mikeyjw600

That was only once picture. here is another of black colonizing mold near the bottom left. its not the "crumbling foundation" that's an issue I realize after many, many years the mortared joints erode due to freeze/thaw and moisture seeping through. The crumbling spall I understand is normal. What's not normal is when you take a piece of grit off and almost pass out from the moldy odor. What's also not normal is black mold showing up on the crumbly walls. if mold growth like that is normal, and you've seen hundreds worse, then man that's scary after what the CDC says about side affects of mold. I would also never be able to sell my property with the walls looking that crumbly and decayed and with black residue and mold on it. Its not uncommon for the walls to be "maintained" and cleaned up and repointed if needed. I don't see how that could be a bad thing, especially if it helps the mold issue and air quality throughout the whole house. So this is more then just normal random flaking it appears. Click to Enlarge 100.37 KB

I do agree with you the previous owners should not have put drywall up in front of the stone foundation essentially sealing it from any airflow and not allowing circulation and allowing moisture to dissipate. the basement has been "as is" since I bought the house. They are essentially gutting the basement and taking out all materials that are "food for mold". They are going to HEPA vac and HEPA filter under negative pressure and get all of that junk out of there. So I'm left with an empty stone foundation basement down there. that is the goal and fine with me as nobody lives down there except for laundry and space for utilities. that will open up the whole area for dehumidification, as well as the block windows that have block window units for fresh air circulation, sunlight, etc. with the water intrusion issue fixed, there should be minimal moisture weeping in through the stone. I understand that there will ALWAYS be moisture moving from outside (wet) to inside (dry) but with the major water issues fixed and opening up the room to fresh air, circulation, etc that should improve the mold situation drastically and I think that is hard to argue with!? cant have much of a rebuttal on that? That leaves me with the sh** looking, smelly, mold infected decaying mortar spall. many old stone companies power wash/scrape these walls and repoint if that is even needed (which will further help moisture from getting in). How is doing all that going to rip me off and still leave me with a mold problem. How can one even say that all this wont drastically help this mold problem? Seems like it will essentially fix the problem?

Thanks Steven for the reply probably the most helpful yet! I actually found some great information on this project after hours of research. I didn't realize there was a "mold is gold" epidemic that existed so I guess I can see what's going on here. but if the basement smells musty, mildew, mold smelling, there was history of water leakage, there are visible signs of mold, contact mold testing and air quality testing came back detecting mold... I don't think im getting low blowed by a "crooked" remediation company. I don't know how I could be wrong on that? lol I found a great video of removing the spall and decayed mortar, dirt, debris that is all musty and housing mold/bacteria from getting wet in the past. some people pressure wash or some people scrape the walls. re-pointing does not look like it will be too much of an issue as most of the rocks are pretty solid and secure. I guess I will find out if there are crevasses or joints that need re-appointing after the walls are cleaned up. I just want the mold gone and im trying to be diligent so I don't get screwed over. So im not too sure what all the fuss is about by I am learning a lot about my stone foundation now. lol I have found that you should not paint stone field foundation walls as you don't want a barrier that traps water inside. I am just concerned about them applying a antimicrobial coating on the walls and if that is ok or not. It would be GOOD as it would kill and inhibit mold growth but I don't want it affecting the foundation. I guess ill research some area masons and have a chat if nobody really knows. Thanks!

the base line data to validate this statement (that mold is present) is the control they placed outside. they ran the test inside the house and outside the house. Yes, there is mold spores naturally all over the world, but the lab results came back showing many more spores inside then outside. and it also showed mold spores inside that didn't even exist in the outside air. So there is no doubt that mold is growing in the house. Are you guys saying that I should not let this mold remediation company remove the mold? they did spot tests also on the spall which came back high counts of mold spores. I guess I am not sure why I should leave mold growing in my house? Why would I want to leave the "spall" (thanks for the new term) on the stone wall when it is musty smelling and all over the bottom floor. I am really interested in why this is on the wall?! if they scrap it off, is this ok? does this terrible smelling, old, dirty stuff all over have anything to do with stabilizing anything? its so weak and brittle im sure there is no use for it being there only to be the home for mold spores to grow. Thanks again for the help as I try and figure this out.

1: There was a water issue in the past. the gutters were bad and the sidewalk grade was incorrectly sloped. (these issues have been fixed and I have not seen any visible water/leaks/dripping in the basement for a good 6 months now.) 2: Someone stated they smelled musty/moldy odor on fabrics, etc witch prompted me to get it looked at tested. 3: Americas best clean and restoration came out and did an air quality test (on the main home level, as that is where we spend most our time, as they are certain mold is in the basement, made sense to test where we live mostly for health reasons) 4: They sent the air test to an outside laboratory and came back with elevated mold spores of Penicillium and Stachbotrys (witch is apparently a pretty bad one.) 5: They looked over the basement and said more then likely is mold behind the drywall, baseboards, etc. and he (with his hand) broke off a chunk of the loose, sandy crumbly debris that looks like it is layering the foundation stones and the smell of that material was very musty, odor, mildew smell to it. Since the air quality test came back the way it did, they think possibly of mold growth under the carpets, etc as one there is a mold problem it usually on get worse. 6: I have a 5 year old daughter and health issues with molds causing some major health issues is concerning so I want this fully corrected. 7: They also suggested cleaning and HEPA filtering the furnace vents and ductwork as mold spores possibly are getting transferred around through the HVAC system. That's pretty much the story in #'d points. hope this helps a little bit and im mostly trying to figure out the scrapping of the foundation walls as that definitely needs to be done based on the smell of that piece he showed me. I just don't want the foundation stone underneath or anything to be compromised. Thank you for your help

Hey all. Long story short I have discovered by an air quality test a mold issue in my basement. Pretty much the basement is going to be gutted. I am worried about the foundation work they are going to do. I have a stone foundation with crumbly, brittle, sandy layer on the interior wall. Apparently this is normal? Apparently this inside layer was applied to hold the mortar between the stones in place? Not exactly sure but the company is going to be scrapping the foundation walls and im sure get all the sandy, crumbling material off. Then they are going to apply antimicrobial coating, etc for the mold issue. Do I have to tell them certain techniques with a stone foundation or do the stones need re-appointing or mortar mix added or anything? Just don't want to have a foundation structure issue in the long run. here is a pic or two to show what the walls look like currently before the job gets underway. Thanks for the insight on my foundation! I need all the info I can get!! Click to Enlarge 93.4 KB