Thread: Mold removal
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Old 10-26-20, 04:59 PM   #5
MN Renovator
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I agree that you don't need a pile of attic venting, but you need some to allow the incidental moisture in winter to flow out. Moisture flows readily and usually it doesn't take much ventilation to remove the amount of moisture that ends up in an attic through incidental air bypasses. If you have attic mold, you've likely got a larger air bypass than just loose wooden top plates, small holes drilled for wires, or a hole cut for a plumbing vent stack. If there isn't a roof leak, most likely there is something like a broken or missing bathroom vent duct, a grossly oversized hole cut for a plumbing stack(square hole for a round peg or someone likes their sawzall too much), can lights(hate these things, there are insulated versions and gasket retrofits that make this a better situation though), or a soffit chase. ..or perhaps you have a cape cod house and a knee wall is involved which could have all sorts of leaks in tons of places, especially the upstairs floor bypass.

When I talk about ventilation, I'm talking about free flowing vents, not powered vents because those make the problem worse by creating a vacuum and sucking the moist and warm interior air into the attic.

I also noticed you are from Spokane. I assume this is Washington? There is a ton of wet there and I know from my friends in Portland and Seattle that their roofs essentially are caked with algae/moss because they are never dry, I don't know if there are any specific building design or science that should be different for your climate and type of house. In my region, the air is generally far enough away from the dew point to where it doesn't take much to keep the attic moisture down. This isn't a livable attic space, is it? How much mold? any particular spots it's common in, throughout the entire attic? ..or above the attic hatch or a bathroom specifically?
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