During the mold removal process, I often get asked the question: What should I do with my personal belongings and content? Well, personal belongings are clothes and other personal items, and content is appliances, furniture, photos, and other contents within the affected area. My answer is that we need to meet and review the items and a decision should be made upon the following considerations, what is the monetary or sentimental value of the item being reviewed when compared to the cost of restoring it? If the cost to restore the item exceeds the prior two considerations, the item should be discarded. Especially with black mold.
UHS provides personal content restoration services; these are the guideline UHS would follow in handling personal content restoration:
CLOTHING – Clothes can be safely washed from contaminated areas as long as washing labels instructions are followed. Such as machine wash or dry clean, specific instructions apply such as hot or cold water, delicates, do not spin dry, or others. If the manufacturer’s label permits, laundry sanitizer can reduce odors and microorganisms. Bleach can be used with white fabrics if permitted by the manufacturer’s label. Non-Bleach safe fabrics should be washed with color-safe bleach products such as those containing sodium perborate or sodium percarbonate if permitted by manufacturer’s directions. Leather Items, if lightly contaminated can be cleaned with a leather soap and treated with a fungicide that has been tested and proven to be safe on leather items. These recommendations generally only apply to lightly contaminated items. If heavily contaminated, consideration should be given to disposing of them, only with our client's permission. Personal content damaged by Mold
Personal content damaged by Mold
FURNITURE – Hard surface, meaning that moisture is not absorbed, and deep grain stains do not develop, such as refrigerators, stoves, or vanity tops. Hard surface furniture can be cleaned by HEP vacuuming and cleaned with a fungicide. Non-hard surfaces which absorb moisture and develop deep dark stains are challenging to restore. Still, again considerations should be given to restore the value of the item versus the cost to remediate it. Lightly contaminated, fleecy furniture with no moisture damage can sometimes be HEPA vacuumed. Disposal is typically advisable if visually contaminated with mold or previously wet stained. Any items to be disposed of will be done only with our client's permission.
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