The home buying process is an exciting time, but one that may bring additional responsibilities into your life. Many homes may need renovations or inspections, especially in areas that are susceptible to natural disasters. Having the assistance of an experienced and honest Alabama real estate agent will make this process smooth and stress free.
Some older homes may still contain obsolete building materials. Citizens of this great state are striving to move to a green lifestyle, advocating environmentally sustainable methods to be used throughout the state. Building or remodeling your homes with eco-friendly materials can lower utility and water bills, higher real estate value, purer air quality, reduced waste sent to landfills and conservation of natural resources.
Asbestos + Healthy Tips
Asbestos is a fibrous mineral that was used in construction applications for the greater part of the 20th century. Often appearing as insulation, piping, roofing and flooring, homes and buildings could still contain asbestos materials if they were built prior to 1980.
If you locate any suspected asbestos in the home, most experts suggest leaving it un-disturbed until a home inspector can examine your property, take evaluations and determine the safest course of action. Sometimes the best action is no action at all. Disturbing asbestos in good condition may cause its fibers to be released into the air. The removal of asbestos must be undertaken by a professional abatement contractor who is trained in handling dangerous materials.
Exposure to this material can lead to the development of malignant mesotheliomaa lung ailment associated with asbestos exposure. Though a cure does not exist, mesothelioma treatmentoptions such as radiation, chemotherapy and surgery may be available to patients to battle the disease.
Removal of asbestos in public facilities, workplaces and homes should be performed by licensed abatement contractors as long as the National Emissions Standards for Hazardous Air Pollutants (NESHAP) are not violated. They must wear protective equipment such as masks and gloves to avoid any exposure. The materials should be removed in as large pieces as possible and places in disposable bags.
Green Building Benefits
Each and every human being would like clean air to breathe and crisp water to drink. It takes a lot of effort and political advocacy to achieve this on a macro level. The implementation of eco-construction, green energy solutions will play an important role in the transformation to a healthier and sustainable world. Many locations throughout Alabama are swiftly changing their construction practices to suit the environment and the health of human beings.
There are many green, eco-friendly materials that replace the need for asbestos and can reduce energy costs annually. These include the use of cotton fiber, lcynene foam and cellulose. Cotton fiber is quickly becoming a favorite for home builders and renovators. Made from recycled batted material, it is also treated to be fireproof. Research has demonstrated that the use of eco-friendly insulation alternatives can reduce annual energy costs by 25 percent.
Implementing green methods of building can have positive environmental, health and economic benefits. These include: Conservation of natural resources, enhancement of air quality, energy sustainability, increase property value, improve quality of life, improvement of pulmonary/cardiac health and reduction of waste.
December 21, 2009
I would first like to thank you for taking the time to read this. I relish the opportunity to talk plainly with concerned individuals about dangerous environmental conditions in their own homes. I promise you now, by the time you finish this brief letter you will not only have a better understanding of your own general health risks; but also, for those of your family and friends as well. Permit me for a moment to ask you a few questions.
- Do you ever find yourself feeling more RUNDOWN after you get home than you did before you left work?
- Do you notice more HEADACHES or feelings of nausea in your own home?
- Do you see your spouse, or your children showing more frequent signs of cold and flu-like symptoms: COUGHING, SORE THROAT, SNEEZING, WHEEZING?
- Is there an area in your house that makes your eyes or throat feel SCRATCHY?
- Do you notice a funny MUSTY ODOR that you don’t recall being there before, even though you know you have a clean house?
- Is there a MOISTURE PROBLEM in your house?
Well, those can be frightening questions if you don’t exactly have the “right” answers. But, in a situation where you may not be armed with the best information, (if any at all) who can you really trust? Now you may be asking yourself what could cause all of these problems in my house, one word, MOLD. But wait, you might be saying to yourself, how could it be a mold issue if I keep my house clean? To answer that question it is important to know how and why mold grows.
Molds produce tiny spores to reproduce. 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. There are molds that can grow on wood, paper, carpet, and foods. When excessive moisture or water accumulates indoors, mold growth will often occur, particularly if the moisture problem remains undiscovered or un-addressed. There is no practical way to eliminate all mold and mold spores in the indoor environment; the way to control indoor mold growth is to control moisture.
This information was provided courtesy of the EPA in the pamphlet: “A Brief Guide to Mold, Moisture, and Your Home” [EPA 402-K-02-003]
There are many different Mold Companies, offering a variety of techniques who throw fancy terms and product names at you in the hope that by giving you all of these “buzz-words” and industry terms they’ll confuse you enough to get you to believe anything that they might say. Many they will try to convince you that they have the strongest chemicals on the planet and a foolproof system that is “guaranteed” to work or they’ll promise just about any thing you want to hear sometimes minimizing the problem just in order to make the sale! Most will not stress the most important underlying issue is removing the source of the water. What they don’t tell you, is the chemicals that they use are almost completely ineffective, in many cases they even contain known poisons some of which can cause CANCER in laboratory animals! In many cases they and their wonderful “systems” (poisons) usually make the problem worse than before they started! All the while they spend most of their time taking your money while often missing the “HIDDEN MOLD” leaving your families health at risk and charging you for the privilege of taking your money and making your life more miserable!
The North Eastern Ohio Climate is especially ripe for mold growth. More than 70% of the houses tested were found to be contaminated with toxic mold growth. This mold is dangerous. And there is a good chance (if you have it in your home) it could make you and your family sicker than you can imagine… In fact Dr. Chin Yang of Cherry Hill Labs,( the worlds foremost mold scientist) once told me “given sufficient square footage in a confined space (your home) even a NON TOXIC mold will break down your bodies defenses and you will develop an allergic reaction” (it’s only a matter of time).
The mold in your home can even be fatal! It causes many people to die…and often … even their doctors don’t know what went WRONG to make these people sick.
Here are what the experts call the Big Three:
Aspergillus: A mold that is often an opportunistic pathogen(in plain English “a disease causing mold that can attack especially when your immune resistance is lowered cause you’re sick with something else) kind of mold which is often the cause behind Asthma, nerve damage, liver disease, lung disease, heart disease, and severe eye damage. This toxin is so deadly, it is a favorite biological weapon of third world countries where they can make it by the barrel-full.
The bad news is, many North Eastern Ohio homes are full of this mold and it is commonly found throughout the wall cavities and heating and cooling systems of the home.
Stachybotrys: “The Black Mold”This is another deadly toxin causing mold and also manufactured by third-world countries. It can be lethal to animals and children. It is often referred to as the “baby killer” and is believed by many to be responsible for killing seven infantsright here in Cleveland, Ohio.
It is found on wet cellulose containing materials like drywall. It is normally found in houses after water damage and prefers to grow in dark places like wall cavities. You should be especially concerned if anyone in your home is experiencing difficulty breathing, dizziness, memory loss, hearing loss, gastrointestinal tract infections, depression, headaches, tremors, skin rashes, Chronic Fatigue or flu-like symptoms.
It also damages vital organs. Farmers have reported unknowingly feeding their cattle hay contaminated with this toxin and witnessing the cows hemorrhaging from their eyes… just before… they dropped dead like flies.
Penicillium: Another disease causing mold responsible for a host of infections including CANCER. Listen: there are dozens more toxic molds (all found within Northeastern Ohio) which mirror these horrible effects. The EPA notes that mold can cause health risks if left untreated.
WARNING SIGNS!!!
A good indicator that your home could be sick and potentially dangerous to your health is if your house has suffered past or recent water damage. Wet Basements (or even damp basements not yet trickling onto the floor) , Roof leaks , Plumbing leaks, window and door leaks can all be sources of moisture which can cause the mold to grow! But that’s not all, mold can even lurk in the hidden areas growing behind the walls due to mold creating condensation in places that are rarely discovered ….before its too late. Not only that your furnace or air conditioning system can be contaminated too! That often means that every time you turn on your furnace or your air conditioner, you could potentially be spreading harmful mold spores throughout the house for you and your loved ones TO BREATHE!
There are contractors offering a safe remedy; who could not only take care of any existing mold problems, but would guarantee those problems did not return! Not only that, but they could make sure that no future problems would arise by following stricter company protocols and guidelines than either the EPA or OSHA currently have in place.
If you’re looking for a Non Toxic Multi-Step FAMILY SAFE MOLD ELIMINATION Process that SAFELY and Effectively Treats ALL MOLD, visit: http://www.SafeMoldSolutions.com to find a contractor in your area
Charles Boday
CMI, CMRC, CMLCC
http://www.safemoldsolutions.com
Charles Boday is a Certified Mold Inspector and a Certified Mold Contractor, and he is a graduate of the Certified Mold Inspector & Contractors Institute. He is also a member of the National Association of Mold Professionals He is also a certified Environmental Inspector.
He is also a Certified Crystal Meth Lab Clean Up Contractor. He has extensive experience reviewing and investigating toxic type cases for law offices prior to the attorneys taking on cases for litigation. He has worked with some of the countries top scientists seeking alternative poison-free mold remediation techniques. He is state certified to teach the realtors’ continuing education course” Toxic Mold! What every realtor should know!” and is the author of the same. He is also a Certified Crystal Meth Lab Clean up contractor. He routinely works for Fanny Mae as well as many other top lenders like HSBC Household First Merit etc. repairing extreme mold damaged foreclosed properties.
He is also an experienced foundation waterproofer and structural repair analyst. He has developed multiple proprietary waterproofing techniques for both interior as well as exterior foundation systems. He has testified as an expert foundation witness and is the Author of the books: The Ultra Dry Basement: understanding and correcting foundation water problems and Ultra Bond Construction Techniques.