Home Improvement, Remodeling, Toxic Black Mold & Mortgage Refinance Blog

I think I would start here >> http://www.startremodeling.com/hiring_a_contractor.htm

If you hire a horrible Contractor ….

It’s all down-hill from there…

Jimmy

The more educated a consumer is about home construction or renovation, the better for everyone.

As I emphasize each week on my radio show and in public appearances, education is the key in making sure the homebuyer or homeowner gets what they want. The worst thing that can happen in the construction process is for the homeowner or homebuyer to say those dreaded words….‘But I thought.’ Make sure you know exactly how your project will be constructed!”

It’s your money – and the contractor should listen to YOU.

Homebuyers and homeowners are more educated than ever about construction practices and new innovations in the construction industry. With home improvement television and radio shows, magazines, and, of course, the Internet, consumers have a wealth of information available to them about new home construction as well as small renovation projects to make their homes more attractive or functional.

Armed with this knowledge, homeowners/homebuyers should become more proactive in every phase of the construction process. From interviewing builders and contractors about their experience, preferred products and techniques and choice of subcontractors, to learning the contractor’s philosophies of construction, to the final walk-through, homeowners/homebuyers need to be involved in every step of their project, however large or small.

Homeowners/homebuyers should know what products the contractor prefers and is comfortable in using. The homeowner/homebuyer should ask the contractor what they use and why, especially if the contractor’s choice is different than the homeowner’s/home-buyer’s preference. Contractors, like most of us, are creatures of habit. Home-owners/homebuyers should take the time to tell the contractor what the THEY prefer and the research THEY’VE done. Not only will this let the contractor know you are aware of the new products and techniques available, but also what you expect from the entire process,

Perhaps one of the best examples of an area a homeowner/homebuyer needs to be proactive in is in the area of exterior insulation finishing systems (EIFS). Knowing there are different synthetic stucco products available and, more importantly, different ways subcontractors apply this product, is vital to the homeowner/homebuyer.

The difference between barrier and water-managed systems is like night and day. Knowing that difference can save the homeowner/homebuyer from a water-intrusion problem and help guarantee a great looking, low-maintenance exterior.

The homeowner/homebuyer should tell the contractor what they want is a water-managed EIFS exterior utilized and then find out if the contractor has experience in installing this type of system. The contractor must not only be familiar with proper flashing and moisture barrier installation, such as Tyvek Stuccowrap, but believe that moisture will eventually find its way into the system. By dealing with this intrusion, and funneling it down and away from the exterior of the wall, the work will prevent any moisture damage.

Here are five don’ts to remember about not constructing with barrier EIFS:

q If you use a barrier system, usually when the warranty runs out is when the water inside of the walls doesn’t.

q Don’t forget wood windows probably wouldn’t be a great choice! Vinyl reacts better to water.

q Don’t forget mold and mildew has spores! Make sure no one in the house has a respiratory problem.

q Don’t use wood for outside wall framing. Of course, steel can rust as well.

q Don’t leave any pets inside of the house while you are off to work, they may not know to hide under sturdy furniture when the ceiling falls! - Remember it’s YOUR money!

The contractor should listen to YOU.

Grab your tools! You can do this stuff!

I get a LOT of folks asking if the mold in their refridgerator is the notorious “Toxic Black Mold”.

Well, it may be Black, but I would assume it’s a fungus like Aspergillus or Penecillium!

Opening your refrigerator and finding colonies of fuzzy colors covering your food is all too familiar to many of us. Many are familiar with shoving your leftovers to the back of the fridge, only to find out weeks later that what was once spaghetti has now become an undistinguishable mass of mushy noodles and discolored tomato sauce, covered with green and purple fuzz.
This fuzz of course, is more commonly known as mold. Though there are several types of food molds, typically bluish-green to green molds are usually Penicillium or Aspergillus; black to dark brown molds are usually Cladosporium herbarum, Alternaria alternata, Aspergillus niger, Cladosporium sphaerospermum or Stachybotrys chartarum, which is highly toxic.

Lastly, the reddish or pink molds are usually Fusarium species. With a proper growing medium—in this case food—mold can grow anywhere as long as the conditions are livable.

The environment need only be sufficiently moist and warm to provide a home for these fungi.

Like mushrooms, molds reproduce by releasing spores into the air that can land on your food. Soon enough, if enough time passes, they will settle into their new home, creating thin roots called mycelium that spread throughout the food. Once the root is planted, the stalk portion of the mold fungus that appears on the surface of the food begins to produce spores and take its shape in the typical mold we see all too often.

Though there are some foods where mold growth is intentionally induced, such as cheese, most unintentional mold growth that is consumed in significant amounts can have dire consequences, ranging from sickness to diarrhea and even death. Even taking a whiff of a moldy piece of food can be dangerous if you are allergic to mold.

Undesirable molds produce mycotoxins, which are toxins produced by some fungi, though not all. Mycotoxins are produced around the mycelium of the mold, penetrating deeply into the food. Additionally, mycotoxins can survive for long periods of time in food and usually cannot be destroyed through cooking processes. Depending on the type of food, a different mycotoxin may be present.

So the next time you reach into your refrigerator for a piece of bread and find that it’s been overtaken by fuzzy green colonies, think twice about stuffing it into your mouth, even if it’s the last thing in your fridge.

Better safe than sorry folks!

~ Jimmy

The objective of the insured consumer is to have their property returned to a pre-damaged condition. Also see Negotiating your claim.

The objective of the insurance adjuster is to minimize the claim payout.

WE HAVE, THEREFORE, AN ADVERSARIAL SITUATION.

The quicker the consumer understands and accepts this fact, the better. Begin by examining the entire claim process exclusively in terms of MONEY. It is your MONEY, and your insurance company wants to keep as much of it as possible. Of course you have lost irreplaceable belongings — family photographs, letters, and heirlooms. You have no place to live, no food, no medicine, and little clothing. You are emotionally devastated.  You can’t sleep, and fail to think in terms of the tragedy equating to nothing more then MONEY. Yet, MONEY is the focus of the adjuster; nothing more.

OBVIOUS FACTS:

The professional adjuster already knows the true damages and the total exposure of the company. Her objective is to minimize what is ultimately paid. The adjuster is required by State law to set “Reserves” (the amount they believe the claim will ultimately cost their company) immediately after inspection of the loss. The insurance adjuster wants the consumer to accept her recommendations on who establishes the building and contents claims. Why? Because the insurance company has control over what their “experts” determine the damages to be. The adjuster wants Contents Restoration firms she controls to immediately take possession of your personal property. Why? They now have “experts” on their side to establish what is and what is not “totaled,” and the condition of this property before they removed it from the loss site

HOW THE ADJUSTER SUCCEEDS

The adjuster must access the knowledge of the insured and play the game most appropriate to their end. The adjuster’s moves are dependent upon  company “Guidelines” or “Claims Manuals.” Their objective is to keep the consumer off balance by creating confusion while appearing cooperative. (We describe it as: “smile a lot, utter nothingness, and place as little as possible in writing.”)  To do so she will put as little as possible in writing thereby not committing to anything. This allows the adjuster to retain all options. The consumer is always in a defensive posture and usually does not know it. String the claim out as long as possible hoping the insureds will miss important time limits found in the policy which can invalidate all or part of the claim. Even when time limits do not pass, the consumer will be left with little time to properly establish damages when the adjuster finally discloses these limitations. The longer the claim goes on,  with no commitments from the insurance company, the more options the company retains and hence, the better their negotiating position.

WHAT CAN THE CONSUMER DO?

1. The consumer must become the offensive player. They do so by: 

(A). Establishing their own damages and presenting them timely and in a form required by the insurance contract, State Law, and current Case Law. 

(B). Without properly presenting and itemizing your claim, the insurance company will never pay what the policy promises.

2. All communications are in writing; with verbal discussions documented in writing. 

(A). The consumer needs to develop a documented “paper trail. 

(B). Correspondence needs to be couched in verbiage found in the insurance  policy, State Law and regulations, and be consistent with current Court decisions.

When it comes to saving the planet and saving some money on your energy bill, lighting can play a key role. Lighting can account for about 30% of your energy bill, so changing your lights to more energy efficient options can save you quite a bit. Not to mention the positive impact on the environment. Here are some tips for more energy efficient lighting:

Eco Friendly Home Lighting – Energy Efficient Light Bulbs

Eco Friendly Home Lighting – Outside Lighting

Eco Friendly Home Lighting – Be Energy Efficient

In addition to using more efficient light bulbs, there are some things you can do to help reduce the amount of energy you use for lighting. First of all, you want to be sure that you don’t use lights unnecessarily. When no one is home or when a room is empty, be sure to turn the lights off. During the daytime, open the blinds and let the sunshine in instead of using indoor lighting. Using motion sensors can help to insure lights turn on only when needed.

When it comes to lighting, you need to have the right amount for the tasks you intend to do. While you don’t want to skimp or have poor lighting in important areas like the kitchen, you also want to be cognizant of when to use the lights and when to flip the switch. Remember reducing your use of electricity helps to reduce CO2 emissions into the air since the plants that produce electricity are largely coal burning plants which can add to global warming. A little bit of prudence on your part can make a big difference in the stability of our environment.

by Randy Penn.

Introduction

You can find a lot of information on mold, but trying to understand it may be difficult to those who didn’t take biology and chemistry. Even after stumbling through the pronunciation of these words, not everyone can comprehend what was meant by the statement.

“Satratoxin, a low-molecular weight non-volatile organically derived agent, belongs to the macrocyclic trichothecene class of mycotoxins generated from fungal microorganisms.”

As an aid to the homeowner, this overview is intended to explain a few bad products of mold in a less scientific manner. It will focus on those types of mold that have been considered as problematic to the “indoor mold issue” and does not address other fungal organisms which may behave differently. Analogies presented are not intended to be scientifically accurate, but rather to illustrate complex behaviors in more simple terms.

The people who study mold (mycologists) have identified and described over 100,000 species and many believe that this is only a partial listing (estimates of 1.5 million species have been suggested). Try jotting down the names of the first 100,000 people you know then describe each person’s behavior in a specific setting. You will begin to understand the complexities of the problem facing these mold professionals.

Most people have associated mold with allergies and these reactions are certainly prevalent with most all species found indoors. In addition to causing an allergic response, molds can be irritating, infectious and even toxic to humans. Understanding the general behavior of mold provides insight into the adverse components produced by mold.

The Organism

Fungi can be considered nature’s garbage disposal. Without them, the term “biodegradable” would not be so significant to our planet and we would have mountains of leaves, dead trees, and other organic materials sitting around…all deposited since the beginning of time. This, in simple terms, is the ‘why’ of mold.

For the moment, think of mold as a weed. This weed has a root system, a vegetative stalk, and a seed pod. For mold, the root system is made up of hyphae (high-fee). As hyphae grows into a mass during the vegetative state, it becomes a mycelium (my-sill-ee-um). The spores, designed for reproduction, are similar to seeds.

Like a weed, mold needs food and water to survive (yes, both need more than that, however, we are simplifying things here). For mold, the food of preference is organic matter (things that once were living). Indoors, those things are wood, paper, organic dust and dirt, leather, skin flakes, body oils, etc.

When mold spores that are floating around in the air land on a food source, they sit there patiently waiting for water. If the item they land on should contain sufficient moisture, or water comes from another source (leaks, etc.), the spore germinates and hyphae grows. The hyphae branch out, secrete enzymes to breakdown the food, form the mycelium, and absorb nutrients to grow. As long as the food and water hold out, colonies will continue to grow. Note that individual hyphae and spores are very, very small and few can see them without a microscope. When you see visible mold, you are generally seeing that mass of mycelium.

Hyphae can intertwine into the fibers of the substrate, penetrating the pores. As it consumes the substrate, it can also create it’s own route by dissolving pathways into the material. This is one of the reasons it is so difficult to kill and/or clean up mold on organic substrates. If you remove the surface growth, those bits of hyphae within the substrate are ready for re-growth upon the return of moisture.

As the organism matures, it develops spores intended for reproduction. Spores vary in size, shape, weight and methods of distribution. Some are light and buoyant so they float easily through the air. Others are wet and sticky and may cling to insects, rodents, etc. as a mode of travel.

Volatile Organic Compounds

As mold “consumes” it’s food, the chemical reactions of enzymes, substrates and mold growth produce carbon dioxide, water, and volatile organic compounds (VOC’s). Because these items are a result of actions essential to the growth of the organism, they are classified as primary metabolites.

For mold, many types of VOC’s are produced and typically include aldehydes, alcohols, keytones, and hydrocarbons. They have complex structures and names like “2-methyl-1-propanol”, so if you are going to dig deeper into VOC’s, get ready for chemistry class.

They are called volatile in that they evaporate easily at room temperature and pressure. Fortunately, this volatility aids in dilution with fresh air to minimize concentrated build-up of these chemicals. Testing for VOC’s is often accomplished by using vacuum cylinders to obtain samples of the air with laboratory analysis obtained from sophisticated test instruments (gas chromatograph/mass spectrometer).

When you smell a “musty-moldy” odor, it’s generally the VOC’s you are noticing. VOC’s are often considered irritants to mucus membranes, however, are also capable of both short-term and long-term adverse health effects. If you do smell these odors, it’s a sure sign the mold is consuming and growing and you need to take action. (Note that VOC’s may also be derived from non-mold sources including natural materials used in cleaning agents.)

Toxins

Many molds are capable of producing compounds called mycotoxins which are toxic to other organisms, including people. Mycologists believe these toxins are produced as protection against competing organisms and therefore, humans are simply caught in the cross-fire of this fight for survival.

Since these toxins are not essential for growth, they are classified as secondary metabolites. Toxic secondary metabolites require extra work on the part of the organism so production does not occur at all times, or, with all types of mold.

Scientists have identified over 400 mycotoxins and unlike VOC’s, these compounds are usually non-volatile (don’t evaporate easily at room temperature and pressure). One strain of mold may produce multiple toxins and one type of toxin may be produced by multiple strains of mold. Research has indicated that the type of substrate (nutrients), the growing conditions, together with the species of mold, will impact which toxins are created.

Some of these toxic substances are considered extremely hazardous to people, unfortunately, quantified human dose-response data is limited. Lab and field studies have shown these compounds to produce severe toxic effects in both animals and humans and therefore, the general recommendation is to minimize exposure to potentially toxigenic mold. Symptoms from toxic exposure range from flu-like symptoms, skin rashes and lesions, bleeding, fatigue, difficulty breathing, depression, etc. to longer-term nerve and organ problems, altered immunity, and cancer.

Not all secondary metabolites are considered bad for people…the antibiotics such as penicillin have beneficial use. However, from the mycological standpoint, antibiotics are considered mycotoxins since they too are generated by mold to ward off microorganisms (i.e. competing bacteria).

When the organism is producing toxins, the toxins are known to be present in the cell wall of spores and hyphae. It’s relatively easy to test for spores and hyphae, however, testing these components to see if they contain toxins is significantly more complex. Whereas a single spore can be viewed under a microscope, identifying what compounds are contained in the cell wall is difficult.

In order to identify these toxic compounds, laboratories must have a sufficient quantity of toxin-containing spores and carefully process them through sophisticated and expensive equipment that is capable of isolating chemicals down to billionths of an gram (remember, mold spores are microscopic so what is contained within it’s cell wall is extremely small). This testing is made even more difficult since there are a few hundred toxins to analyze and the behavior of mold is such that a toxin-producing mold in the field doesn’t necessarily produce the same type and quantity of toxins in the lab.

Generally speaking, identifying a mold type that is known to be capable of producing toxins is sufficient information to warrant precautions and avoid exposure without submitting for toxic analysis. However, if trying to confirm specific adverse health effects, obtaining an analysis of both VOC’s and toxins can be beneficial but often expensive.

Randy Penn is an independent licensed real estate inspector (Texas #5491) who specializes in mold testing and specimen recovery. He has a Bachelor of Science degree in engineering, is a member of the Indoor Air Quality Association, has invested hundreds of hours in researching and training on fungal microorganisms, has completed IAQA’s workshop on mold remediation and has provided mold related presentations to homeowners and real estate professionals.

If you’re thinking about building or renovating your home, you might want to consider some green options. No – I don’t meant having a green color scheme (although you certainly can if it suits you), I’m talking about making eco friendly choices for your new design.

Green Home Remodeling Products

Certainly one of the first things that comes to mind is using “green” products. Low VOC carpets and floors and cabinetry made from sustainable materials like cork and bamboo should be high on your choice list. In the kitchen and bathrooms, you could opt for recycled glass countertops that add a unique touch to the kitchen and are a great way to put old glass to use. These countertops come in many color combinations and resemble artful mosaics which lend a classy air to your room.

Green Home Remodeling Recycling Ideas

Another thing to consider is recycling your old items or, using items from someone else’s home. These days, wood floors are very popular and if you are considering them for your home you might look around at older homes that are being torn down to see if you can salvage the flooring. Every item that you reuse from your old design or from someone else’s home is one less item that will end up in the landfill.

Green Home Remodeling to Heat & Cool Your Home

If you are redoing your heating, then look into solar or wind power. Wind power might not be practical for all homes since you need to have quite a bit of land and a high area for the turbine. Solar power, on the other hand, can be adapted to almost anywhere. If putting in a solar system is not within your reach, you should at least make sure that you insulate properly and use triple pane windows and tight fitting seals on your doors to minimize loss of energy from your home.

Green Home Remodeling vs. The Environment

Avoiding use of paints and glues that produce air pollution is another consideration. This is not only important for the environment, but for your health as well. Toxic fumes can build up in your home and are bad for your health. In fact, the EPA estimates that the pollution inside your home can be up to 100 times worse than that outside the home! In order to have cleaner air inside, use water based paints instead of oil based and avoid products that have a lot of adhesives. When you do need to use adhesive, try to make sure they are as “green” as possible.

Luckily, there are plenty of exciting options in eco-friendly materials and you don’t have to sacrifice beauty or function to go green. When choosing the new materials and items for your home, be sure you do your homework and look for eco-friendly options – I think you will find plenty of items that fit in your new design!