Mold in Walls & Drywall in Lebanon, TN

My house is near Spencer Creek. Are my walls at higher risk?

Homes along Spencer Creek near Lebanon have flooded again and again, and residents have built berms to protect their houses; neighbors point to debris piling up under a bridge on Northern Road near Highway 109. Each time water reaches a wall, drywall and insulation soak it up, and EPA advises drying within 24 to 48 hours to prevent mold. Repeated wetting means the bottom of the wall should be checked after every event, not just the big ones. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began a Wilson County watershed study starting with Spencer Creek, and county officials said the county has seen flood events since 2010 it hadn't experienced before.

Can mold inside a wall be seen without opening it?

Not directly. Clues on the room side include a musty odor, bubbling paint, swollen baseboards and stains that return after painting. A company confirms it with a moisture meter, sometimes a thermal camera, and a small inspection cut or borescope. EPA says that when mold is visible, sampling is usually unnecessary, and there are no federal limits for mold spores, so an air test won't tell you which wall to open.

Who issues permits for the rebuild in Lebanon?

Inside city limits, the City of Lebanon Building Inspection Department takes building permit applications and does framing, mechanical, plumbing and final inspections; electrical inspections are done by State of Tennessee deputy electrical inspectors. Mold cleanup itself isn't usually permitted work, but replacing studs or rerouting plumbing inside an opened wall may need a permit, so ask before the wall is closed.

A local note

Lebanon, the Wilson County seat known as Cedar City, is about 25 miles from Nashville and home to Cumberland University. Renters with unrepaired leaks can file with City of Lebanon Codes Enforcement through its online Codes Complaint form. For health questions, the Wilson County Health Department is on E. Baddour Parkway in Lebanon. If your home sits along Spencer Creek, keep photos of each high-water event and of the walls afterward; a dated record makes it easier for a company, and your insurer, to see which damage is new.