Superior Restoration

Considering the fact that we all woke up to rain I thought it only right that for the last day of our health awareness week we discuss what standing water, or a persistent leak might do to your health.

Directly one might not think there is much that can happen when there is water in your home, but that it just not true. Leaks and water damages can be some of the most silent, harmless experiences for a family. Lets put it this way, have you ever traveled to a developing country? You know how they say ‘don’t drink the water’? That standing water in your basement could be teeming with the exact same bacteria, if not mosquito larva.

That last part is a little hard for people to except but we’ve seen many cases where water left standing for over a week before a happy breeding ground for these disease-spreading insects. It’s summertime, and many mosquitoes are in their peak-breeding season where hundreds if not thousands of female mosquitoes are looking for any stagnant water source to lay their young. Your basement is a perfect, nearly predator free place for their babes to hatch, grow, and breed again.

Minus the insects, bacteria will cultivate and become an issue. Many of these bacteria will feed off, and destroy sheetrock and wood compromising the structural integrity of your home. For this example lets get out of the basement and into the attic. Mr. Thompson has had a leaky roof for ages. Actually he can’t remember when it started, just that it’s there and he forgets about it. One day a strong storm comes, and the support beam that has been slowly rotted by water and mold is too weak. It collapses and nearly destroys the house. Terrible isn’t it? It could all be avoided by just repairing the roof and potentially having an expert examine the beam to see the level of damage it has sustained.

Standing water and leaks also give rise to mold. Your home is made of what mold eats, so here is the formula to remember:

Water + Humidity + Food Source = Mold

This can happen all year round, and many times remain hidden between walls where a leaky pipe might be. Frankly most people do not catch their mold problem until it is far too late. These damages can go up into the thousands incredibly easily, and some even in the tens of thousands. A recent large mold remediation we administered cost almost twenty thousand dollars.

Water is a sneaky thing, it gets everywhere it shouldn’t, but it doesn’t ever completely disappear without proper drying and handling by trained professionals. If you have a water damage contact us seven days a week. We’ll be happy to help.

If you have questions about water damage please leave a message in our ask box.

In 1999 a family moved into what they thought was their dream home. The sprawling 22 room mansion on nearly 72 acres of land in the country seemed ideal for raising their young family. Until now they had enjoyed the city life, so this new prospect was something they both thought was an adventure and fantasy. However that dream come true would soon become a waking nightmare.

A toxic mold has crept into their home, and within little over a year the family was forced to leave their home. Almost like a grotesque still-life dishes were left in the sink, and the toys of their young children still set up in the living room. What had happened, and what lead up to this terror?

After moving into their new home, the couple’s four year old son began coughing blood. In addition he could not stand on his own, and suffered from debilitating stomach issues. With symptoms that ranged across the board the child was admitted to the local hospital for observation and fluids. After rounds of tests the doctors were stumped, what could be making this once utterly healthy young boy so ill? Worse yet was that his symptoms improved once he was in the hospital, but after a merry-go-round of home to hospital nothing was getting better.

That was until the husband got sick. It started first with dizziness and losing his short term memory: something a investment banker simply could not afford to lose.. However it didn’t stop there, soon he too was coughing blood, and experiencing the same stomach problems.

It was then that the wife who had been researching on the internet for months discovered that the family’s problem matched the descriptions of an insidious mold called Toxic Black Mold or Stachybotrys. In light of his revelation she sought out the services of one of the world’s leading mold experts: Dr. David Strauss. The son and husband were given a battery of tests, and the home was finally tested. What was found was nothing less than shocking.

The home was a loss. This dream home had nearly ten times the normal level of Black Mold a case normally sees. Dr. Strauss theorized that the family was getting so ill from the mycotoxins the mold releases which effects the nervous system and lungs. It was also found that the mold probably came from a water damage that was not properly fixed, or disclosed in the final sale. From the level of damage there would be absolutely no way to eliminate every trace to mycotoxin from the home. He ordered the family to evacuate.

The doctor in an interview with CBS news said the disaster was in all ways like a flood, the family had lost everything they owned. They could not take a single piece from their old home for the risk of carrying spores. Wedding photos, baby shoes, everything gone.

By this time the husband had to resign from his high paying position. His memory was gone. His wife recalls him going to the grocery store and coming back without groceries, while his coworkers recall coming into his office and watching him stare at the wall like he had “had a stroke”. He was now on disability.

Upon leaving the house the wife’s milder symptoms disappeared. However her son developed asthma and a difficulty concentrating in school. The young boy saw a doctor who specializes in mold exposure cases who saw a low level of antibodies, which likely means a prolonged exposure to mold. He stated most assuredly that the family should never be exposed to mold again. The husband’s condition only marginally improved. While they still could recover, for now the family still suffers from a creeping killer that made what should have been the happiest days into ones that would forever scar them.

In some ways the family was lucky, Stachybotrys can kill. Especially in infants the mold can cause hemorrhaging in the brain resulting in fatal pressure on the brain. Since this finding was found there have been over thirty cases of hemorrhaging in infants alone, and over five deaths.

Black Mold is not terribly common in our neck of the woods. Most cases occur in the southwest, to mid-west due to their high heat and low humidity, however it is not unheard of. Mold is not the first thing most doctors will think of, as when you see stripes on a horse you think zebra. If you think their may be cause to have your home tested do so. It could mean the difference between an unlucky chapter in your life, or the end of it.

If you have questions about Mold, Toxic Black mold, or the effects mold can have on your health leave a message in our ask box, or contact your doctor for more information on the symptoms.

Sources:

http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2002/01/31/health/main327526.shtml

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stachybotrys

http://www.cdc.gov/mold/stachy.htm

Mold, it happens, and we’ve gone over this at least a dozen times before. However unlike the other days where we talk about the need to catch mold early, or how to go about inquiring to a mold remediation today we will be focusing more on why having a mold problem in your home can be detrimental to your health.

Mold happens in everyday things, like that bagel you ate this morning (yeast), those mushrooms in your pasta sauce, or growing outside on leaves and trees. However when mold enters the home different problems can occur. Not saying you should remove bread from your house, or never have mushrooms, no we’re talking about mold you personally did not want.

Typically New England springs and summers are the worst times for mold growth. With high heat and humidity areas like attics and between walls become perfect breeding grounds for mold. Mold does not affect any two people the same way, while some might itch, others may suffer from migraines, while others may have their airways swell shut in a terrible reaction. The trouble is knowing the signs.

If you live in a home with a mold contamination, chances are you think any symptom your facing is related to something else entirely. Since mold has the ability to slowly grow, the acclamation process is prolonged meaning you might not notice the problem until you hit the proverbial iceberg. That one change in the atmosphere can change your drippy nose into nose bleeds, or worse.

If you notice that your condition at home decreases, that you feel ill while in your home you should seek a doctor’s opinion as to why this is happening. You may ask if mold could be a culprit,  and if they think so hire a certified air quality professional to take samples of the air to monitor the amount of spores in the air. If there is a high amount of mold present, call us.

Only a doctor can determine if what you are experiencing is the result of a mold problem in your home, and likewise only a professional can monitor the level of contamination in your home. Self diagnosis or testing is not the answer.

Later we will be discussing what one family went through when their home was attacked by an aggressively active mold. Stay tuned.

For our second entry of the day we are going to be talking about more fine particles, or more specifically: soot. Soot it the fine burned particles that wood and other burned items. Typically we see significant soot damages in fire loss, but what about just from the fireplace in winter? Or having the windows open while the fire pit is blazing?

Soot happens. It does, and anyone who has ever had a fireplace knows this. They gray dust gets everywhere and can be a health problem for people with allergies, asthma, and other breathing complications. The substance can be tricky to get rid of, especially without smudging it, but never fear we know how to help.

One of the best pieces of advice we can give you is to have your chimney regularly cleaned, and invest in a fireplace cover that keeps the soot in for the most part. Another helpful tip is to make sure the wood you are using is meant to be burned inside. Some woods give off more ash and residue than others, which can not only pose an uncontrolled fire hazard, but also fill your home with soot.

If you do experience a soot problem, the best solution is to contact yours truly: Superior Restoration. We know how to handle soot, and can get your home back to a clean, healthy place. No one should breathe in soot, it impairs breathing and in the very young and elderly could cause illness.

Sometimes we can’t even see the soot build up on items, it might take running a white cloth over the surface to even detect it, but consider trying this should your fireplace back up into your home, or an event has taken place where soot and ash has been exposed to your home,

One should never feel like there is no place to turn, because frankly there are plenty of reputable places one can go to properly care for soot damage, however few can boast what we offer. With over 30 years in the industry, and certified in fire and soot damages we can offer not only a clean home, but peace of mind in knowing you’re in capable hands.

Do you have questions about soot? Leave us a message in our ask box, and we’ll be happy to answer.