Mold Removal in Medina, WA

A peninsula city 4 miles from Seattle

Medina is a small, mostly residential city on a Lake Washington peninsula on the Eastside, about 4 miles from Seattle as the crow flies. It borders Clyde Hill and Hunts Point and connects to Seattle by the SR 520 Evergreen Point Floating Bridge. Evergreen Point and the historic Dabney's Landing ferry dock recall its lake-crossing past.

Lake on three sides

Lake Washington surrounds Medina on every side but the east, and the city's Shoreline Master Program also covers the creeks, streams and wetlands inside city limits. Lakefront homes face the same Puget Sound climate as everyone else: gray, damp months from fall into spring when nothing dries fast. What changes is scale. A larger house has more roof, more windows, more bathrooms and more mechanical equipment, which means more places for a slow leak to hide.

Places where mold tends to start in larger lakefront homes:

• Lower levels and wine or storage rooms with little airflow
• Pool, spa and steam-shower rooms where ventilation falls short
• Behind built-in cabinetry on exterior walls
• Around skylights, decks over living space and complex roof valleys
• Mechanical rooms with condensate lines and water heaters

EPA recommends keeping indoor humidity below 60 percent, ideally 30 to 50 percent, and keeping condensate drip pans clean and drain lines flowing. If a forced-air system may be contaminated, EPA says not to run it until it's checked.

Permits and code compliance

In Medina, the Development Services Director serves as the Building Official, and the Development Services Department processes permits and handles building inspections. Rebuilding walls or structure after mold removal can require a permit, and work near the shoreline, creeks or wetlands may raise additional questions, so check with Development Services first.

The city's Code Compliance Officer, within Development Services, takes requests through an online form for zoning, building and nuisance violations, including work done without permits. Renters should notify the landlord in writing about leaks or moisture. Public Health - Seattle & King County, which doesn't do mold assessments itself, advises tenants to report the unaddressed water or maintenance problem to local building or code enforcement, since those offices won't act on mold alone.

Calling for help

When you call, you'll be connected with an independent local mold remediation company. Washington has no mold license or certification, but contractors must be registered with L&I; confirm that on the Verify a Contractor tool. For a large home, an independent assessment before and a clearance check after are worth considering.