hdyankee
06-12-2005, 03:17 PM
My mold problem is similar to bedazzle in some ways. I would like to stop the mold problem before it gets worse and I don’t know smack about HVAC.
Back ground:
My home is in Fredericksburg Virginia, seven years old (2200 square feet), two story, and the craw space is over 36” clearance for the most part. Air is conditioned by York system Diamond 80 - HDQ24SC (in the craw), Heat Pump Model - E1FDQ24SQ6E (Outside), AC/Unit outside - H1RA024S06A, I have another unit in the attic.
I was in the craw and noticed the mold during a pest inspection. The mold is on the bottom of the rafters, in some places on the rafters where the wood is exposed and mold on some of the insulation between the rafters. The insulation is the fiberglass role type. There is also some mold on the AC pipes and the unit itself.
The vapor barrier is terrible. It is not snug against the load bearing columns and it does not meet the cinder block wall in all locations. Not to mention the thousand holes in it from my dog running around and there is nothing under the Diamond 80.
There is condensation coming off the unit under the house. The technician told me to insulate the bare metal on the unit to reduce condensation and to insulate the pipes from the unit. It looks like whoever installed the unit did not insulate part of the air handler. I used some towels and got up about 2 quarts of water.
I am monitoring the RH level in the craw and it is consistently over 60 percent. I closed the vents around the craw and it seems like the RH is worse. My question here is should leave the vents open for now. Also should I buy a dehumidifier and what kind. They vents are not air tight and I wont be done with the project for about a month. My other question is the main square air pipes that run the length of the house have a lot of condensation coming off them and is that normal
Plan:
First I plan on cleaning and insulating the unit and pipes under the house first. Second step is to clean the rafters and insulation. Does anyone recommend this mold killing product (BenzaRid) http://www.traskresearch.com/mold.htm. Or a product called Microbe guard http://www.microbeguardinc.com/detail.php?PID=2; Or is there another alternative? I thought about Clorox but I don’t want to stink up the house. Plus I read that Clorox does not penetrate wood to kill the mold on the inside. Lastly I think I need to put up another vapor barrier, close the vents and insulate over them to block all the holes etc.
Any suggestions are welcome.
Back ground:
My home is in Fredericksburg Virginia, seven years old (2200 square feet), two story, and the craw space is over 36” clearance for the most part. Air is conditioned by York system Diamond 80 - HDQ24SC (in the craw), Heat Pump Model - E1FDQ24SQ6E (Outside), AC/Unit outside - H1RA024S06A, I have another unit in the attic.
I was in the craw and noticed the mold during a pest inspection. The mold is on the bottom of the rafters, in some places on the rafters where the wood is exposed and mold on some of the insulation between the rafters. The insulation is the fiberglass role type. There is also some mold on the AC pipes and the unit itself.
The vapor barrier is terrible. It is not snug against the load bearing columns and it does not meet the cinder block wall in all locations. Not to mention the thousand holes in it from my dog running around and there is nothing under the Diamond 80.
There is condensation coming off the unit under the house. The technician told me to insulate the bare metal on the unit to reduce condensation and to insulate the pipes from the unit. It looks like whoever installed the unit did not insulate part of the air handler. I used some towels and got up about 2 quarts of water.
I am monitoring the RH level in the craw and it is consistently over 60 percent. I closed the vents around the craw and it seems like the RH is worse. My question here is should leave the vents open for now. Also should I buy a dehumidifier and what kind. They vents are not air tight and I wont be done with the project for about a month. My other question is the main square air pipes that run the length of the house have a lot of condensation coming off them and is that normal
Plan:
First I plan on cleaning and insulating the unit and pipes under the house first. Second step is to clean the rafters and insulation. Does anyone recommend this mold killing product (BenzaRid) http://www.traskresearch.com/mold.htm. Or a product called Microbe guard http://www.microbeguardinc.com/detail.php?PID=2; Or is there another alternative? I thought about Clorox but I don’t want to stink up the house. Plus I read that Clorox does not penetrate wood to kill the mold on the inside. Lastly I think I need to put up another vapor barrier, close the vents and insulate over them to block all the holes etc.
Any suggestions are welcome.