Certified Mold Inspections (Steve Levy's company) was recommended by my allergist, who is one of the deans of environmental medicine in the NYC area. I have mold allergies and over the last year they'd been getting much worse, especially in our home, which is 100 years old. I decided I needed to deal with the problem so called Steve Levy. He was very generous with his time on the phone and clearly very knowledgeable. We discussed cost up front so I understood what my wife and I were getting into. Given our budget I realized we'd want to carefully prioritize which areas to be tested.
Steve arrived punctually and thoroughly inspected the house from basement to top floor. The process took about two hours. He photographed each potential problem area. Some of the problems he found I wouldn't have noticed or thought to investigate, e.g. a cracked section of floor molding that had water damage behind it, and the wall behind and floor under our refrigerator.
After the inspection we sat down and discussed what to do about testing. Steve was respectful of our budget limitations and worked with us to come up with a plan we could afford. The results showed high levels of multiple molds in the kitchen, which we intend to remediate.
As I discovered after reading through the EPA website, mold testing is not standardized, but that doesn't mean that testing is without value. In order to hold a remediation company responsible for eliminating mold, you have to be able to prove that mold exists, and they also prefer to have a remediation plan from an inspection company, which is what Steve Levy and other others provide once they have test results. Whether or not the amount of mold in your home is unhealthy is ultimately something your body can tell you more than test results, though of course everyone is different. I knew our house was making me sick, and I'll know when the mold problem is gone.
Fortunately NY State has a law requiring inspection and remediation to be done by separate entities. This law helps keep the inspectors honest, and as I stated, provides the remediators with mold levels they have to prove have been reduced or eliminated. Currently we're interviewing remediates to find the right one.
I highly recommend Steve Levy and Certified Mold Inspections. Steve is a pleasure to work with: thorough, courteous, deeply knowledgeable about the inspection process and considerate of one's budget. He did extensive follow-up calls with me, which were very helpful. The base cost for inspection is not cheap, but given the number of hours Steve puts in between on site work, writing reports and follow-up calls, I think it's reasonable. Testing can get expensive, but can be controlled if wisely prioritized. Steve is one of the good guys. Hope this review is helpful to others. read more
