People wonder why so much value is placed on having an indoor environmental professional do the testing and write the scope of work. A person might think why should I spend hundreds of dollars to test or verify what is in there, where if I spend ten dollars at the local home improvement store I can buy a home mold test kit. There are some critical reasons to hire an IEP to perform your mold remediation scope of work. One of which is that the kit just says you have mold.
A mold test kit may seem like a huge cost savings compared to an IEP, it’s actually not a cost savings. A mold test can only help you determine if you have mold in your home, but now how to solve the problem or tell you what the numbers mean. The test covers the basics of what an IEP does, and still doesn’t do it correctly. An IEP because their specialized team can determine exactly where the mold in the home is coming from and they can write a scope of work. This scope of work is valuable to a mold remediation company because it can show the steps that need to be taken, along with the techniques that need to be used. Another critical factor is that home mold tests are not accurate.
When using a home test kit, a person should be careful about the test results themselves, most of the time they are not a trained environmental scientist, whereas an IEP is trained scientists. Not being a trained scientist means you are more likely to need to be careful how you test, as there could be cross contamination. In addition, the mold test, due to its simplicity, shows all the areas of the house and not the specific room. IEPs can pinpoint exactly where the problem is and how to remedy it with the help of a professional mold remediation company in a thorough manner.
Another important factor to remember is that without an IEP, the onus is on you as a homeowner that you have removed all mold in accordance with IICRC S520 guidelines. Also, if the property owner were to sell the property, they would be able to transfer the property without mold-related issues. This is important to keep in mind in today’s highly litigious society, where people file a lawsuit without even giving it a second thought. All of this adds to the value of having an IEP.
The IEP covers important areas that a simple home mold test cannot cover. First is the test, which is much more accurate than the home test equivalent. Second, they can advise the mold remediation company on how to handle the remediation work and where it needs to be done through a written scope. Third, they can appear in a court of law as expert witnesses to protect you from potential litigation.
