A friend bought an apartment on fairly high floor in a high rise,
right on the ocean and facing the water, in Florida, and it turns out
it has mold. The apartment is vacant. His wife says she's had
companies look at it, and they say they will do the job, but they
never come back.

What's going on? Have all the reliable Florida contractors gone to
NJ and NY? Don't some have families and enough business and want to
stay in Florida?

It's also possible that the wife is doing something wrong, but I don't
know what. Any guesses?

Did water get in through the windows and doors during storms not bad
enough to close the storm shutters, is that the cause? Or maybe a
leak from upstairs? Any other possible cause?

I owe this friend several big favors and fixing this for him would be
a partial repayment. I really don't want to spend the spring or
summer in Florida, or even the winter, but if work is almost all I do,
may be I won't have to stay too long.

How long do you think it would take to do a 3 BR apartment? I know
that's a stupid question because you (and I) don't know how big the
problem is, but my rough guess is that most of it is under the window
and door moldings that face the outside, and also if necessary killing
the mold with bleach and painting the walls with mold resistant paint.
(Which means mixing anti-mold liquid in with whatever paint the wife
wants.) Is 3 weeks a reasonable time estimate?

I need the exercise. I can probably only do hard work 4 hours a day
to start but after a week or two, might be up to 8 hours a day and
after that, 12 hours a day and then I can go home, fit and fiddle. So
it might benefit me, too.


Do I have to wear a respirator the whole time I'm in there? Can I
sleep there without a respirator and not get sick? I had a little
mold in my own house, one square foot in the basement for years (I
hadn't noticed it), when I spent my time equally on all three floors,
and it didn't bother me at all. On another occasion, 6 square feet
for 3 months. Again, no problems. Or do these good experiences
mean nothing because there are so many kinds of mold.

Can I let their 10-year old come in and play while I'm working, or is
it too likely he'll get sick? If I say no, I want to have some
authority like one of you to blame, so he doesn't blame me.

I'd like to hire a helper, but if the building management doesn't have
reliable names, not sure where to look.

Thanks.