The Fort Worth Homeowner's Guide to Texas's 25-Square-Foot Mold Cleanup Rule

If you have spotted a patch of mold on a bathroom wall or under a Near Southside kitchen sink, your first question is probably "can someone just come clean this up today?" In Texas, the answer depends on one specific number: 25 contiguous square feet. That threshold, set by the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation (TDLR), draws the legal line between a quick cleanup and full mold remediation, and knowing which side you are on saves you time, money, and a lot of confusion.

What the 25-Square-Foot Rule Actually Means

Texas regulates mold remediation through TDLR. Under those rules, any project involving mold that covers 25 or more contiguous square feet must be handled by a TDLR-licensed mold remediation contractor, with formal assessment, containment, and clearance paperwork.

Below that threshold, the work falls under a recognized exemption. Smaller, isolated spots, think a single patch on drywall or a corner of a window frame, can be cleaned without a mold license. That is the lane Go Green Restoration works in. We handle small-area mold cleanup under 25 contiguous square feet and refer larger jobs to licensed remediators.

The word "contiguous" matters. It means connected area, not the total of every speck in your home. A two-foot by three-foot patch behind a TCU-area bathroom vanity is six square feet, well within the exemption. But mold creeping across an entire wall after a Trinity River flood, or spreading between studs in an older Cultural District home, can easily cross 25 square feet once you open the wall and see the full picture.

How to Tell Which One You Have

You usually cannot measure mold accurately just by looking at the surface, but a few practical signs help you gauge the scale before you call anyone:

• **Surface size:** Eyeball the visible patch. Anything roughly five feet by five feet or larger is at or past the threshold, and likely larger once hidden growth is included.
• **It is on one spot vs. several rooms:** A single spot under a sink leans small-area. Mold showing up in multiple rooms, or along a long baseboard, suggests a bigger moisture problem.
• **The trigger event:** A slow drip from aging plumbing in an older neighborhood often produces a contained patch. A burst pipe, roof leak from a spring hailstorm, or floodwater intrusion usually means widespread saturation.
• **Smell vs. sight:** A strong musty odor with little visible mold often means hidden growth inside walls or under flooring, which can exceed the exemption.

When the size is borderline or the source points to deep water damage, that is a job for a TDLR-licensed mold remediation contractor, not us. We will tell you so honestly rather than stretch our scope.

What Small-Area Cleanup Looks Like With Us

For qualifying jobs under 25 contiguous square feet, our crews focus on two things: cleaning the affected material safely and stopping the moisture that fed the mold in the first place. Mold is a water problem before it is a mold problem, and Fort Worth gives it plenty of fuel between humid spring storms and slow leaks in century-old downtown buildings.

As an EPA Lead-Safe certified company, we use careful containment and dust-control methods, which matters in older Near Southside and Bluebonnet Hills homes where lead paint can be disturbed during cleanup. Our IICRC-certified technicians clean the small affected area, dry the surrounding structure with professional equipment, and address the moisture source, whether that is a leaking trap, condensation, or a minor roof drip from recent hail. We are bonded and insured, so the work is documented and accountable from start to finish.

We do not perform full remediation, we do not promise to "remove all the mold" in a house, and we do not take on large or commercial mold projects. Those require the licensing, containment, and third-party clearance that Texas law reserves for TDLR-licensed remediators.

When We Refer You Out

If we arrive and find the affected area is 25 contiguous square feet or more, or the moisture damage runs deeper than a small surface patch, we will say so plainly and connect you with a licensed mold remediation contractor. This is not us passing the buck, it is the law, and it protects you. A licensed remediator brings the independent assessment and clearance testing that bigger jobs legally require. We are happy to make that referral and, where appropriate, handle the water-damage drying and build-back portions that fall within our scope.

The bottom line: small, contained mold is often a same-week fix; large or hidden mold is a licensed project. If you are unsure which you have, get eyes on it before it spreads. Call Go Green Restoration at (469) 727-3217 for an honest assessment of your mold situation across Fort Worth and the wider DFW metroplex, and we will point you in the right direction every time.