Mold Inspection and Air Quality Testing in Arlington and Alexandria, VA
Garden apartments, condo buildings, rowhouses and older brick homes close to the river. We test the air and the building, and put the results in a written report you can act on.
When the water starts in another unit.
Arlington has a large stock of garden apartments built between the 1930s and the 1950s, many of them now condos. Both cities also have newer mid-rise condo buildings. In shared buildings, a leak often starts above or beside you, and more than one person needs the same answer.
- Leaks from next door. A moisture map shows which walls, ceilings and floors are wet and where the water came from, so the owner, the association and the insurer work from one record.
- Shared air systems. We look inside the air handler and ducts with a borescope, because a damp system can carry a problem from room to room.
- Older buildings. Original plaster, floor tile and pipe insulation in older apartment buildings are sampled for asbestos before a renovation disturbs them.
Old brick, low ground and damp basements.
Old Town Alexandria has brick rowhouses and townhomes, many of them more than a century old. Some blocks near the Potomac sit low, and the city has a long-running flood mitigation project for the waterfront. Old masonry and below-grade rooms hold moisture, and a musty smell is often the first sign.
- Basements and cellars. Moisture readings on the masonry and the floor and an infrared scan show where the water is before anything is opened.
- After a flood. If water came in from outside, a moisture map documents the extent for you, your contractor and your insurer.
- Air sampling. Spore trap samples in the rooms of concern, compared to an outdoor control taken the same day.
The right test for the question.
We pick the sampling after the walkthrough, so you only pay for tests the home actually calls for.
Test the old materials first.
Many homes and apartment buildings in both cities are older than the 1980s. Our principal is a Virginia DPOR licensed asbestos inspector, #3303004758, and we sample only what the work will touch.
- The permit rule. Under Code of Virginia § 36-99.7, buildings first permitted before 1985 need a licensed inspection before a renovation or demolition permit. Homes and buildings with four or fewer units are exempt, but exempt is not asbestos-free.
- Larger buildings. Apartment and condo buildings with more than four units do not get that exemption.
- Mold credentials. For mold and air quality work, he is a Certified Indoor Environmental Consultant (CIEC).
Homes in Arlington and Alexandria.
We have inspected homes in both cities, mostly for mold and moisture. Every visit follows the same order: history first, then moisture, then sampling only where it answers a question.
Arlington and Alexandria answers.
Do you come to Arlington and Alexandria?
Yes. Our residential area reaches about an hour's drive from our Silver Spring office, which takes in both cities. Mileage is billed on longer drives, and we tell you on the call whether it applies.
Water came through my condo ceiling from the unit above. Who should hire you?
Anyone with a stake in the answer: the unit owner, the association or the property manager. We do not sell remediation or repairs, so the report is written to be read by all of them and by the insurer.
My Old Town basement smells musty. What do you do?
We take moisture readings on the walls and floor, scan with infrared and sample the air against an outdoor control. The report shows where the water is and whether the air is affected.
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.
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.
One call for Arlington and Alexandria.
Weekdays 8 to 5. Tell us the building and what you are noticing, and we will quote it on the call. Also serving Fairfax County, Washington DC and Maryland.