During the shelter-in-place orders, so many of us are spending more time at home than ever before. This has brought on a home improvement and decorating boom, along with another rather mixed blessing: the opportunity to uncover hidden problems. In my case, it was a slow water leak from a skylight.

For months, I’ve been ignoring some cracks and small bubbles in my bathroom ceiling near the skylight. After one of the recent rainstorms, the problem became more noticeable. I decided to poke a broom handle around the area and it was spongy. As my husband and I tore out the ceiling, we discovered mold in an area that extended several feet in all directions. Read more

Silent, it grows undetected. Hidden, it lurks beneath your floors and inside your walls. No, it’s not some alien from a science fiction movie—it’s mold! While less terrifying than an extraterrestrial invasion, mold is nonetheless a pervasive problem found in homes throughout the Bay Area. Due to its potentially serious health repercussions, combating mold requires a proactive approach, both in terms of prevention and dealing with it remedially. To shed some light on this important subject, we’ve asked four Diamond Certified Expert Contributors to weigh in with their professional knowledge of mold prevention and remediation. Read more