Mold, Asbestos, Radon and Air Quality Inspections in Maryland
Maryland is home. Our office is on Glenville Road in Silver Spring, and most of our residential work happens within an hour of it: Montgomery and Prince George's County, up to Frederick and across to Baltimore and Annapolis.
Finished basements, split-levels and the lowest floor.
A lot of the suburban Maryland housing around Silver Spring, Bethesda, Rockville and Gaithersburg is post-war single-family homes, many of them split-levels or houses with a basement that was finished years after it was built. The lower level is where we spend most of our time.
- Finished basements. Carpet, paneling and drywall over a foundation wall can hide moisture for years. We map it with pin and pinless meters and infrared before anyone tears anything out.
- Radon at the sale. Since Oct 1, 2016, Montgomery County requires a radon test within a year before most single-family homes and townhomes settle. The lowest livable level is where the test goes. We can run it during the same visit as a mold inspection.
- Split-level and slab additions. Rooms built partly below grade behave like basements, with the same humidity and condensation questions.
Rowhomes and the materials of their era.
Baltimore is inside our residential area. Its rowhomes and older houses often still have the materials that were standard when they were built or last updated, such as 9-inch vinyl floor tile, mastic and pipe insulation, all of which can contain asbestos.
- Before a renovation. We sample the materials the project will disturb and send them to an accredited laboratory, so the contractor knows what can be removed normally and what needs a licensed abatement crew.
- Mold and asbestos together. A wet basement in an older house can mean both questions at once. We have handled Baltimore homes that needed mold, asbestos, or both.
More than 40 Maryland homes, and a Chevy Chase landmark.
Silver Spring alone accounts for more than ten of the homes we have inspected, mostly for mold, a few for asbestos. The rest are spread across the state:
The Ritz-Carlton Residences, Chevy Chase
A unit-by-unit mold and moisture assessment at 8551 Connecticut Avenue, carried out in an occupied luxury building. Moisture mapping guided targeted corrective work, and our verification inspections confirmed the treated areas met the IICRC S520 criteria.
Window walls opened to the studs, Chevy Chase
Where water came through the building envelope, walls were opened to the metal studs so the wet material could be found and removed.
Maryland-specific answers.
Do you come to Baltimore, Annapolis or Frederick?
Yes. Our residential area is about an hour's drive from Silver Spring, and Baltimore is included. Mileage is billed on longer drives, and we tell you on the call whether it applies to your address.
I am selling in Montgomery County. Can you do the radon test?
Yes. Since Oct 1, 2016, Montgomery County requires a radon test within a year before most single-family homes and townhomes settle. An NRPP-certified measurement professional places a continuous monitor in the lowest livable level for at least 48 hours and give you a written report with the hourly data.
Our finished basement smells musty but looks fine. Where do you start?
With the moisture. We take readings along the base of the walls and the floor, scan with infrared, and sample the air against an outdoor control if nothing is visible. The report shows where the water is and what has to come out, if anything.
We are renovating a 1950s or 1960s house. Should we test for asbestos first?
Any building built before 1981 is presumed to contain asbestos until sampling shows otherwise, so sampling comes before renovation that disturbs suspect materials. We scope it to the work you are doing.
Can radon, mold and asbestos be done in one visit?
Often, yes. Tell us everything you need when you call and we will plan the visit around it.
From Silver Spring to Baltimore, one call.
Weekdays 8 to 5. Give us the town and the question and we will quote it on the call. Also serving Washington DC and Northern Virginia.