Mold & Water Damage Remediation

Mold growth after water damage: why?

Water damage refers to the impairment or destruction of materials caused by the intrusion of water. The most common causes include flooding, sewage backup, pipe bursts, and the entry of firefighting water during fire damage. Additionally, there is the gradual soaking of building materials due to leaking water or heating pipes.

In addition to material destruction, the intruding water creates prolonged high humidity and moisture levels in materials. These conditions are ideal for the rapid growth of mold and wet germs, which thrive on damp substrates with organic nutrients.

Germ control to support the drying measures.

Especially in cases of sewage water damage, flooded surfaces can become heavily contaminated with harmful germs. If drying measures such as blowing in dry air are initiated without proper precautions, intestinal and fecal germs can be aerosolized and inhaled. Depending on the environmental resistance and pathogenic potential of the germs, these contaminated aerosols can cause infections and severe gastrointestinal problems.

The use of appropriate disinfectants to decontaminate critical areas is therefore crucial for protecting the health of employees and occupants. At the same time, timely disinfection of soaked surfaces prevents mold growth, buying time until the drying process can be completed. Sanosil disinfectants have proven to be highly effective for disinfecting even heavily contaminated surfaces to this day.

Application and use methods for disinfection in the event of water damage

• Direct spraying with a pressure sprayer
  The disinfectant is applied to the areas to be disinfected using a pressure sprayer. Sanosil SD7 is particularly suitable for this purpose, as it can be foamed with an appropriate spray nozzle. Foamed Sanosil SD7 can be sprayed with virtually no aerosol formation. This also allows for excellent visual control of treated and untreated areas.
• Direct spraying with a ULV sprayer
  A turbine ULV (Ultra Low Volume) sprayer creates a fine, directed spray mist with a range of several meters. This allows for rapid and thorough treatment of larger surfaces. Although Sanosil disinfectants decompose almost completely into water and oxygen after application, the aerosols formed by this method can irritate the eyes and respiratory system. Therefore, this method is suitable only for commercial users with appropriate professional protective equipment.

• Wipe application / paint roller
  The disinfectant is applied without aerosols and very precisely using a mop, cloth, or paint roller. This method is ideal for smaller areas, good accessibility, and smooth, non-absorbent surfaces.
• Foaming hollow spaces
  For hard-to-reach areas and cavities such as floor structures with water intrusion, built-in furniture with mold behind them, cable ducts, etc., the foam application is suitable. The disinfectant is mixed with a foam concentrate (Sanosil SFS) and injected into the respective cavities using a foam generator. The disinfectant foam formed in this way eliminates mold and fixes the dead mold mass on the surfaces. Subsequently, the moisture is driven out with drying air.

• Airborne mold spore control through aerosol disinfection
  Following successful water damage restoration, as well as the disinfection and removal of any mold growth, it is possible that the air in a treated space remains contaminated to some extent with mold spores and/or other germs. If a disinfection of the room content, including the air, is desired, a specialized aerosol device such as Sanosil C10 or CT-20 and suitable disinfectants like Sanosil S015 or Q-Dis 8 are necessary. The proper disinfection of an entire room using this method requires specific expertise and should therefore only be conducted by commercial users in isolated parts of buildings.