I think it is important to use encapsulation because clearance testing is so sensitive.  An extra spore of Stachy, Chaetomium, or Ulocladium can cause a failure.  We want our client's clearance inspection and tests to pass the first time.  We want the surfaces to be clean, dry, and encapsulated.

That said, for years we recommended the use of a Foster's "white" encapsulation until I received a call from our TDSHS inspector that told me he would "write me up" if he found encapsulation had been applied before he performed his inspection because he couldn't see that the wood was clean.  That was a great point, so I asked him about switching to clear.  He liked that and we have used IAQ-6100 clear encapsulate ever since.