Archive for category Home and Health
Green, Chemical-Free Pest Control: Quick and Safe.
Posted by Cynthia in Going Green, Home Improvement, Home and Health on November 10th, 2009
Pest Control has finally evolved into an industry that quickly and effectively eradicates pests in your home without exposing its other living inhabitants to harmful and dangerous chemicals with a system called ThermaPureHeat offered by a company called Expediant in NY, CT, NJ, PA and MA
ThermaPureHeat is a completely chemical-free new process called Structural Pasteurization that utilizes clean, pure heat to kill mold and bug infestations of any size without harming pets, plants or people.
Used effectively in difficult infestations such as bed bugs, it leaves no residues or smell behind. The treated areas can be safely occupied right after the treatment by anyone, including pets and small children.
The process is also scalable: it can be applied to a whole house, to a single floor or even a single area or room and the concept is very simple. Giant heaters — 500,000 bpu each — blast hot air into the house until it reaches the desired temperature. Different infestations require different heat settings but the treatment will kill the mold or bug infestation, with the added bonus of killing many harmful bacteria and viruses as well.
Here’s a Discovery Channel Video about the process:
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House Detox: Controlling Indoor Pollution
Posted by Cynthia in Going Green, Home Improvement, Home and Health on July 17th, 2009
Controlling indoor pollutants
A few more weeks and summer will be over. Outdoor furniture will be folded or put away, pools covered, and gardens prepared for a long winter nap. Our windows will be closed, and we will try to close, seal, insulate and caulk every air leak to protect our families from the bitter cold and maximize the efficiency of our heating appliances.
However, once all the windows are closed, another danger emerges: indoor pollution, which according to the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency) is 2 to 5 times worse than the outdoor pollution, and can aggravate asthma and allergy symptoms.
This article How to Detox Your House from Good Housekeeping magazine offers a step-by-step guide on how to control indoor pollution, detecting the main problem areas in the house and listing simple measures that can significantly improve indoor air quality during the winter months.
If it smells like it….
Posted by Cynthia in Home Improvement, Home and Health on July 14th, 2009
Before it becomes visible, mold usually smells.
If it smells like mold, that is what it is, says Eunice Sahr from North Dakota University Extension Service Office in an article published in the Jamestown Sun.
“If you can smell a musty odor or see mold, you have a mold problem. You don’t need to test for mold. Reliable sampling for mold can be very expensive since it requires special equipment and training. Testing is not generally recommended as a first step.”
Along with tips and instructions for safe mold removal, the article discuss means of keep the mold from coming back.
“The moisture problem must be fixed to prevent future mold growth. Since there are some mold spores everywhere and since mold grows on any wet organic surface, the only way to prevent mold growth is to keep things dry.”
Above grade, adequate ventilation and fans will most of the time do the trick. Basements and crawl spaces will often need a dehumidifier, as the relative humidity brought in with the outside air will usually increase as it enters naturally cooler below grade spaces.
The article also advises homeowners to wait until wood moisture readings are dry enough for reconstruction, otherwise the mold might contaminate the newly added woodwork.
Carbon Monoxide: The danger after the storm
Posted by Cynthia in Home Improvement, Home and Health on July 13th, 2009
Carbon monoxide is invisible and odorless.
It’s been a rough, wild summer when it comes to weather. Heavy prolonged rains, tornadoes, powerful storms bringing monsoon-like rainfall, golf-ball-sized hail, apocalyptic thunderstorms and winds powerful enough to level entire neighborhoods.
The most common occurrence under such conditions are power outages which, depending on the size and amount of the damage inflicted upon the power distribution system, can last for days.
To keep the household running, the food from spoiling in the fridge, the sump pump from stalling when it is needed the most, homeowners will usually resort to a gasoline powered generator, lanterns and gas-powered appliances.
According to State and Federal Emergency Management Officials, many people die after a storm or similar disaster from carbon monoxide poisoning due to improper use of such generators and gas-powered tools.
Carbon monoxide is a very poisonous, invisible and odorless gas that can fatally poison a person in a matter of minutes. Opening doors, windows and using fans will not stop carbon monoxide buildup, which is why equipment that produces carbon monoxide should never be used indoors.
Symptoms of CO poisoning include dizziness, weakness, fatigue, and chest pains for those with heart disease, shortness of breath, nausea, vomiting, headaches, confusion, lack of coordination, impaired vision, and loss of consciousness and – in severe cases – death.
Here some important safety tips to prevent carbon monoxide poisoning:
- Under no circumstance, run a gas powered generator indoors, in the garage, basement or crawl space. Gas powered generators are only safe if running in a well ventilated area, at least 10 feet away from the house
- Do not use a grill (gas or charcoal) inside a house, garage, shed or tent or fireplace.
- Do not use the heat from a gas stove or oven to heat your home.
- Add battery operated carbon monoxide detectors to your emergency preparedness kit.
- Consider buying battery operated backup versions of vital equipment, such as the sump pump, to minimize the need to run a generator during power outages.
- If you are running a generator or any carbon monoxide producing appliance and start to feel dizzy, get out immediately. Don’t wait. If anyone faints or loses conscience, call 911 immediately.
Source: The Anahuac Progress.
Rainy summer likely to stir mold problems in the Northeast
Posted by Cynthia in Home Improvement, Home and Health on July 10th, 2009
Moisture cause mold growth
Health care providers in New Hampshire are bracing for a rough fall season, as the rainy weather creates ideal conditions for widespread mold growth and as a result, people with respiratory problems may suffer complications this fall.
In an article published in Fosters.com Dr. Donald Woodmansee, section chief for allergy and immunology at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center in Lebanon states:
Dust mites and mold flourish in similar conditions. Both commonly trigger allergies and asthma in sensitized people and when they shut their homes up in the fall after a wet summer, problems can result
Under rainy conditions, many old, structurally unsound and improperly insulated homes will have water infiltration problems and eventually mold will start to grow, sometimes in places where it can’t be immediately detect, like the insulation behind the drywall.
When the weather begins to cool down during the fall season, windows are shut and the house in closed. That is when most people with respiratory problems begin to report the worst symptoms.
Although asthma, emphysema and cronic obstructive pulmonary disease are reported year-round, during fall and spring, the numbers of patients seen in hospitals because of such problems typically increases.
The Center for Disease Control in Atlanta, GA., reports molds produce tiny spores to reproduce, just as plants produce seeds. Mold spores waft through the indoor and outdoor air continually. When mold spores land on a damp spot indoors, they may begin growing and digesting whatever they are growing on in order to survive. Some molds can grow on wood, Sheetrock and even bacteria on dirty carpeting.
The only way to control mold in a home is to to keep it dry, by eliminate the sources of moisture and keeping the humidity levels at or below 60%. Fans and exhausts to make the air circulate above grade and a good basement dehumidifier are proven methods to control mold.
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