Water in Attic= Mold?

[cmjaffe]

Well we had some water come in the attic. Thought we had it fixed in December (pipe from bathroom vent). Well guess what, he didn't do it right and we've got a bit more water damage than we did originally and now under the insulation we think there's a bit of mold on the dry wall ceiling.
HELP.
We had a roofer fix it (again) he knew the original person so didn't want to "bad mouth" them on Tuesday. Fast forward to today, heavy rain and YUP more water in attic. Call roofer, says "it can't be my work, gotta be the pipe inside but I'll put a cap on the vent for $30. OK.
Now here's where my "rant" comes in. We've got homeowners insurance with $10K coverage for mold. Great since I know we've got some on ceiling and not sure if there's anything in wall. Feel out the agent who says "yeah, you've got coverage IF a tree hits your house and makes a hole in the attic and then you get water." We're not looking to get the pipe paid for by the insurance but DO want the mold remediated. It seems like we pay for insurance but there's a lot of loopholes. Wonder if we are really covered for the repair of the wall but the agent doesn't want to deal with it (wonder if he loses $$ on it) also I called him up at 12Noon on Tueday and he doesn't return my call before 2PM yesterday... WOW talk about a "good neighbor".
He was looking to save me $$ by raising my deductible and adding our car to him to save a wopping $100 a year. Don't think so. It wouldn't be worth the trouble.
Anyone have any tips for mold remediation since it's about the size of a palm.
Thanks,

 

[Ciao Mickey]

Well we had some water come in the attic. Thought we had it fixed in December (pipe from bathroom vent). Well guess what, he didn't do it right and we've got a bit more water damage than we did originally and now under the insulation we think there's a bit of mold on the dry wall ceiling.
HELP.
We had a roofer fix it (again) he knew the original person so didn't want to "bad mouth" them on Tuesday. Fast forward to today, heavy rain and YUP more water in attic. Call roofer, says "it can't be my work, gotta be the pipe inside but I'll put a cap on the vent for $30. OK.
Now here's where my "rant" comes in. We've got homeowners insurance with $10K coverage for mold. Great since I know we've got some on ceiling and not sure if there's anything in wall. Feel out the agent who says "yeah, you've got coverage IF a tree hits your house and makes a hole in the attic and then you get water." We're not looking to get the pipe paid for by the insurance but DO want the mold remediated. It seems like we pay for insurance but there's a lot of loopholes. Wonder if we are really covered for the repair of the wall but the agent doesn't want to deal with it (wonder if he loses $$ on it) also I called him up at 12Noon on Tueday and he doesn't return my call before 2PM yesterday... WOW talk about a "good neighbor".
He was looking to save me $$ by raising my deductible and adding our car to him to save a wopping $100 a year. Don't think so. It wouldn't be worth the trouble.
Anyone have any tips for mold remediation since it's about the size of a palm.
Thanks,

Clorox Bleach will get rid of the mold.

 

[cmjaffe]

that's what I thought.
DH like a fool, used clorox cleanup aghhh

 

[herdtoDisney]

We've had a couple of similar leaks and have used Clorox bleach/water, in a spray bottle, too. It has always worked for us.

 

[disneyhand]

I'm very afraid of mold based on a personal experience in my family. I know how dangerous it can be to ones health. If it is in dry wall or insulation I believe it will spread even if you use bleach. I would personally have it professionally checked out for the piece of mind not to mention future resale ability of your home.

 

[cmjaffe]

found out that the cleaning is covered by insurance but not repair.
Originally the insurance person said it wasn't... then I said that "maybe we should look into getting another insurance company (we've been with this company for over 20 years) and I'd be speaking w/my husband. The next day DH gets a registered letter from agent saying it's covered (mold remediation). Well that's all we've been looking for. Why else would we keep paying our premiums.
Think the agent wanted me to just "back down" and take his rejection.

 

[*Emily*]

Your agent may have had to get some sort approval for that type of claim coverage, but if that were the case he should have told you that was what he was doing and definitely should have called you when he found out there was coverage.

I work at an insurance agency and there are alot exclusions and exceptions built into a homeowners policy.

Another thing your agent may have not brought to your attention is that if you are receiving any type loss free credit (not having any claims w/in a certain number of years) when your policy renews you most likely will not be eligible for that credit anymore.

Sorry for all of the trouble you're going through.

 

[crostorfer]

I feel your pain. We are going through a similar situation, but on a much much larger scale. We own a home in Oklahoma, we live in Washington. We had renters in the home, and back in May a massive hail storm came through and punched upwards of 60 baseball sized holes in the roof. Not just through the shingles, we are talking through the decking as well. Either the hail itself, or the roofers when they were repairing the roof knocked an air conditioning conduit out of place, which caused water to leak down the wall it was next to. Mold began to grow over the past few months, but our renters NEVER MENTIONED IT TO US. They said later they just thought it was "stained". Because of the leak, I have black mold completely covering one whole wall of a bedroom and large, black, mold rings covering the carpet in that house. Because it has been several months since our claim has been closed, we called our "in good hands" company as well, and they are sending out someone to inspect the damage and decide whether or not we can claim it. If not, we are looking at a huge chunk of change out of pocket, and my Disney trip next month is in huge jeopardy.

 

[Belle1962]

Call in the professionals--mold (unseen mold) can spread beyond what you see to clean with bleach. Many states now have a "mold" provision when selling or renting your home. Last thing you want to worry about is any potential liability when it comes to renters or trying to sell. Or your family's health while you live there. (by the time you see certain molds--it almost "too late"). If you bring in professionals have them check every room in the house--not just the ones you "think" are damaged. Insist on it.