Is This Mold in a Finished Basement?

White Substance on Basement Beam

I was recently called to a home to inspect a finished basement that had an area of discoloration on the main support beam running across the basement. The homeowner suspected mold. There was a musty odor present, and the discolored substance appeared to be white and powdery. My initial thought was that it was likely mold growth of some kind.

Start Cleaning or Test First?

Fixing mold in a big basement full of stuff can cost a lot of money. It’s hard to get to the moldy spots without moving everything out. That’s why it can be smart to test for mold first. This way, you know for sure if you have mold before spending money to fix it.

Taking Swab Tests

In our case, the homeowner said yes to a mold test. We used swabs to take samples of spots we thought had mold. This test will tell us if it’s really mold or not. Testing is done by rubbing a sterile swab across the area. We then seal the swab in the included tube and send it off to a third party lab. Then we wait for the lab results! It usually only takes a few days.

Basement Swab Test Results

The samples were sent to an accredited lab that determined the area of discoloration was NOT mold. No fungi present in the provided sample indicates that what we are looking at is actually accumulated dust, dirt, or minerals.

This client saved themselves from what could have been a costly remediation project by doing a simple mold test.

Test Results:

• Our Prediction: Yes, This is Mold
• Test Result: No, This is Not Mold

Even the best of us get it wrong sometimes. For the client’s sake, I’m glad this wasn’t mold.

To Be Continued

As you can see on the report, two tests were taken in this basement. To read about the other test, check out part II.