Soda Blasting?

I've done a lot of soda blasting. You need a special setup or the soda will just run right out and the media cost will kill you. Baking soda, even the larger particles that you blast with, is way finer than black beauty or other typical media. The baking soda blaster also has some special fittings you will need to clear clogs that result from moisture. While it may be more healthy than using other types of blasting media, you can still do a number on your lungs with the soda storm you create. I think a crawlspace is the last place I'd want to blast. Consider using chemical solutions and a garden sprayer instead.

You will find that baking soda is far far too fine.

Gunner

I am the Sword of my Family and the Shield of my Nation. If sent, I will crush everything you have built, burn everything you love, and kill every one of you. (Hebrew quote)

Beyond what others have noted, Harbor Freight sells several sizes of soda blaster apparatus for ~$100 or so, and also carries the blast media.

I have some new 3M 7800s full face respirators with air supply hoses I bought on eBay, I bought mostly because of mold spores but should also keep baking soda out of lungs. I was originally wanting to blast the mold off with a pressure washer and a mold cleaning chemical. I heard this would blast where you didn't want including making stains on the carpet above.

RogerN

They sell different grades for blasting, they claim it will remove paint or powder coat but not rust. Soda blasting is also recommended for mold removal from wood and cleaning up fire and smoke damaged wood. Soda blasting is supposed to have started with the work on the Statue of Liberty.

RogerN

I agree, a pressure washer from below wouldn't be a good idea.

It works well, but takes time, and I was using a large pot and a 175 CFM compressor. It also leaves an alkaline mess.

There is also dry ice blasting, which leaves no residue. I don't think that this is a do it yourself thing, though,

Correct. But the term "baking soda" indicates a very fine version of the compound.

Gunner

I am the Sword of my Family and the Shield of my Nation. If sent, I will crush everything you have built, burn everything you love, and kill every one of you. (Hebrew quote)

In a crawl space, is it necessary to physically remove the mold, or will killing it suffice?

Joe Gwinn

So put the baking soda out where it can clump up from humidity, then screen it for the proper size. Oh, that's right, you don't have that. B-) Probably don't have mold issues either, eh? B-)

From what I've read, the "Toxic" black mold had spores that are harmful even if dead. Also, the information I have looked up on mold says it is everywhere but needs moisture to live and grow. From my understanding if you have a mold problem it's just a symptom of a moisture problem, the root cause. Tearing out the flooring in my bedroom will give me access to bad floor joists that need replaced and will also give me easier access to the crawl space for putting down a moisture barrier, sealing vents, and installing a sump pump and dehumidifier.

RogerN

/ /There is also dry ice blasting, which leaves no residue. I don't think /that this is a do it yourself thing, though, /

At my work they dry ice blast daily to clean tire molds. I'm not sure how costly it is or how big of a compressor it requires but I bet it would do a good job. They clean tire molds with dry ice blasting while the molds are in the curing press. Molds that are not in the curing press get put in a cabinet for blasting with plastic media, a turn table rotates the mold while servos control the blast gun with various programs for different molds.

RogerN

I wonder how many boxes of Arm & Hammer baking soda it would take? :-) I'll probably order 3 or 4 50lb bags of soda and when I get a better look I can see if I'll need more.

RogerN

Home Depot has this stuff and rents the fogger out, I have no idea if it works, it sounds too good to be true:

Absolutely.

Just an exhaust fan and better drainage would probably help a lot.

In researching this there are some ventilation systems that use sensors with fans to ventilate when the outside air would help dry the crawlspace and they close off when the outside air would bring more moisture into the crawl space.

There is mold on the floor at the top of the crawl space, no where for moisture to come from except from the air condensing moisture on the cool crawlspace. I guess hot moist air entering a cool crawl space brings moisture in.

RogerN

e mold problem I've heard the professional cleanup method

I doubt this is a do it yourself thing, as you have to have (I think) a dry ice generator as well - or maybe you can buy the pellets, I don't know. Google turns up some pretty big looking contractors, and a couple of places that selll the equipment, which doesn't look particularly cheap.

I saw this used on This Old House (or some such) to remove mold in an attic. I don't suppose there's a way to borrow the equipment from work? But I bet you could find a contractor and get a price. It may turn out to be not-so-bad, and there's no abrasive crap floating around afterwards.

If you will take the floor out it's easier to remove the mold, but still people are exposed to dead mold all the time and are none the worse for it. But solving the underlying moisture problem is essential for sure.

Joe Gwinn