Drywall mold

[markvid]

Long story short, the faucet is my garage is basically up against the wall, so every time I'd use it, it would leak and run down the drywall.
I always thought I had given it a chance to dry, but today, I looked at it and there were a lot of tiny black spots.
I Lysoled it, followed by a good wiping down with straight Clorox.
Also, now there is a fan running on it at high speed so whatever moisture I added today dries out.
Also, the tape between pieces had some black on it, so I just took it off and pitched it.
With 3 small kids, I don't need a mold infestation in the house. I don't believe it's gone inside, as wiping the Clorox did take some of the surface of the wall off, and it appeared that there was nothing underneath.
Bottom line, does anyone have any suggestions for making sure that whatever is there can be killed? I think next week, I'll have a drywall guy come and cut that part out, but should I replace it with mold-resistant stuff so I can actually keep using that tap or should I just not bother?

 

[Armchair_QB]

You need to rip out the drywall and replace it with the waterproof drywall. Don't screw around with mold. You should also look at putting some sort of splash guard on that part of the wall too.

We just replaced a broken water heater and I didn't even think about trying to save any of the drywall or baseboards that took on water, just ripped 'em out and replaced them.

 

[markvid]

Yeah, I think we're gonna need to do a replacement, I'm just looking at keeping it from spreading until we do this (hopefully next week).

 

[Rough Mix]

What A_QB said. Georgia Pacific has a mold resistant drywall product.

Use bleach to clean the mold off. Lysol won't kill the mold. I'd use bleach in a spray bottle. I'd bleach the studs after you tear out the drywall, too.

Wear a mask when cleaning mold.

If the faucet leaks because it needs repair get it fixed. It the faucet is set in too deep to the wall change that when you do the tear out. You have to find a way to keep the water off the drywall and studs underneath.

 

[markvid]

What AQ_B said. Georgia Pacific has a mold resistant drywall product.

Use bleach to clean the mold off. Lysol won't kill the mold. I'd use bleach in a spray bottle. I'd bleach the studs after you tear out the drywall, too.

Wear a mask when cleaning mold.

If the faucet leaks because it needs repair get it fixed. It the faucet is set in too deep to the wall change that when you do the tear out. You have to find a way to keep the water off the drywall and studs underneath.

Actually, it was the hose connection to it. It didn't have a gasket, and I took care of that problem, now it's fine. Doesn't leak a bit.

 

[Rough Mix]

Dunno about running the fan. You might be blowing out any mold spores you weren't able to get with the bleach. Is the area that wet?

 

[markvid]

Once I did the bleach, it is.
And we're supposed to get an inch of rain tonight-tomorrow, so I can't leave the garage doors open to vent and get a breeze through there.

 

[Rough Mix]

If it's wet from the bleach I'd let it air dry. You should google this. If it's wide spread call in a mold abatement apecialist. Like A_QB said, don't mess with mold.

 

[markvid]

If it's wet from the bleach I'd let it air dry. You should google this. If it's wide spread call in a mold abatement apecialist. Like A_QB said, don't mess with mold.

Ok, fan is off...it's not wide spread, maybe an area a foot wide and 2 feet tall, maybe. It seems dry now and I don't see any black spots now at all. But that doesn't mean I won't call Monday. That area is going to be replaced.

 

[Armchair_QB]

If it's wet from the bleach I'd let it air dry. You should google this. If it's wide spread call in a mold abatement apecialist. Like A_QB said, don't mess with mold.

Ok, fan is off...it's not wide spread, maybe an area a foot wide and 2 feet tall, maybe. It seems dry now and I don't see any black spots now at all. But that doesn't mean I won't call Monday. That area is going to be replaced.

The problem isn't what you can see, it's what you can't see. The bleach is only going to kill what's on the surface.

if you can get by with it, you should rip the drywall out yourself. Don't wait 'til Monday.

 

[trifectarich]

Yeah, you need two professionals, one to replace all the damaged drywall, one to redo whatever plumbing will ensure there are no further leaks.

Good luck.

 

[markvid]

If it's wet from the bleach I'd let it air dry. You should google this. If it's wide spread call in a mold abatement apecialist. Like A_QB said, don't mess with mold.

Ok, fan is off...it's not wide spread, maybe an area a foot wide and 2 feet tall, maybe. It seems dry now and I don't see any black spots now at all. But that doesn't mean I won't call Monday. That area is going to be replaced.

The problem isn't what you can see, it's what you can't see. The bleach is only going to kill what's on the surface.

if you can get by with it, you should rip the drywall out yourself. Don't wait 'til Monday.

Can't. I really need to get moving to Philly.
I did rip out a small hole, looks like nothing formed on the back side of the wall.

 

[Armchair_QB]

Yeah, you need two professionals, one to replace all the damaged drywall, one to redo whatever plumbing will ensure there are no further leaks.

Good luck.

Replacing a small area of drywall isn't that tough. Especially if it's in the garage. Hire a plumber for the water line if you need to but you can probably do the drywall yourself.

 

[playthrough]

Thread title reminded me of freelance work I used to do for a paper's Home section, writing about Realtors, home-selling strategies, etc. I had a better chance of getting the word "motherf*cker" in print than "mold."

 

[leo1]

by the way, if you ever hire an expert to test for mold, don't hire a contractor. hire a microbiologist. we found out a few weeks ago that my wife was allergic to mold so we needed to get the house tested. contractors have an inherent conflict of interest in that they will point out things that need to be fixed. some are also quacks. some use dogs, which is a joke. some do nothing more than a visual inspection.

microbiologists are actual scientists. they will test the air quality and give recommendations, and you're on your own to get any work done that they suggest.

 

[Inky_Wretch]

Use HardieBacker instead of drywall around the faucet. It's designed to be used around sinks, showers, etc.

If you're hiring it out, go ahead and take a hammer to the bad drywall before they get there. That way you'll save a little on demo costs and have a better idea if the mold is contained right there.

 

[2muchcoffeeman]

MV: Check to see if your home insurance will cover the repairs. It may not, but it's worth a shot.