Marijuana grows leaving more Colorado homes filled with mold
Denver police Det. Brian Matos estimates that marijuana is grown in one of every 10 homes in the city
July 31, 2017
At least 230 plants in various stages of growth were found growing in the home and two outbuildings on a property in Eastern Pueblo County in January 2017.
David and Christine Lynn paid $398,000 for a home in rural Douglas County before discovering that the previous occupants had diverted an electrical line to avoid paying the high cost of power needed to turn the residence into a marijuana grow house.
"They called the electric company and found out the wattage for that house had been huge for the previous two years," said Rolf von Merveldt, a lawyer who is handling the lawsuit they filed against the previous owner.
Things got worse from there. They found thousands of square feet of mold beneath rugs and drywall in the basement, and a subsequent inspection determined that walls that had absorbed the pungent smell of pot had been covered with Kilz, a primer that can block odors.
Mold in some parts of the home covered drywall from the floor to ceiling, suggesting that the moisture causing it didn't come from outside the home, von Merveldt said.
