Bookcase Water Damage and Mold

[jbxnyr]

Our below-grade family room cinder block allowed water to seep thru. I didn't know it for a long time. The moisture had built up behind the wood paneling and actually "ran" along the baseboard and carpeting up against the 20' long wall. I ended up ripping all of the paneling down and tearing up a wide strip of carpeting to remove the mold. 2 nice homebuilt bookcases with panel doors had nasty mold on the bottom edge and underside, and water stains that ran up the sides a few inches. The wall has been water-sealed and new paneling installed. New carpeting for the entire room is on the way.

The question is what to do with the bookcases (tossing is not the preferred option!). I turned the cases upside down and used a lightly damp rag with Lysol liquid to kill the mold, dried with a towel, repeated, let the wood dry out, then used some Lysol spray. I realize I can't make the stains disappear, but I want to make sure the mold is dead for good so I don't stain brand new carpeting or have the mold "grow" up the bookcase.

Should I seal it with polyurethane? Leave it alone?

Ideas?

Thanks!

--Jeff

[Swingman]

Clorox ... dilution instructions should be on the side of the bottle.

[Teamcasa]

Agreed - Bleach is the best for killing mold. Dry well and re-finish.

Dave

[BobS]

with bleach, let dry and then repeat. Our elderly neighbor had her basement flood last year and I got to do the cleaning.... After getting all the water out, digging a ditch so the water would drain properly next time, I set up fans to dry the place out. Turned up the furnace, opened basement windows and started spraying a mixture of bleach all along the walls and mold spots. They have particle board on all the basement walls. Treated the area daily for a week and saw no more signs of mold but continued the treatment for two more weeks (every other day) plus sprayed Odoban to kill the bleach smell.

Finally had a mold remediation service come in to do an inspection for them and they said everything looked okay. Did not have large blotches of mold and none of it had a green cast to it. I forget what type of mold that is but according to the experts - its nasty stuff and should only be removed by the pro's.

Don't take this mold lightly - it can cause you and your family some real nasty problems. Check here also

may want to figure out why the wall filled with water and what you can do to prevent it. I dug a French ditch (2' wide, 2' deep) and filled it with 2" rock when I had a wall leak in our basement but mine is a walk-out basement and that may not work for yours.

Bob S.