The Best Mold Removal and Cleanup in Shippensburg

A 1730 Town in a Wet Valley

Shippensburg is one of the oldest towns in the Cumberland Valley. The first settlers built along Burd’s Run in July 1730, Widow Piper’s Tavern went up in 1735, and the borough was incorporated on January 21, 1819. Gum Run flows through the center of town from the south and becomes Middle Spring Creek, which runs north into the Conodoguinet. That’s a lot of creek in 2.03 square miles.

The weather does the rest. Shippensburg gets about 42 inches of precipitation a year, spread over about 126 days, plus roughly 34 inches of snow. July highs average around 87 degrees, which is warm enough that a cool basement wall in summer turns into a condensation surface. Warm, wet air meets cold masonry. That is the basic mold problem in every older house here.

What We Check in Shippensburg Homes

The old blocks around King Street. Brick and stone houses, plaster walls, foundations that predate modern waterproofing. We read the foundation walls with a moisture meter, trace the downspouts, check the sump if there is one, and look at the attic, where decades of added insulation often cut off the ventilation.

Student rentals. Shippensburg University sits just north of the borough, and rentals turn over every year. A unit that sat closed through a humid stretch with the HVAC off can pass 60 percent humidity quickly. We inspect between leases, not after a complaint.

Newer homes on the edges. Supply lines behind appliances, water heater pans, sump pump discharge, bath fans that end in the attic, and HVAC condensate drains.

Everywhere. Relative humidity in the basement, main floor, and attic, read separately. It should stay between 30 and 50 percent.

How the Job Goes

The mold work is the same on every job: containment, negative air with HEPA filtration, remove what’s grown on, HEPA clean and treat the framing, dry to standard, verify, then patch and paint. The mold removal page lays out each step. The basement mold removal page covers old-foundation basements, and the crawl space mold removal page covers vapor barriers and encapsulation, priced separately from the cleanup.

If a pipe has burst or a sump has failed, the clock is running. Water damage and structural drying comes first, because wet materials can start growing mold in 24 to 48 hours. For a smell you can’t trace or a home inspection that flagged staining, start with mold inspection and testing. The Gettysburg page covers the company and the office we drive out of, and the cost page has planning ranges.

Streets and Corners We Know in Shippensburg

US 11 runs through the middle of town as King Street. Earl Street and Fayette Street carry PA 696, which reaches Interstate 81 at Exit 24 about three miles south. Morris Street is PA 533 and runs west toward Orrstown, 5 miles away. Walnut Bottom Road, PA 174, leads east to I-81 Exit 29 in about a mile and a half. Carlisle is 20 miles northeast on US 11, and Chambersburg is 11 miles southwest.

The old town. The Shippensburg Historic District, Widow Piper’s Tavern (built 1735), the Shippen House, and the Benjamin Blythe Homestead are all on the National Register. Fort Morris was ordered built on July 9, 1755, and archaeologists found its site on Burd Street in 2009. That tells you how old the ground under these houses is.

The university area. Shippensburg University was founded in 1871 as the Cumberland Valley State Normal School. It sits just north of the borough limits in Shippensburg Township, with part of its property inside the borough.

Schools, Parks, and Landmarks Around Shippensburg

College. Shippensburg University of Pennsylvania is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. Its Cumberland Valley State Normal School Historic District is on the National Register.

Springs. Dykeman’s Spring is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

Location. The borough is in the Cumberland Valley, about 41 miles southwest of Harrisburg.

Neighborhoods and Areas Around Shippensburg

• The Shippensburg Historic District and King Street
• The blocks around Widow Piper’s Tavern and Burd Street
• The university area north of the borough in Shippensburg Township
• Homes along PA 696 toward Interstate 81
• The Franklin County side of the borough to the west

Things to Do in Shippensburg

Widow Piper’s Tavern

Built in 1735. It hosted the first Cumberland County courts in 1750 and 1751.

Fort Morris Site

Burd Street. The fort was garrisoned from 1755 to 1759, and the site was rediscovered in 2009.

Shippensburg University

The campus, founded 1871, is just north of the borough.

Top Sites in Shippensburg

Shippensburg Historic District

The National Register district covering the old center of town.

Benjamin Blythe Homestead

A National Register homestead in the borough.

Shippen House

A National Register building in the borough.