Identifying Age of Mould in a Water Loss and Special Challenges of Sewer Backups
Appropriate remediation of buildings affected by sewage backups can be a special challenge, since large numbers of buildings can often be affected by a single storm incident. Building restoration following a sewer backup or any water loss should occur quickly to remove excess water and solids and address affected building materials. The work should be completed by a certified professional restoration contractor. Often these firms are stretched to their limits by major flood incidents with multiple sites to attend, so being efficient in their work is critical.
Mould growth can occur in as little as 48 hours time following a water loss, provided conditions are appropriate. If a professional consultant is brought in quickly following a loss, mould sampling can be done to determine if pre-existing mould growth already exists in the home. This information can save considerable money on the remediation project for the insurance company in excluding older damages. While there is no laboratory test available to tell you the exact age of any mould, a fast response time, site inspection and sampling following the loss, along with our expert observations and analysis can often provide answers as to when the mould growth began and the source or sources of moisture responsible. There are many other indications of potential older pre-existing damages within a building which our experts are trained to identify.
If certain mould species are identified in a timeframe that is not consistent with their required growth phase, this can indicate it is a pre-existing condition. We work with contractors and insurance companies to respond to claims immediately to conduct a detailed assessment. Yes, we do work weekends and evenings when necessary. There can be problems if there are delays in the claim being reported, which may make the analysis more difficult. However, some mould species require 7-10 days to establish, so the window of opportunity may be larger in some cases and identification of this mould early on helps to separate new damage from old. Delays in having an assessment done will pose issues with this however.
While mould growth can be a major problem following a water loss, people often forget about potentially harmful pathogens left behind on surfaces contacted by the Category 3 water (such as sewage). Health effects to those exposed can be devastating as witnessed by past events of E.Coli exposure through drinking water in Walkerton. The highest risk often occurs in children, the elderly and immune compromised or suppressed individuals, as their bodies cannot fight the pathogens as well if they are exposed. If mould growth or sewage contamination becomes an issue in a building, containment should be immediately addressed to isolate the affected area(s) and the use of drying equipment and HEPA air scrubbers evaluated. Air scrubbers vented to the exterior within a containment zone provides a negative air pressure differential within the containment zone(s) and filter harmful airborne mould spores or pathogens out of the indoor environment. It also ensures air flows from clean spaces to contaminated spaces, and not the other way around.
Many pathogens can be found in Category 3 water, including harmful bacteria and viruses. The bacteria of concern in sewage is primarily gram negative bacteria such as E.Coli, Pseudomonas, Shigella and Salmonella, which can be transmitted from hand to mouth contact. Children often make the basement a play area, the elderly may have an in-law suite in a basement, which is where sewer backups typically affect. Kids being kids will put their hands on everything and increase their chances of contracting harmful pathogens if the surfaces have not been properly cleaned and sanitized/sterilized. Restoration contractors use a number of products to clean and sanitize surfaces contacted by sewage water, but mistakes do happen and areas can be missed. Alcohol based sterilizers are some of the best products to use on affected materials as it will kill essentially any bacterial related pathogen it comes across on contact.
Bacterial swabs can be collected from surfaces and finish materials, or even contents following professional cleaning to assess the effectiveness of the treatment and identify if harmful gram negative bacteria (such as fecal coliforms) are present. Contents can be evaluated to determine whether they can or cannot be effectively cleaned and if so if the cleaning was successfully done by the contractor. Generally, any contents affected by sewage however should be discarded. The swabs are collected and sent to a specialized laboratory where they are cultured for approximately 24 hours and analyzed to identify what coliforms are present, if any.
This type of analysis is very cost effective and can be done in conjunction with mould clearance testing (if applicable) or can be done separately at the end of a project not involving mould abatement, prior to residents re-occupying the area. These simple steps will put the homeowners at ease and eliminate potential liability for insurance companies and restoration contractors, knowing that there are no potential biological threats pertaining to the loss remaining in the home following the restoration work. It is also crucial in identifying appropriate and detailed scopes of work required for a restoration project and ensures the work being undertaken is specific to the insured loss and separates damages which are not related. We have the experts to give you the important answers you need.
