The Inspection Boys! Your Long Island mold Inspection and testing company.
What is Mold? Do you do Mold Testing near Me? There is a lot of confusion around mold. As a licensed mold assessment company we want to have the answers for you. If your the do it yourself type we offer at home testing kits. Do It Yourself Mold Test Kits. Even though we dont usually recommend testing anything yourself we understand that some people want to try it themselves. So we have you DYIers covered. If you want us to stop by and perform mold inspection and testing or a mold assessment we also have your covered.
Providing mold assessment inspections and mold testing on Long Island, NY as part of the excellent array of services provided by The Inspection Boys.
Call us now at (631) 213-9524 to schedule a mold inspection and testing!
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MOLD LICENSING
New York State has just changed its laws on mold and how it’s assessed. This new process hasn’t changed much, but at the same time several new implementations have been made and other have been shifted around.
A mold project is anything that is defined to be a mold remediation, a mold assessment, a mold abatement, or any area that is greater than ten square feet that is taken for the purpose of mold remediation. However, this does not include routine cleaning or “construction, maintenance, repair or demolition of buildings, structures or fixtures undertaken for purposes other than mold remediation or abatement”, according to the Department of Labor in New York. They state that the presence of mold doesn’t trigger an obligation to obtain an assessment or call in a remediation. However, in a situation where a property owner doesn’t hire an assessor or remediator for mold assessment or remediation, the person himself must be licensed and also must abide by the requirements in the law.
The new licensing effect took place on January 1, 2016 and anyone who declares themselves a mold assessor, remediation contractor, or abatement worker without a valid mold license will be going against the law. If the individual doesn’t have a license issued by the Commissioner, these individuals will be subject to a civil penalty. Moreover, as of Article 32, there is no extension to the mold licensing requirements.
As of now, there are four mold-related licenses: a mold assessor license, a mold remediation contractor license, a mold abatement worker supervisor license, and mold abatement worker license. Websites such as The Inspection Boys offer high quality licensed contractors that will get the job done efficiently and safely.
Going on further into the licensing process, who is required to have a license? Well, any business that goes into the mold assessment topic has to have one. Businesses that advertise that they are a mold assessment company, and businesses that hold themselves as a mold assessment company also have to obtain a mold assessor license. Besides the business, any individual who inspects a property or assesses it for mold, conditions that have to do with mold, and others that encourage mold have to hold a license as well. In order for an applicant to obtain a mold assessor license, one must be 18 or older, one must complete the Mold Assessor Training Course from a Department of Labor approved training provider, one must pay the application fee of $150, and one must submit proof of Workers Compensation coverage, Disability Insurance coverage, and Liability insurance coverage of at least $50,000.
As for a mold remediation contractor license, it requires that any business engaging in mold remediation obtain it. For a mold abatement worker supervisor license, any individual who drafts mold remediation work plans and serves as mold site or project supervisors must obtain it. For a mold abatement worker license, any individual who engages in mold abatement must obtain it.
For more information, visit https://labor.ny.gov/workerprotection/safetyhealth/mold. Call now to schedule your Mold Inspection and testing 631-372-3203
Mold and Your Health
Exposure to damp and moldy environments may cause a variety of health effects, or none at all. Some people are sensitive to molds. For these people, molds can cause nasal stuffiness, throat irritation, coughing or wheezing, eye irritation, or, in some cases, skin irritation. People with mold allergies may have more severe reactions. Immune-compromised people and people with chronic lung illnesses, such as obstructive lung disease, may get serious infections in their lungs when they are exposed to mold. These people should stay away from areas that are likely to have mold, such as compost piles, cut grass, and wooded areas.
In 2004 the Institute of Medicine (IOM) found there was sufficient evidence to link indoor exposure to mold with upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people; with asthma symptoms in people with asthma; and with hypersensitivity pneumonitis in individuals susceptible to that immune-mediated condition. The IOM also found limited or suggestive evidence linking indoor mold exposure and respiratory illness in otherwise healthy children.
In addition, in 2004 the IOM found sufficient evidence to link exposure to damp indoor environments in general to upper respiratory tract symptoms, cough, and wheeze in otherwise healthy people and with asthma symptoms in people with asthma. The IOM also found limited or suggestive evidence linking exposure to damp indoor environments in general to shortness of breath, to respiratory illness in otherwise healthy children and to potential development of asthma in susceptible individuals. In 2009, the World Health Organization issued additional guidance, the WHO Guidelines for Indoor Air Quality: Dampness and Mould [PDF – 2.52 MB]. Other recent studies have suggested a potential link of early mold exposure to development of asthma in some children, particularly among children who may be genetically susceptible to asthma development, and that selected interventions that improve housing conditions can reduce morbidity from asthma and respiratory allergies, but more research is needed in this regard.
A link between other adverse health effects, such as acute idiopathic pulmonary hemorrhage among infants, memory loss, or lethargy, and molds, including the mold Stachybotrys chartarum (Stachybotrys atra), has not been proven. Further studies are needed to find out what causes acute idiopathic hemorrhage and other adverse health effects.
Call us now at (631) 213-9524 to schedule a mold inspection and testing!