| It's definitely hard to see mold
behind shear walls, unless you're planning on doing a little bit of
investigative demolition.
If the drywall or plaster was wet or damp or you
had some type of water leak in a specific area like this and it began to
smell, you could only imagine what's lurking behind the wall board or
plaster.
It's not uncommon to see mold growing on moist or wet shear walls. A
shear wall is a structural wall that is designed to prevent as much
horizontal movement as possible by adding plywood and heavy duty
anchoring systems in the foundation, to strengthen the wall framing.
In this situation, the mold started growing behind the shear panel,
because the exterior brick wainscoting wasn't flashed properly. There
were also problems with the windows and other sections of the exterior
that weren't entirely watertight.
Home Repair Tip: You could try spraying chemicals like bleach or
chlorine on to the oriented strand board in hopes of killing any mold or
fungus that would be growing on it.
There are no guarantees that these methods will work,
but they seem to be very effective, most of the time.
The sad part about this picture, is that it's in a home that isn't more
than two years old. Problems like these can easily be avoided by hiring
experienced, competent contractors or workers.
This home had extensive water damage, simply because
there wasn't anyone on the job with enough knowledge and construction
skills, to prevent the damage happening.
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