What is Professional Mould Removal?

**It's important to note that we use mould remediation and mould removal interchangeably to refer to our full PureHome service. Other companies may use the terms to refer to different elements of their services. We have defined both as customers search both terms and we want to be clear on how we define each.**

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(Step 1) Mould Survey: Determining the Causes of Mould Growth

A professional mould removal and remediation service often begins with ascertaining the specific cause of mould growth in a given property. Our technicians - all mould specialists - begin every visit by conducting a survey which is returned to you in the form of a Mould and Condensation Report. The purpose of this is to ascertain what the likely cause(s) of the mould - a type of fungus - is, the source of moisture and make recommendations about how to reduce condensation and excess moisture. Mould is most frequently caused by condensation; damp and mould are very often found together. Condensation is water vapour which, when it comes into contact with a surface, condenses into surface moisture. It can saturate building materials like wallpaper and plaster, meaning walls, ceilings and windows become damp. Given that mould feeds on damp, mould in homes is usually the result of excess moisture. The condensation itself is often caused by a combination of behaviours and poor ventilation. Things like drying clothes indoors, showering without opening the bathroom windows, cooking without using an extractor fan and even heating the home without allowing the humid air to ventilate, all can cause excess condensation and moisture. When a wall or ceiling is allowed to remain damp over a period of time, the damp wall or damp ceiling becomes an ideal breeding ground for mould.

Mould can also be caused by structural defects within the property. Cracks and holes in the masonry, broken guttering and compromised or missing insulation can all cause damp. Penetrating damp, structural damp and rising damp may all be terms you're familiar with. This is how your home (walls, ceilings, floors) can become damp unrelated to owner/ tenant behaviour and poor ventilation.

Before beginning any remedial treatment, our technician will also take an air sample. They repeat this step upon concluding treatment. This is sent off to an independent laboratory for analysis. It tells us what type of mould (often multiple) have been detected in the property and how concentrated the spore count is, which indicates the severity of the mould problem.

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(Step 2) Pure Maintenance Patented Dry Fog: Comprehensive Mould Removal

Once the initial inspection has been completed, our technician will proceed to the mould removal stage. In order to get rid of the mould and improve overall air quality, they begin by identifying any mould colonies (visible patches of mould). They wipe the mould colonies with InstaPURE, our sterilant, which immediately begins the process of lysis, whereby the cell wall of the mould spores are eroded by the sterilant and the nuclei within are denatured. This effectively renders the mould into 'inert nothingness'. Whilst it looks like the wipedown is just to clean mould that's visible, it also removes the biofilm coating your surfaces, allowing for deeper penetration when it comes to the next stage: the application of our patented dry fog.

Our technician will then begin systematically filling your property with the first of two fogs that make our process unique. The first is the 'dry fog' you'll see across our website and hear if you speak to any of our customer consultants. The importance of the first dog being dry is due its inability to condense on surfaces at the particle size in which we force it. We create positive air pressure, room by room, meaning the fog is forced into every nook and cranny of a room. It is forced to dwell on all surfaces, penetrate soft furnishings and even get under floorboards/ behind cavity walls. The fog consists of our sterilant, InstaPURE, which we've previously described. It is unparallelled in its ability to remove mould; mould growing or dormant will be rendered inert by exposure to our sterilant. Airborne spores, due to the fog's inability to condense on surfaces, will also be systematically destroyed by the sterilant. Due to the condensed size of the sterilant, it can penetrate any space mould has done. Our sterilant will get rid of mould anywhere it exists in your property. All mould strains are destroyed by the sterilant (even the dreaded black mould - though there is no singular genus of mould known as 'black mould' - for more read our article here).

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(Step 3) Antimicrobial Film: How We Stop Mould From Coming Back

Once the mould on your surfaces, in your air and in your soft furnishings and clothing has been eradicated, we begin the next step in mould removal process; preventing it from returning. Our mould remediation technician will begin the application of EverPURE, an antimicrobial film. They do this systematically, moving from room to room. The antimicrobial film is administered as a 'wet' fog, as we need it to condense on surfaces. Once it comes into contact with anything solid, it creates a covalent bond. In simple terms, it becomes one with the surface. If viewed through a microscope, it would resemble a bed of nails. The nails are carbon spikes and the antimicrobial film works by electrostatically attracting any mould spores reintroduced to the property to it, puncturing their cell walls on impact - what's known as a mechanical kill. It is imperceptible to touch and sight and is completely family safe. Our mould removal technician, as mentioned above, will leave you with a report which contains, amongst many other findings, advice on how to minimise moisture and humidity in the home. If this is adhered to, there's no reason our antimicrobial film won't last for a very long time indeed, ensuring your home stays mould free and full of clean air. InstaPURE and EverPURE combined with the adoption of our specialist mould remediation technician's recommendations - as per their report - will help prevent mould from returning. Our ultimate goal is to make your home a safe space where any mould in your property is gone.

Upon concluding the dry fogging of our sterilant to remove the mould and the application of the antimicrobial film to get rid of all the mould in your permanently, our technician finishes up by taking another air sample. This, like the first, is sent to an independent, accredited laboratory in the United States. The 'before test' and 'after test' form the quantitative, tangible proof that we've done what we said we'd do. This will also be returned to you in the form of a report, seperate to the technician's mould and condensation report. Best of all, providing there are no ongoing leaks or structural/ ventilation issues, our technician will offer you a 1-year guarantee. If the mould comes back, so do we - for free.