Weight bearing walls & mold removal - DIY Chatroom

FrancescaLind · 07-03-2009, 10:15 AM

We've successfully removed mold from our home everywhere, but one wall. It's a weight bearing wall. The bottom three feet is concrete and cleaned up well, but the wood framework above has a strong musty smell to it. We don't see any visible signs of mold, but think it could be hiding under the bottom beam which is ontop of the concrete. We don't want to remove the wall because it's a weight bearing wall and would be a nightmare. Any suggestions on treating the underside of the lower horizontal beams? We considered drilling several holes at the botton and spraying the mold removing solution in each hole, followed by drying it out and then spraying the anti mold, odor blocking primer next. We could also reinforce that beam with another ontop of it. Any suggestions? Thanks for your help.

Maintenance 6 · 07-03-2009, 12:55 PM

Short of jacking and bracing the load to remove the offending bottom plate, your plan is probably the best that you can hope for. From reading your other post, it sounds as though you are one of those relatively rare individuals with a severe reaction to molds. Be certain that, in addition to treating the mold, you also treat the moisture issue that lead to the mold. Otherwise, you will be fighting a losing battle.

Wildie · 07-03-2009, 03:03 PM

How wide is the concrete 'knee' wall at the top? Could you form a 'putty' dam along the edges and pour the anti-mold solution in to the formed reservoir.
Or how about spraying in the solution with a pressure washer.
A couple of holes drilled into the bottom plate between the studs should cause no structural harm.
Electricians and plumbers are always drilling holes in the plates for their wiring and plumbing.