What is behind the plaster
Plasterboard, timber and insulation soak up water and hold it for weeks after the surface is dry to the touch. A moisture meter and a thermal camera see that. A hand does not.
After a flood or a leak
the wall is dry. the air may not be.
After water damage everyone looks at the wall. The problem is in what the wall has already released into the air, and in what stayed wet behind it. A mold test after flooding measures both, and gives you a report you can hand to the insurer, the adjuster and the contractor before someone decides for you that everything is fine.
- 48hours to germination in wet material
- 2samples: before and after remediation
- 10-14business days to results and report
Why looking is not enough
three things the eye cannot see.
Flooding is usually handled in stages: pump, dry, paint. Every stage looks like the end of the story. A test is the only way to know whether it actually is.
What is already in the air
Mold that grew during the wet week keeps releasing spores after the source is fixed. Spore concentration against outdoors is a number, not a feeling.
Who decides it is fine
The drying company, the contractor and the insurer are all parties to the matter. An independent laboratory result is the one thing in the file with no interest in the outcome.
What we measure
moisture, spores, and what grew.
The test after water damage combines three methods, each answering a different question.
Visit and air samples
Moisture mapping of walls and floor, thermal imaging, air samples in the affected rooms and outdoors for comparison.
About this methodSurface samples
Tape or swab from every stain, for species identification at the lab. Stachybotrys and Chaetomium point to prolonged wetness.
About this methodERMI test
When the flood was months ago: DNA from the dust says what grew in the home over time, even if the air is clean today.
About this methodFrom wet to airborne
what happens in the wall, and when.
Mold is a matter of time. This timeline explains why "we dried everything" is not the end of the story, and why a test before remediation and one after are worth more than one.
0 to 48 hours: moisture only
The material is saturated, spores that were in the air anyway land on it, but nothing grows yet. Fast drying at this stage really does prevent most of the problem. It is also why moisture should be documented now: a dated reading is the proof of when the damage happened.
2 to 7 days: germination
In plasterboard and timber left above 16 percent moisture, spores germinate and start building hyphae. There is no stain yet. There is a faint smell, usually in the morning and in a closed room.
One week to one month: growth and spread
The hyphae reach the surface and produce new spores. Now the concentration in the room rises above outdoors. At this stage the stain can still be behind a panel, a wardrobe or wallpaper, and only an air sample will find it.
Drying and remediation: the first test
Before the wall is closed, one round of air and surface samples establishes what was there and which material has to come out. That is the document that defines the scope of work with the contractor and the insurer, instead of arguing about it afterwards.
After remediation: the second test
Same rooms, same method, one to two weeks after the work ends. If the concentration is back at the outdoor level, the remediation worked and there is paper to show it. If not, the contractor comes back at their expense, not yours.
The two tests together cost less than opening one unnecessary wall, and far less than closing a wall that is still wet.
What you receive
a report the insurer reads.
The report is written so an adjuster, a restoration contractor or an insurance representative can use it as it is, without coming back to us with questions.
- A dated moisture map: Moisture meter readings and thermal images with location and date, before and after remediation.
- Lab results per sample: Spore concentrations per room against outdoors, and species identification from the surface samples, from the partner laboratory.
- A conclusion on source and extent: Where the water came from, what was affected, and which material needs replacing. That is what defines the size of the claim.
- An explanation by phone: We are available to walk you, the adjuster or the contractor through the report. Clients have submitted it to insurers, building committees and neighbours.
Who orders
who orders this test.
- Homeowners after a flood
- Tenants after a leak from upstairs
- Property adjusters
- Drying and restoration companies
- Building committees
Before you book
What people ask after a flood.
How long after a flood should a mold test be done?
Two points in time. The first within the first week, before walls are closed or flooring replaced: it records the moisture and the extent of the damage in real time, and that is the document the insurer and the contractor work from. The second one to two weeks after remediation ends, to confirm the concentration in the air is back at the outdoor level. If the flood was months ago and the smell remains, one test now with an ERMI from the dust is enough to know what grew in the meantime.
The drying company said the wall is dry. Why is a test still needed?
Drying measures the wall. The test measures the air and what has already grown. Mold that germinated during the wet week keeps releasing spores from dry material, and the drying company's moisture meter is usually read at the surface rather than deep in the plasterboard. The drying company is also a party to the matter: it is signing off its own work. An independent lab result is what closes the file with the insurer.
Is the report suitable for a water damage insurance claim?
Yes. The report includes a dated moisture map with readings and thermal images, lab results per sample against outdoors, species identification from every stain, and a conclusion on the water source and the extent of damage. Clients have submitted it to insurers, adjusters and building committees. We are available to explain it to the adjuster by phone. We do not represent you in the claim and do not give legal advice.
The flood came from the neighbour upstairs. Does the test help against them?
That is exactly the question the test answers: where the water came from. Moisture mapping with a thermal camera tells a leak from above apart from condensation and from penetration through the exterior wall, and records the path with dates. With that document the building committee or the neighbour's insurer can move forward, instead of both sides bringing photographs of the same ceiling.
Before you book
Worth reading.
Other situations
not your situation?
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