About the name
“Black mold” gets used for a lot of things. Sometimes people mean Stachybotrys chartarum, a dark mold that grows on wet drywall and paper. More often it’s whatever dark growth showed up on the bathroom ceiling or behind the washing machine. You can’t tell which by color, and for a homeowner the difference rarely changes the plan.
Where it turns up in Spokane homes
The dark stuff usually follows water that sat for a while:
- Bathroom ceilings and walls where the exhaust fan is weak, missing or vents into the attic
- Behind and under washers, dishwashers and refrigerators with slow leaks
- Window sills and frames that collect condensation every winter
- Basement walls and the bottom of finished drywall in older homes
- Around HVAC registers and air handlers where condensation forms
How removal works
A remediation company starts by sealing the work area with plastic sheeting and setting up negative air pressure, so spores get pulled out through a filter instead of drifting into the hallway. Porous materials with growth in them, like drywall, carpet pad and insulation, are cut out and bagged. Wood framing and other hard surfaces are cleaned, sometimes sanded, and dried. Some companies apply a coating afterward. Ask what they use and why.
What a written quote should spell out: the square footage being removed, what gets replaced and by whom, how the moisture source will be fixed, and whether clearance testing is included.
Mold on attic sheathing is its own job. See attic mold removal.