Mycotoxin remediation in Fort Myers

Mycotoxins in Fort Myers homes, explained

Historic bungalows with a long water history

Fort Myers has four historic districts overseen by the city: Dean Park, Edison Park, Seminole Park and downtown. Dean Park alone has about eighty homes, most built between 1916 and the mid-1920s, and it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2013. Houses of that age have lived through a century of hurricanes, roof replacements and plumbing changes. Many were renovated in pieces, with new drywall laid over old plaster or new flooring over original wood.

That history matters for mycotoxins because toxins don’t leave on their own. A roof leak from twenty years ago can leave contaminated dust in an attic, a wall cavity or the top of a duct, long after the wood has dried. When we work in older Fort Myers homes, we look for:

• Attic framing and insulation under old roof leaks, especially around chimneys, valleys and additions
• Plaster walls with patched sections, which often mark past water damage
• Wood floors and subfloors near bathrooms, kitchens and exterior doors
• Ductwork added long after the house was built, often run through tight, humid spaces
• Closets and built-ins on exterior walls that rarely get opened

In homes like these, we try hard to keep original plaster, trim and wood. They can usually be HEPA-vacuumed, wiped and treated rather than removed. If you live in a local historic district, check with the city before any exterior changes.

When the Caloosahatchee came downtown

During Hurricane Ian in September 2022, the National Hurricane Center reports that storm surge reversed the flow of the Caloosahatchee River and flooded the streets of Fort Myers. It estimated maximum flooding of 5 to 8 feet above ground up the river, and the tide gauge near downtown recorded 7.26 feet above the normal high-tide line. Buildings along and near the river, downtown included, took water on their ground floors.

River flood water is not clean water. It carries silt, sewage and bacteria, and it soaks into drywall, insulation, carpet and cabinets. Most of that was torn out long ago. What we still find in some Fort Myers buildings is the part nobody could see: wall cavities that were never cleaned after the wet drywall came out, ductwork in ground-floor spaces that took on water, and belongings that were dried and moved back in without cleaning. For families dealing with mold illness, those leftovers can be the missing piece. Our guide to mycotoxins after hurricane water damage explains why they last.

Condos and apartments near the river

Downtown Fort Myers and the riverfront have a number of condo and apartment buildings, and they bring their own challenges. Units share walls, plumbing chases and sometimes air systems, so a problem in one unit can travel. Under Florida condominium law, s. 718.111(11), associations generally maintain the common elements and owners are generally responsible for unit interiors, but the declaration controls. Check your documents and talk with your association manager or an attorney. Our guide to condo and HOA mold explains how that usually plays out.

Renters face a different problem: you need the owner’s agreement before any remediation, and you need results that both the owner and your doctor will trust. A report from an independent licensed assessor helps with both. Our page on mold in Florida rental homes covers the tenant side.

Why the HVAC system gets special attention here

Fort Myers air conditioners run most of the year, and they move the whole house’s air through one closet several times an hour. When an air handler sits in a damp closet or ducts pass through a humid attic, the system can collect contaminated dust and spread it to every room. On mycotoxin projects we check the air handler, coil, drain pan, return and ducts, and we clean them when the protocol calls for it. Cleaning the rooms without cleaning the system that feeds them tends to bring the problem back.

Belongings that went through the storm

A lot of what families keep in Fort Myers homes has been through at least one flood. Boxes that sat in a garage when the river came up, furniture that was dried on the driveway and carried back inside, and keepsakes stored in an attic under an old roof leak can all carry contaminated dust into a clean house. It is one of the most common reasons a home tests clean after remediation and then slowly slips back.

We sort belongings with you, room by room, using what the assessor’s results support:

• Glass, metal, stone, ceramics and hard plastic can almost always be HEPA-vacuumed and wiped.
• Finished wood furniture usually cleans the same way.
• Clothing and washable fabrics are often saved with repeated laundering.
• Mattresses, upholstered pieces, rugs and pillows that sat in flood water or in the affected rooms are usually better replaced.
• Books, papers and photographs need individual judgment, and some can be copied or scanned before they go.

Our page on mycotoxins on belongings goes through the options material by material.

How testing and clearance work in Florida

Florida licenses mold assessors and mold remediators separately. Under Florida Statute 468.8419, an assessor may not remediate a structure it assessed within 12 months, and a remediator may not assess or clear a structure it remediated within 12 months. Certified Division I contractors are the exception. On our Fort Myers projects, an independent licensed mold assessor inspects and samples the home, writes the scope, and performs clearance testing. We do the remediation to that protocol.

For a family working with a doctor, that separation is a real advantage. The company testing your home has no reason to find more mold than is there, and the company removing it can’t grade its own work. The assessor may use air sampling, dust-based mold testing such as ERMI or HERTSMI-2, and a mycotoxin panel on settled dust. Each answers a different question, and our mycotoxin testing page explains how they fit together.

Working with your doctor

Many families come to us after a functional or integrative physician has suggested the home may be involved. With your permission, we’ll talk with that office, explain what the assessor’s results show, and send the clearance report directly. We’ll also help you think through the practical side: which rooms to keep using during the work, which belongings to clean or replace, and whether staying elsewhere for a few days makes sense. Those decisions belong to you and your doctor.

Our Southwest Florida team works across Fort Myers and the rest of Lee, Collier and Charlotte counties. We’re family-owned, in business since 2008, and every project is backed by a complete-removal guarantee. We don’t close a job on a failed result.

We remove mold and mycotoxins from buildings. We don’t diagnose, treat or give medical advice, and home test results are not medical tests. Please rely on your doctor for health decisions. With your permission, we’ll share the results and our plan with them.