Last weekend,
I took a mold seminar and became certified as a mold professional.
Some of the anecdotes worth sharing
with people with property issues are the following.
- Toxic molds remain toxic even if non-viable.
What this means is that even if water damage
occurred 10-20 years ago, infected building materials need to
be removed. While air quality may be less an issue with
non-viable spores, the potential for allergic reactions as well
as toxic consequences exists.
- Seemingly modest problems can cause extensive
damage.
Some of the situations discussed in the seminar
would constitute a basic checklist for property inspection, but
the truly hair raising issues fell into three main categories.
- Construction materials and methods
- Deferred maintenance
- Acts of Nature
Construction
As I will keep reminding readers, my forté is
health, not inspection or remediation. This said, some
points to keep in mind are that tighter, more energy efficient
homes and offices do not breathe well. Ideally, the lower
parts of properties—crawl spaces and basements—should
be sealed and the upper areas, like attics, should be ventilated
so as to allow hot, humid air a way to escape. For the
most part, houses are built in the opposite manner: the
crawl spaces are ventilated and often have very high humidity
whereas the attics are tight. Changing this will most likely
result in an improvement in air quality.
Maintenance
Mold is opportunistic. If
will activate if exposed to moisture for 24-48 hours. Condensation
on pipes and windows, plumbing leaks, air conditioning and heating
systems that are not maintained properly, as well as down spouts
that do not distribute water away from the property are all potentially
hazardous. One of the accounts discussed in the seminar
was a relatively small break in the caulking of a shower that
affected half of a home. Another was of a defective wax
ring under the commode which resulted in damage to the master
bedroom, kitchen, dining room, and living room.
Water can travel underneath flooring
and inside enclosed walls without anyone noticing until an area
becomes visibly wet, soft, or discolored. Unfortunately,
the absence of early warning can be dangerous for occupants.
There are many more inspection
points to keep in mind. These involve exterior factors
such as slope of the land, landscaping and watering systems,
hot tubs, gutters and down spouts, wood piles, direction of wind,
roofing, caulking of windows, etc., etc., etc. A trained
inspector can explore the issues and discuss what is required
to alleviate mold risk.
Acts of Nature
As noted on my opening page, we
are today faced with global warming, changes in weather patterns,
and increasingly ferocious rain, tsunamis, and hurricanes. All
these constitute ongoing risks as well as large scale crises
to manage. My prayer is that increased awareness of the
precarious nature of life will encourage people to value life
more and perhaps also to live more harmoniously. I would
also urge everyone to take an interest in environmental issues
and apply what you learn to your own life. It
is the best any of us can do in these times.
Ingrid
Naiman
6 October
2005
Continued
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