Creston is a neighborhood on the northeast side of Grand Rapids, along Plainfield Avenue, with Riverside Park and the Grand River on its western edge. Much of its housing is older single-family homes from the early and middle 1900s.
Older Creston homes often have block or early poured foundations, small basement windows, and basements that never fully dry. Add an older bathroom fan, or none at all, and mold shows up both downstairs and on bathroom ceilings.
Call (616) 226-9528A musty basement plus black spots upstairs usually means the whole house runs humid. Fixing the mold and adding a dehumidifier and better ventilation works better than cleaning one spot at a time.
Common questions
Do you cover all of Creston?
Yes, and the neighborhoods around it on the northeast side.
Our basement walls have a white crust. Is that mold?
White, powdery crystals on concrete are usually efflorescence, which is mineral salts left by water moving through the wall. It isn't mold, but it means moisture is getting through.
Is it worth fixing mold in a house we're about to sell?
Usually yes. Buyers' inspectors look for it, and dealing with it first avoids last-minute surprises.