Finding Moisture in a home
A home can have many issues that are not readily visible. Some of these issues can cause major damage and can be cost prohibitive to repair. Moisture is one of those issues. Hidden moisture can cause structural damage and create conditions favorable for mold growth. As a state licensed Mold Assessor, I always look for sign of moisture intrusion and damage. Often times, water leaks can be behind walls or other areas that are not openly visible. To help look for the presence of moisture, I use some state-of-the-art tools. An infrared thermal imaging camera and both contact and non contact moisture meters. The thermal imaging camera visualizes on a screen, temperature differences which can mean moisture or air loss or leaks. Once an area is suspected of having a potential issue, I confirm this with the other moisture meters.
Catching moisture intrusion early and stopping it at the source will avoid much greater damage and costs to repair down the road. We include thermal scanning with every standard full home inspection.
The following pictures were taken at a recent inspection where moisture was found along a wall. The other side of the wall was a shower. The dark coloration in the thermal image indicates areas which are cooler than the surrounding areas which is indicative of moisture presence. The dark areas were then confirmed to be moist.
