TCI Home Services Case Studies: Remediated & Insulated Attic for Home Sale in Whitmore Lake, MI
Challenge
The homeowner explained that he was in the process of selling his home and mold was found on the sheathing during the inspection. The homeowner's were in the process of working out negotiations with the potential buyers for they requested the mold problem to be taken care of before purchasing the home. The attic sheathing and insulation was covered with mold growth. Condensation on the roof deck. The problem was caused by the master bath fan duct not being directed out of the attic properly. The duct was aimed towards the roof vent but was not venting to the outside causing warm humid air to be pumped back into the attic. The homeowner chose to have the problem fixed because he had to have the attic cleaned in order to move forward with the sale of his home or he would not move forward with the sale of his house until the mold problem in the attic had been addressed. They had already lost multiple offer opportunities as soon as anyone heard the word mold.
Solution
Our solution was to completely remove all of the insulation from the attic floor. HEPA Vacuum all of the sheathing and trusses. Treat the sheathing and trusses with a Mold/Mildew stain remover and a antimicrobial. Used close cell foam insulation around the bath fan duct opening to prevent humid air from re-entering the attic space. We then air sealed all of the penetrations on the attic floor (Top plates, Bond plates, Wire penetration, Pipe penetrations ect.). Cover all of the recessed can lights with rockwool can light covers. Air seal and insulate the hatch cover and then insulate the attic floor and R49 R-Value with Cellulose. We faced two challenges during the installation process. The first challenge was the height of the attic made it difficult to move around and the other challenge was a supply duct that ran down the middle of the attic making it difficult to transfer from one side to the other. We used multiple products to achieve our end results. We used Mold X2 products, DuroVent Baffling, TiteShell Recessed Light Fixture Covers, 4" SilverGlo, Weather-stripping, adhesive, ZypFoam, Owens Corning Foam Board and TruSoft Cellulose. The homeowner was able to make the sale on his home and the new homeowners now have a healthy clean attic that is now insulated to an energy star rating R49 R-Value
