Mold is kind of like you and me - if we don't have any water, we can't survive. Mold thrives in damp areas and can quickly grow colonies that take over these moist areas in your home. This could be a bathroom ceiling, a laundry room wall, or it could even lurk inside your walls where you can't see it. You might not realize it's there unless you or a loved one has an allergic reaction that prompts an investigation. Thankfully, you can strongly reduce your chances of a mold problem by controlling the moisture levels in your home and being on the lookout for high-moisture situations.
Here are five great tips with some help from the Environmental Protection Agency's Mold Information site for keeping your home at a safe moisture level and keeping toxic molds like black mold at bay.
Keep everything well-ventilated by placing fans in rooms or opening windows if weather permits. Circulating the air in your home will help neutralize the temperature so you don't have warm rooms and cold rooms mixing and causing moisture.
Use exhaust fans and vents in your kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room to expel the moist air outside and prevent condensation from forming.
Run a dehumidifier if you live in a humid climate or if your basement tends to get damp.…or better yet for damp basements, hire a professional to install an Active Dampness Control™ (ADC) System from HomeAire. ADC Systems eliminate moisture at its source, before it enters the home, and most are ENERGY STAR® qualified. Basement dehumidifiers consume more energy and do not effectively vent water vapor away from the home.
Be sure that you fix all leaky pipes and seal off your home's foundation or install a pump in case any flooding should ever occur from heavy rain.
Always run the fan in your kitchen or bathroom every time you cook or take a shower, and leave it on for awhile after you're done in order to help ventilate the moisture outside and keep your walls mold and mildew-free.
Stay tuned for more information on how to help prevent and treat mold in your home! Do you have the proper equipment mentioned in this post? If not, be sure to have a look at HomeAire's selection of:
Bathroom Ventilation Fans
Kitchen Ventilation Fans
and Other Home Ventilation and Mold Prevention Solutions
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 29, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Tags: active dampness control, bathroom ventilation, black mold, energystar, household mold, kitchen ventilation, mold and mildew, mold elimination, mold in the home, mold prevention, mold removal tips, toxic mold
Filled under: Apartment Living, Home Ownership / Home Improvement, Indoor Air Quality and Allergy
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Mold in the home is a serious problem that can occur where you might not even suspect or be able to see it. Thankfully with the wealth of information available to people on the Internet and otherwise, many homeowners or renters are aware of the warning signs and how to prevent mold and mildew from forming in the first place. However, there are still a lot of concerns about mold in the home, whether it's about how to prevent it, how to get rid of it, how to know what to watch for, or even what symptoms to be aware of in case you're allergic or getting sick as a result of it.
We're going to be offering several posts on different mold topics for you, so this is just the first introduction to more information to come in helping you keep your indoor air quality safe and your home mold-free.
What is mold?
Mold is comprised of microscopic fungi that can grow just about anywhere that there's moisture. Thriving off of the decaying matter that it inhabits, mold reproduces through spores, many surviving in airborne environments as well as on surfaces. Mold is everywhere, but we're only able to see it when it grows in colonies (the blotchy, fuzzy clusters you see on food or surfaces in your home). Mold is essential in breaking down organic compounds like food or other biodegradable items like antibiotics.
What types of Mold are there, and are they all dangerous?
There are thousands of mold species in existence, and with such a versatile playing field for growth and expansion, it's easy to see why it can be confusing to identify what molds are dangerous and what aren't. Some of the most familiar, helpful mold is evident in foods like blue cheese. This mold is harmless to you and lends the cheese its tangy flavor and pungent aroma. Other mold, such as the fuzzy kind that grows on fruit, is much more harmful if ingested in enough quantity because it produces harmful compounds known as mycotoxins. One of the most important and dangerous molds to be aware of in your home is known as black mold (see picture). We will dedicate more posts specifically to this mold on the blog.
Is mold easy to get rid of?
Since mold lives everywhere, even when you can't see it, it's safe to say it'd be impossible to eradicate all of the mold in your life. We don't want you to feel paranoid and go scrubbing every surface you touch and every food you eat! But for the more dangerous molds, it's important to find ways to get rid of the colonies before they spread further. Getting rid of mold can be a difficult process. It involves eliminating moisture and identifying the source of the problem, which isn't always straightforward. We will be offering some information on how to treat a mold problem and prevent further outbreaks.
Until our next mold post, please feel free to explore some more mold information with the following resources that we found useful for this post:
The EPA's Mold Resources Site
Wikipedia
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 26, 2008 at 9:42 AM
Tags: black mold, black mold in the home, how to get rid of mold, mold eradication, mold in the home, mold information, mold problem
Filled under: Indoor Air Quality and Allergy
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Placing a radon test kit in your home is a simple and effective way to ensure you and your family's safety, and you can do so for under $20. HomeAire's store features a variety of AccuStar brand radon testing kits to best suit your needs. We've included a bit of information below to help you choose which kit is right for you, and to help you better understand why it's important to have one in your home.
What is in a Radon Test Kit?
Since radon is colorless, odorless and tasteless, there are no symptoms that you will be able to watch for until it is too late. While some areas are more actively promoting radon testing than others, it's in everyone's best interest to make sure that their home is safe to breathe and live in, and that starts with a radon test kit. When ordering a radon test kit, there are a few different types. You may receive a Radon in Water test kit which involves taking a water sample in a vial. You might also order a short or long-term test device that measure radon levels in your air. Short term kits take only a couple of days, and long term kits can stay put for up to a few months. All kits come with instructions that will help you accurately analyze the level of radon in your home. HomeAire has a selection of AccuStar radon test kits available for you for less than $20, including lab analysis - a small price to pay for ensuring your air quality safety!
How do I use a Radon Test Kit?
You're welcome to purchase and implement your own radon test kit, or you may wish to have a certified radon professional do it for you. Kits come with detailed instructions and are easy to use if you follow them carefully. You may have read our previous blog entry, Radon Testing in Your Home, which goes into further details about how radon concentration is measured what different amounts mean for your family's health.
Always be sure to install your radon test kit in a frequently used room of your house that is as close to the foundation as possible. This could be your basement (if you use it frequently. It doesn't matter if it's finished or unfinished), or it could be a home office or living room on the first floor. Since radon gas originates in the soil beneath your home, placing the test kit closest to the source will yield the most accurate results. Be sure to avoid high-moisture areas like bathrooms, kitchens or laundry rooms, and closets or hallways. Generally, you will affix the kit to your wall and leave it there. It's that simple! If you have a radon in water test kit, you will collect a small sample of water and follow the instructions for lab results included with the kit.
Still have questions?
We're happy to help you! You can get in touch with a radon professional quickly and easily by either calling us from 8:30-5:30 EST at 888.848.7250, or 24/7 by leaving a comment on this blog or clicking the "Contact Us" link at the top of this page.
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 20, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Tags: accustar, accustar radon test kit, radon, radon in home, radon in water, radon test kit, radon testing, testing you rhome for radon, types of radon test kits
Filled under: Radon Testing and Awareness
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Throughout the month of January, we contributed to radon awareness by posting several topics on radon as a part of the EPA's National Radon Action Month. We helped inform you about the various ways that radon can impact your life - from radon symptoms to how you can test your home for radon and spread the word throughout your community. We realized that with all of this great information at your disposal, you might still be having some questions about what a radon mitigation system is, or how a radon fan actually works. To help, we're providing some further information here to keep you informed and proactive about radon prevention and treatment.
What is a Radon Mitigation Fan?
A radon mitigation fan is part of the solution to ridding your home of radon fumes. Since radon is a gas that originates in the soil below a home's foundation, the fan is the part of the apparatus that is able to direct the gas up tubing through your home's frame, and expel it out of and above your home, where it dissipates harmlessly into the outside air.The fan is placed within the tubing system and runs constantly and quietly via an electrical connection that won't distract you or run up a high electricity bill. Since radon is lighter than air, expelling it above the areas of your house that you will be breathing will ensure safety for you and your family.
How does a Radon Mitigation System work?
There are two types of mitigation system installations - outdoor (below left) and indoor (below right). Though the systems are routed differently, their setup is very similar. When you install a radon mitigation system in your house, it creates a negative pressure field below your home to prevent radon gas from entering. A small pit is created beneath the foundation of your home in one to several areas. Tubing (PVC pipe) is connected to the hole(s) drilled to create the pits, and is routed unobtrusively to the suction side of an electrically-connected, weatherproof radon mitigation fan. More piping is connected to the opposite side of the fan, the pressure side, and the gas is routed above the house and expelled safely above the roof.
Still have questions about Radon?
If you're finding yourself curious about radon and the available solutions for radon remediation, head over to the RadonAway website to find out more. There are topics like radon in the home, radon health risks and symptoms, where to find radon contractors, and how to test for and fix a radon problem. We also encourage you to contact us at HomeAire with any questions, and we'll be happy to help you!
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 19, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Tags: installing a radon fan, radon, radon action month, radon elimination, radon fan, radon mitigation, radon mitigation fan, radon mitigation system, radon remediation, radon remediation system, radon symptoms, RadonAway
Filled under: Radon Testing and Awareness
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Many homes have garages, particularly newer construction. It's not uncommon to find an attached two-car garage with a large family room or storage area sitting on top, or a connected garage with a mudroom or breezeway into the rest of the house. In addition to providing a safe area for cars, garages are also prime areas for storage for seasonal items, paints, tools, you name it! Some people can't even fit their cars into their garage because of so many stored items. While this extra space and protection for your belongings is definitely useful, you may not realize the dangers that garages can pose to your health if you don't take proper precatuions. Offroaders.com has provided a great article with six ways that you can make your garage a healthier place:
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Install a Garage Exhaust Fan. We couldn't agree with this suggestion more. Keeping cars, paints, tools, and other fuels and fume-emitting items in the garage can spell a recipe for disaster. Even if the garage isn't attached to the house, having a garage ventilation or exhaust fan is important to circulate the air in your garage to expel the hazardous chemicals and keep the indoor air quality at a safe level.
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Safely Dispose of Unsafe Items. If you have chemical products or paints in your garage, unless you absolutely need them, it's best to get rid of them. Remember to dispose of them safely by taking them to a center that specializes in hazardous waste removal.
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Seal your garage from your house on the walls, ceiling and the door. While having some air circulation from the outside is important to maintaining your garage's air quality safety level, you want to have a tight seal around where your garage connects to your house, if you have an attached garage. Also be sure to apply a weatherstrip to your connecting door, and make sure the seal is air tight. It would also be advisable to purchase a stand alone air purifier if you have a room above your garage in the event that opening windows will allow car exhaust in, depending on the placement of the windows.
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Use a detached garage. While it may seem less convenient, having a detached garage will be safer for you and your family because any fumes are contained in a separate area from your living space. It's still very important to eliminate unnecessary chemicals and to install a garage ventilation fan, but you will not have the added concern of sealing off common walls with the rest of your home.
We wanted to add a couple of our own suggestions to the great list that Offroader came up with as well:
For HomeAire's selection of garage ventilation solutions, click here.
Continue reading "Garage Ventilation Fans and Other Garage Safety Tips" »
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 11, 2008 at 3:00 PM
Tags: garage air quality, garage exhaust fan, garage pollution, garage safety, garage ventilation fan, home air, homeaire, indoor air quality
Filled under: Home Ownership / Home Improvement, Indoor Air Quality and Allergy
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If you're painting a nursery and are concerned about how it might affect your baby's health, you have every right to take precautions. Even after paint dries, it can still emit fumes or harbor bacteria, according to Bob Formisano at About.com. Paint, just like carpeting or other household chemicals, contains VOCs - volatile organic compounds. We won't go into the molecular breakdown of these compounds, but what you need to know is they're dangerous for you to breathe, and this means that they're even more dangerous for a baby to breathe.
There is good news, though! There are safe paints that you can use not only in a nursery, but anywhere in your home. Whether you're repainting your living room, freshening up some dull paint in your bathroom, or even want to paint your furniture, there are some wonderful, eco-friendly, low-VOC paints to help you get the job done beautifully and healthily.
Popular "green lifestyle" blog Jetson Green introduces us to milk paint. Oddly enough, its name sounds like exactly what it is-- milk! This paint dates back thousands of years to cave paintings, and there's a reason it's withheld the test of time: it's safe, it hardens with age, and it's versatile. It's created from a mixture of milk and crushed pigments. You can order it dry, and then just add water, stir and paint! Powder generally costs about $45 a gallon. This may sound a bit pricey, but for the safety of your family and the environmental benefits, we think it's worth it. To find out more about it and where you can get it, try milkpaint.com or realmilkpaint.com.
Stay tuned for our next entry where we'll be going into a bit more detail about some other safe, interior and exterior eco-friendly paints for your home.
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 8, 2008 at 2:44 PM
Tags: eco-friendly paint, home aire, homeaire, indoor air quality, low voc, low voc paint, milk paint, milkpaint, nursery safe paint, nursery safety, safe house paint
Filled under: Green Living, Indoor Air Quality and Allergy, Parenting and Family
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Oprah Winfrey has climbed aboard to spread the word about better indoor air quality. In an episode of her show entitled Dr. Oz on Aging: How to Turn Back Time, Part 2, a segment included some tips for healthier home air from Dr. Oz. In addition to the tips listed below, he has also included a more detailed plan for how to detox your home. This part of the website has a fun, interactive diagram that lets you see different rooms of the house and how you can make them safer and healthier to live in.
As far as indoor air quality, Dr. Oz and Oprah had a variety of products on their table to examine that could help eliminate the use of more harsh chemicals or other hazards.
Their safety tips included:
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Regularly open windows to air out your home.
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Remove your shoes when coming inside to avoid spreading pesticides and chemicals.
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Don't microwave your food in plastic containers.
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Use household ingredients to clean your bathroom (Where have we heard this before?).
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If you dry clean, remove the bags from your clothes while you're outside and air them out for a day before you wear them.
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Use a dehumidifier to prevent mold and mildew growth.
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Keep paints or varnishes in well-ventilated areas away from your living space.
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Have lots of plants for rejuvenated oxygen.
It's great to know that key societal influencers like Oprah are spreading the word about healthy home air. We love the tips that Dr. Oz has suggested, and we have a few more of our own healthy home tips to add.
Continue reading "Oprah's Advice for Indoor Air Quality and More" »
Posted by HomeAire Blogging Team
Posted Date: February 7, 2008 at 4:00 PM
Tags: healthy home tips, home safety tips, indoor air quality, mold and mildew, oprah home tips, oprah winfrey, radon testing
Filled under: Indoor Air Quality and Allergy
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