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Mold & Mildew
Advice from a member of the COH Support Group:
Mold is a yicky problem. Mold and fungus spores are found
EVERYWHERE, just looking for a place to sprout. All they need
to set up shop is Moisture and Food.
Unfortunately for us, mold is hardy and counts pretty much
everything amongst the category of food - drywall, carpet,
food, everything. Since everything is food, you need to control
mold by getting it off the surface it is in, and then controlling
the moisture.
Whenever you are dealing with mold, you should wear a mask.
I recently read a study that found that 80% of the evaluated
sinus infections were actually fungal in origin, which was
why antibiotics were useless against them.
Bleach doesn’t destroy the mold’s little roots, where it hangs
on to the thing it’s growing on.
Now, in an empty spray bottle (such as can be found at any
dollar store) combine one part rubbing alcohol with two parts
hydrogen peroxide. Obviously, it doesn't need to be exact.
Spray the surface to thoroughly wet it – Really soak it.
Let it sit for five minutes to really work, then scrub the mold
with one of those green pot scrubbers to remove it from the
surface.
If you don’t deal with the moisture problem, the mold will keep
coming back.
Sometimes, the drywall or plaster will need to be replaced
entirely to get rid of the problem.
If there’s not an obvious moisture problem, increasing ventilation
in the area will often help
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Top Ten Mold Mistakes from a Canadian member of the COH Support Group:
Top Ten Mould Mistakes To Avoid
1. USING CHLORINE BLEACH TO KILL MOULD. Do not use ineffective chlorine bleach to try to kill mould growth and mould spores. Bleach is too weak even when freshly manufactured to kill mould. Bleach that sits on store shelves and in your home continually gets ever weaker over the passage of time. In addition, read the manufacturer’s usage directions on the bleach container. The manufacturer does not recommend its use to kill mould. Bleach is NOT an EPA-registered fungicide.
2. USING OTHER INEFFECTIVE PRODUCTS TO KILL MOULD---such as Kilz, regular paint, paint containing a mildicide element, any paint, Lysol, ammonia, and other household cleaners and disinfectants. Painting over a mould problem does not solve it---it only hides the problem temporarily and gives the mould something delicious to eat---the paint itself.
3. ASSUMING THAT AFTER A WET AREA IS DRY, THAT IT IS NOW MOULD SAFE. Mould needs moisture to grow and to multiply as its eats your home building materials and personal possessions. This moisture can come from high indoor humidity [above 60% some or all of the year], roof leaks, siding leaks, and plumbing leaks. If mould spores and mould colony growth run out of moisture, they do NOT die. Instead, they become dormant, and can wait millions of years for access to high humidity or a future water intrusion. Dormant mould can make mould-sensitive persons sick. Even the smell of dormant mould can make some people very sick.
4. ASSUMING THAT THERE IS NO MOULD PROBLEM BECAUSE OF NO VISIBLE MOULD GROWTH. The worst mould infestation problems are often the ones you cannot see INSIDE floors, ceilings, walls, basement, attic, crawl space, and the heating/cooling equipment and ducts. Airborne mould spores are invisible to the eye, very light, and are easily carried in air current movements or in the air flows of your heating/cooling system to mould cross-contaminate your entire house from just one hidden mould problem. Use our do it yourself mould test kits to mould test the air of your basement, attic, all rooms, and the outward air flow from each heating/cooling register for the possible presence of elevated levels of airborne mould spores, in comparison to an outdoor mould control test. Use a hidden moisture meter to scan all walls and floors for hidden water problems. Use a fiber optics inspection device to check for mould growth inside wall, floor, and ceiling cavities.
5. TRUSTING THAT MOULD REMEDIATION CONTRACTORS KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING. Most mould remediation companies cause and leave more mould problems AFTER the alleged remediation than before their work because of: (a) failure to find and fix all of the mould infestation locations in a home or building due to incomplete mould inspection and mould testing; (b) poor and inadequate training; (c) failure to utilize proper mould containment procedures and effective mould remediation techniques; (d) taking shortcuts that undermine the remediation effort; and (e) sometimes fraud and dishonesty on the part of the contractor. Insist on hiring only Certified Mould Inspectors, Certified Mould Contractors, and Certified Mould Remediators who have been trained and certified by the Professional Certification Institute [PCI].
6. TRUSTING THAT INDUSTRIAL HYGIENISTS AND GOVERNMENT AGENCIES ARE EXPERTS IN MOULD PREVENTION, INSPECTION, TESTING, AND REMEDIATION. The only people who truly care about your family’s health and home investment are yourself and your family. Although there are many mould knowledgeable and mould experienced industrial hygienists, most are not. Hiring an industrial hygienist [trained in industrial safety and health] to find and fix mould problems is often like hiring a dentist to treat your heart problems. Hire a Certified Mould Inspector (Canada) if you value your family’s health and home investment. Some government websites often promote ineffective and outdated mould remediation ideas like using bleach to kill mould. Government employees do not have the personal experience of having to work in the real world to find and kill real mould that is often hidden in home walls, ceilings, floors, heating/cooling systems, attic, basement, and crawl space.
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7. SPRAYING SOMETHING ON THE MOULD WILL TAKE CARE OF THE PROBLEM. Only EPA-registered fungicides can kill mould, but just spraying visible mould does not solve mould problems. You need to kill all visible mould encountered in mould remediation, but it needs also to be removed from the home or building, and all of the water and mould damaged building materials need to be thrown out and replaced with mould-free building materials. In addition the cleaned out area needs to be treated with Tim-bor wood preservative.. Learn all of the steps required for safe and effective mould remediation at Mould Removal Section.
8. THINKING THAT A NEW HOME IS MOULD FREE. Today’s new homes often come with built-in mould infestation problems because:
(a) mouldy building materials are received from the builder’s supplier---today's timbers are not kiln-dried as in earlier times, and thus contain a high internal moisture content that makes mould growth possible in the timbers;
(b) the builder and its supervisors and employees fail to do quality control to inspect for, and, thus, prevent mouldy building materials from being used in the home’s construction;
(c) the builder stores the inventory of building materials on the outside ground with no plastic sheeting to protect the building materials from rain [which thus supplies the necessary water to enable mould to grow in and on the materials];
(d) the construction crew fails to cover the entire home under construction with plastic sheeting at the end of each construction day to protect the building materials from rain [which thus supplies the necessary water to enable mould to grow in and on the materials]. The roof and side walls need to be protected against rain until the entire roof, siding, windows, and doors are totally installed to seal out rain;
(e) the builder fails to inspect and test the home for mould growth while it is being constructed and at the home’s completion; and
(f) use of modern building materials like chip wafer boards, drywall (plasterboard), & plywood--- all of which moulds love to eat.
(g) failure to spray all wood-based construction materials on all surfaces with at least one spraying of the EPA-registered of the EPA-registered Tim-bor wood preservative---- please visit:
9. IGNORING POSSIBLE MOULD HEALTH SYMPTOMS BEING SUFFERED BY ONE OR MORE FAMILY MEMBERS OR CO-WORKERS. Be concerned about possible mould problems if one or more occupants is suffering from unexplained health problems such as an ongoing itchy eyes, bloody nose, sinus problems, headaches, nose congestion, runny nose, skin rashes, skin sores, coughing, breathing difficulties, difficulty in remembering things and in thinking clearly, feeling disconnected from the world around you, and/or chronic fatigue. Please remember that some occupants may experience mould health symptoms, while others may have none, with all living or working in the same mould-infested area. People differ significantly in their sensitivity to mould.
10. IGNORING HOME MAINTENANCE PROBLEMS & MOULD CLUES. You contribute big-time to becoming a mould victim when you ignore roof leaks, plumbing leaks, sewer line leaks, water stains on ceilings, the indoor smell of mould, visible mould growth, high humidity [60% or more to drive mould growth from humidity alone], a wet or damp basement, and a wet or damp crawl space.
Getting mildew out of clothes ..
"Get the product ODOBAN at Walmart."
"Oxyclean!"
"For smell control I sprinkle in some Borax occasionally."
"Washing things in bleach will take mildew out."
"The stuff I have is called "Knight & Hale Ultimate Laundry Detergent with Fresh Earth Scent." I think it was about $11 a bottle. And it's not a big bottle but you only have to use 2 oz..
The powder might be good for the books."
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