PROJECT GREEN

Cleaning Up The House

What you can't see could make you sick. How to get rid of it.

By Daniel Stone | NEWSWEEK
Published Aug 2, 2008
From the magazine issue dated Aug 11, 2008

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  • Posted By: TeeTeeLyte @ 09/09/2008 7:02:56 AM

    how can an ordinary tenant demand that the building owner clear up the mold problem? Water pipes have broken throughout the building complex causing black mold to grow through the drywall. City inspectors take pictures and HUD instructs owner to wash and paint over mold. But most tenants have coughs and breathing problems. How can tenants get help when inspectors are not educated in the seriousness of the mold problem ?

    Tee90008@aol.com

  • Posted By: hillsbunker @ 08/29/2008 10:15:05 AM

    National Allergy Supply is a good resource for both educational material and products for the clean-up and prevention of mold. Literally hundreds of allergists refer National Allergy to their patients (my allergist referred me) so they are credible. Here is one such article: http://www.natlallergy.com/learning/mold_indoor.html

  • Posted By: Mike Lamb @ 08/18/2008 1:14:41 PM

    Thanks for a perfect scare tactic article that helps no one. Mommy and Daddy bring home a bundle of joy baby. Toxic mold falls from the ceiling. $1,000 to test the stuff. More money to clean-up. Asbestos. Cancer! 200,000 fungi!!! ???The consultants NEWSWEEK spoke with said they consider mold a harmful substance worth removing from your home.??? Brilliant. What genius mold consultant came up with that gem of a statement? The article doesn???t say.

    How about this: Find out what is causing the moisture that is causing the mold. A good home inspector could do this. Stop the moisture. Throw out the mold and get on with your life. And definitely stop reading fear fanning tripe like this article in NEWSWEEK.

    Mike Lamb
    Evergreen Park, IL
    Home Inspector

  • Posted By: PREDICTIONET @ 08/16/2008 7:56:41 AM

    VISIT WWW.PREDICTIONET.COM

  • Posted By: shepherdsam @ 08/06/2008 3:13:54 PM

    Pay an online visit to www.ecoquest.com to discover the adaptation of NASA developed research to clean the air of your home. Costs is somwhat less than the article speaks to. Backed by studies done on surfaces at Kansas State University and air quality at the University of Cincinnati. Great business opportunity as well.

    • Posted By: searle47 @ 08/12/2008 7:31:39 AM

      Cleaning the air doesn't solve an indoor mold growth problem, though it may mask it for awhile. Hidden mold growth is difficult to find and can make sensitive people very ill. It's not just the airborne spores, it's also the VOCs and the mycotoxins. Science is way behind on this issue, but the Mayo Clinic, Berkeley Lab and Brown University have done some very interesting studies.

  • Posted By: searle47 @ 08/12/2008 7:23:29 AM

    Many of you miss the crucial point about mold. It's not about cleaning, and it's not about bacteria. It's about moisture. Grandma had few mold problems because older construction was so airy that pockets of moisture didn't exist, unless the roof leaked. Modern construction is so airtight it invites moisture into hidden spaces, and mold will inevitably grow there. No such thing as "just rot." Mold precedes rot.

    • Posted By: searle47 @ 08/12/2008 7:26:43 AM

      And to continue, yes, the industry is loaded with scammers and needs regulation. Look for a mold inspection company that uses certified Mold Dogs and infrared thermography to find hidden mold, and which does NOT do the remediation. They should work as a consultant for you, supervising the contractor and doing clearance testing at the end. Those who do assessment and repair are usually crooks.

  • Posted By: Newswk NW Reader @ 08/07/2008 3:55:34 AM

    One of the biggest scams going. Are we sure it wasn't just a rotten ceiling? The un-monitored trade cost me endless pain & suffering, all the while trying to push the brother-in-law's environmental cleanup scam.

  • Posted By: Bobbles @ 08/05/2008 10:21:28 PM

    Yet another industry spreading fear into the US mind, If you follow your grandmothers cleanliness regime you wont have a problem, its the modern excessive hygiene that has caused the dramatic increase in allergies. Using the massive amounts of disinfectants and hand cleansers most families use these days stops natural immunities developing leaving children open to the "bugs"

    • Posted By: Lexie'smom @ 08/07/2008 12:34:48 AM

      Bobbles, you and Science of UNL must be living on some other planet not to have heard of the damage mold can do to a person, especially the black mold mentioned in the story. I'm sure mom-to-be kept a clean house, but how often does one tear into the walls looking to see if they need cleaning? In my 50-something years of house cleaning, while raising 3 boys and a daughter, I don't think it ever occurred to me to take a saw of some sort, open up the walls and check for dirt! I think my husband would have had me committed!

  • Posted By: Science of UNL @ 08/06/2008 1:11:01 PM

    As interesting as the story is, it doesn't have me feeling intrigued in such a way that i should really worry. Bacterias mean, keep it clean, then you wont worry about the unseen. I'm no expert I'm sure, however, i've been living in houses for just about my whole life. Sound right to the average person? This to me just seems like another "toxin" that will spike sales in federal health agencies. Admittedly, nobody wants a foreign substance growing in their cieling .

  • Posted By: shamelshipman @ 08/03/2008 11:48:05 AM

    Anyone with mold concerns should check out the remarkable research on toxic mold removal done by environmental expert Dr Ed Close. Simply diffusing a therapeutic-grade essential oil regularly will likely result in an environment very hostile to mold.

    http://www.secretofthieves.com/mold.cfm/79544

    In one instance, 10,667 stachybotrys mold spores were identified in a per cubic meter area. After diffusing Thieves essential oil for forty-eight hours, Dr Close retested. Only thirteen stachybotrys remained. Similarly, 75,000 stachybotrys mold spores were identified in a sample of sheetrock. After seventy-two hours of diffusing, no stachybotrys mold spores remained. (Stachybotrys has a reputation for being the most toxic mold.)

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