Indoor Air Quality and Mold Testing in Montgomery County, MD
Our office is on Glenville Road in Silver Spring, so Montgomery County is our backyard. We cover the whole county, from Takoma Park and Silver Spring to Bethesda, Rockville, Gaithersburg and Potomac, and explain what the results mean in a written report.
A smell, a symptom or a basement you are not sure about.
Most Montgomery County calls start with something you notice: a musty lower level, headaches that ease when you leave the house, a chemical smell after new floors or cabinets, or a leak you want checked before the walls close.
- Musty basement, nothing visible. Many homes here have a basement or split-level lower floor that was finished years after the house was built. We start with moisture readings along the walls and floor and an infrared scan, then take spore trap air samples against an outdoor control.
- Chemical or new-build odor. After a renovation, new flooring or new furniture, we sample for volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and formaldehyde with lab methods built for those questions.
- HVAC and ducts. We look inside the air handler and ducts with a borescope, because a dirty or damp system can spread a problem to every room.
The right test for the question.
We pick the sampling after the walkthrough, so you only pay for tests the house actually calls for.
Mold in the air
Spore trap samples at 15 liters per minute in the rooms of concern, compared to an outdoor control taken the same day.
VOCs
EPA Method TO-15 in a Summa canister, usually over 24 hours, with a speciated list of compounds from the lab.
Radon in the same visit.
Since Oct 1, 2016, Montgomery County requires a radon test within a year before most single-family homes and townhomes settle. If you are selling and also have a mold or air quality question, we can place the radon monitor during the same visit.
More than 25 Montgomery County homes, and a Chevy Chase landmark.
Silver Spring accounts for the largest share, followed by Rockville and Gaithersburg. Most of these visits were mold inspections, the rest asbestos sampling before a renovation.
Montgomery County answers.
Do you come to my part of the county?
Yes. We cover all of Montgomery County from our Silver Spring office, from Takoma Park and Chevy Chase up to Damascus and Poolesville. Mileage only applies on longer drives, and we tell you on the call.
Should I get an air test or a full inspection?
If you have a musty smell or symptoms but nothing visible, an inspection with air samples answers both where the moisture is and whether the air is affected. If the question is a chemical odor, VOC and formaldehyde sampling is the better fit. Tell us what you notice and we will recommend the test on the call.
How soon will I have results?
For mold, the report usually comes within two business days of receiving the lab results, and a 24-hour rush is available. VOC canisters take longer at the laboratory, and we give you that timeline before we sample.
What spore count is a problem?
There are no regulatory limits for airborne mold spores indoors. That is why we compare your indoor results and spore types to an outdoor sample taken the same day, together with what we find on site.
Do you do the mold removal too?
No. We only inspect and test, so our findings are not tied to a repair estimate. If work is needed, the report tells your contractor exactly what and where.
Air quality testing from a Silver Spring office.
Weekdays 8 to 5. Tell us the town and what you are noticing, and we will quote it on the call. Also serving all of Maryland, Washington DC and Northern Virginia.