to do when encountering mold in the general course of one’s workday is another problem entirely. That’s because without any standards, facility operators don’t have guidelines for identifying, isolating or handling molds. This is another reason that education for the distributor is so important.

Still, even if you have no desire to branch into mold remediation or the related products, you can become a valuable partner to your customer if you can offer suggestions.

A small colony of less dangerous mold (mildew, for example) may be easily removed with bleach, but obviously, a room full of Stachybotrys should be turned over to someone with experience. As always, the more distributors can help their customers deal with obstacles like mold, the more they will be seen as trusted, valuable partners.

For more information on mold, see the U.S. Environmental Protection agency’s site.

Stacie H. Whitacre is the associate editor of Contracting Profits magazine.