AskCodeMan

Codeman,

in my search of my home, I have noticed many area's in the attic where the pre fab truss's have what appear to be mold/mildew on them, appears that the truss's were exposed to the elements at one time and then closed in.

I have also noticed in between the 1st & 2nd floor, the pre fab joists, as well.

and some look like they were dragged thru the mud and dirt on site and then installed in the home. Some of this mud/dirt is caked on the truss's.

Is any of this a concern for us in the home ?

That is not uncommon given the conditions the material is put through during manufacture, handling, storage ... at the place of manufacture ... then the delivery, storage, and handling of the material to the construction site ... followed by the structure being open and exposed to the weather (rain, snow, sleet, freezing temperature, hot temperatures, etc.) during construction before the structure is closed up and made weather-tight.

So from your reply, I am assuming since this is common, it is not something to worry about, ?

my concern was that with excess heat & humidity, since it is allready present, that it may become a problem down the road should the conditions become as such for the mold/mildew to re-grow, or should we have a plumbing leak between floors and these area's got re-wet from the leak, it would be able to grow & spread more easily ?

Should these area's be cleaned somehow if possible ?

Thanks so much for all of your replys on this site, the information the site provides is very helpfull !

Steve Gib wrote:So from your reply, I am assuming since this is common, it is not something to worry about, ?

It is not something *I* would worry about. Too many other ways to get sick or have other problems for *ME* to worry about mildew and stuff.

Should these area's be cleaned somehow if possible ?

Probably, but the cleaning solutions (bleach and water) are probably worse for you than the mildew ... bleach is bad stuff to mess around with in confined spaces like that, and spraying on bleach and water only makes the watery bleach mix run all over where you least want it.