Posts Tagged "mold"
Mold Effecting your Childrens Asthma?
Young Children who live in mold positive homes are three times to contract asthma by the age of 7, according to an article and study published in the ieconnections paper. The University of Cincinnati did a study over the last seven years and took comparative data from its 700 evaluated children involved in the Childhood Allergy and Air pollution study ( CCAAPS). The study has shown that early life exposure to mold, plays a critical role in childhood developed asthma. As well genetic play a factor in this study. If the parents of the child have allergy’s or asthma they are at a greater risk of developing asthma. What dose this study mean for our homeowners, motivation. This study should motivate parents and expecting parents alike to have there homes tested if there was ever any evidence of water damage or water intrusion into the home.
Always Test for Mold!
It is always important to make sure your home is safe for you and your family. But its also important to test before you make a uneducated decsion and end up paying for something that wanst even there. Companys can very easily take advantage of homeowners fears. This is why it is very important to test before any action is taken Watch this clip on the Today show about this growing problem these people are making a bad image for our profession lets set it straight.
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Mold Home test Kits, Are the Worth It?
There was a recent article in the New York Times about the affects of mold on health. This article advised homeowners to use home test kits to detect the presence of mold. These home test kits are not reliable thus causing other problems. The following list the problems that the home test kits may entail.
Mold is a naturally occurring organism that is present in almost every environment. Home mold test kits that use ‘settle plate applications’ (the test where a dish is left out for 24-48 hours). These test generally do not measure the airborne particles accurately. Spores vary in shape, size, and weight. The heavier mold spores will fall through the air faster then the smaller mold spores. thus being represented in larger quantities in the dish then the light mold spores. Since most environments contain mold spores in the air, it becomes difficult to determine weather the spores that are collected, are part of a dangerous indoor colony or just from the outdoor environment.
The do-it-yourself mold test kits often cause homeowners to make rash decisions ether because feel as if the mold that is present is not harmful or that the mold is harmful and then they end up making a costly decision to remodel there home. The accuracy of these test are terrible even if a lab test for the molds they might not be able to detect hidden molds. So the homeowner can no longer properly assess the situation. Most of the time people either do to much or do not do enough.
The bottom line is that if you are concerned about your homes indoor air quality, contact a professional testing service, preferably one that is Certified. With the professional testing services you will get better interpretations an analysis of the mold. Allowing you to make informed choices. Your decision can make all of the difference between potential health problems for you our your family. The best choice is to have the job handled professionally, properly, and quickly.
Mold Attack!
Mold is attacking! It’s on the loose running rampant and intruding into homes with the help of moisture and water. It’s about that time when water damage to homes can happen. With the snow/ water run off, and the dropping temptres. It can lead to broken pipes in walls and basements that have become flooded. So this is a perfect time for a blog about Mold. Water is a very trick thing to contain because often times people don’t notice they have a leak until their standing inwater up to their ankles. Water flows to the path of least resistance so it goes down which is were most of our basements are located. And when it flows it flows! Whether its from a frozen pipe or a flow of outside water, water intrusion can be costly and lead to indoor health hazards.
When water finds its way into your home it is best to call a professional right away to take care of the problem, whether it is the broken pipe, or the 6 inches of water in your basement. Most water restoration contractors have direct lines to a plumber so if you call them, they will most likely dispatch someone to your home to assess the leak and fix it. Now, with the water in your basement how do you get rid of it? The water restoration companies will most likely look at what type of water came into the home, because different water can have different types of clean up. If its’ water from a pipe such as a clean water source chances of it containing bacteria is very low. But you don’t want to let it sit for longer then 24 hours. Now if it’s a broken sewage pipe or its outside brown water IE( flood water, snow run off) it needs to be cleaned up immediately and most of the contacted area’s will need to be removed due to possible bacteria exposure.
Mold can cause a host of many different health hazards for you and your family. Headaches, bleeding from your nose, shortness of breathe, or hard time getting enough oxygen. Mold spores don’t get flung into the air unless they are disturbed. That’s why its very important to not handle mold, move or touch it because doing so can contaminate more areas of your home. When mold is present in the air it will be breathed in by anyone around the contaimneated area and can lead to problems with your lungs. One known mold called Aspergillus Niger can cause webbing in your lung which can lead to suffocation.
Mold is more common then most homeowners would like to beileive so its very crucial to your family’s health and your own health to take the right percautions and ether have it professionally removed. If you are unsure if a water intrusion has caused an indoor air quality problem hire a mold professional to have the indoor air of your home tested. Don’t be a victim of a mold attack.
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