If you have just moved into a home for the first time on your own or perhaps into a climate that gets very cold during the winter, you might not think about this water damage prevention technique, but in the winter time it is a very important thing to remember. This is the fact that water pipes can freeze, burst, and spill gallons upon gallons of water into or underneath your house. This typically happens when the temperature gets under about 20 degrees.
The water pipes that you can get access to fairly easily should be insulated with something to keep them warm and you need to realize that your pipes need to be exposed to as much warm air as possible during the winter to keep them from freezing up and bursting. If the area of concern is the kitchen or the bathroom, then you can open the cabinets so that the pipes underneath are exposed to the warm air of the household. Leave them this way as long as the temperature is under freezing outside and the pipes should have quite a bit of protection from bursting.
Make sure you know where your stop tap is in case the pipes do happen to burst. Knowing where this is located will make sure that you can turn the water off as quickly as possible should there be an incident. Labeling it is also a good idea.
If you are spending the winter in a warmer climate, you should have a relative or a friend check on your house and make sure that the pipes have not burst or frozen up.
Sometimes leaving a little bit of water running during the coldest parts of the winter is something that you can do to help prevent the pipes from freezing. Flowing water through the pipes is more difficult to freeze than standing water. They are less likely to freeze as quickly as pipes that have standing water inside them.
Your insurance policy will probably cover a burst pipe, since water damage is generally covered under these conditions. The only time that water damage is not covered is when it is caused by a hurricane or a flood and you do not have insurance for these events. Taking care of water spills like a burst pipe quickly is also very important to prevent the growth of mold in your home. This can be a serious health risk to your family and pets if it is allowed to start growing and it usually does after about 48 hours.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of
Texas Water Damage Restoration and
Houston Water Damage Restoration Which are Certified IICRC Water damage and mold remediation contractors.
Tuesday, October 2, 2007
Biblical Mold Inspections
Most people realize that mold is a health hazard if it is let to grow inside our homes in almost any quantity, but trying to file an insurance claim on it is a pretty hard thing to do, since most homeowner’s insurance policies do not allow for mold claims. Unless the mold was caused by something that was covered by the policy and it occurred as a direct result of that event, it is not covered under most policies. A separate insurance policy covering only mold damage needs to be purchased.
Many insurance claims adjusters inspecting your home after water damage that your home was covered for will tell you that mold is not the big issue that everyone says that it is and it will not cause you any harm if you leave it there, but this is completely untrue. They will possibly attempt to get you to agree with them or concede that you may not actually need the remediation done, but unfortunately, this is a trick. If they need proof that mold has been a problem since ancient times, something that you can do is quote the Bible to them.
The texts in Leviticus chapter 14 are the oldest written accounts of mold affecting a home or business building. The book actually calls the infestation a “leprous plague” and it states it as a growth that appears on the walls. Families went to priests for this problem just as they would for any other problem occurring that concerned their homes or their lives and as with any other problem, the advice was always followed. That advice was to take everything out of the home contaminated with the growth and to throw it away far from town in what the scripture called an “unclean place”. After this was done, the house was closed off for a week and when the priest came back to do another inspection, if the growth had returned, then the house was torn down. All the building materials were taken to that unclean place also.
It is thought that even the last plague of Moses could be attributed to mold growth on the grains that the Egyptians stored underground to protect them from the locusts. Stachybotrys atra is thought to have contaminated these stored grains and those who ate them would have likely become sick. In ancient times, the first born Egyptian male was given special privileges that other children were not, such as a second portion of dinner. These children were given special privileges because they were the heirs to whatever property their fathers owned. Since they received more food than the rest of their family members, it is likely it would have been enough to make them deathly sick.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Orlando water damage restoration companies and
Water Damage Restoration companies across the united states.
Many insurance claims adjusters inspecting your home after water damage that your home was covered for will tell you that mold is not the big issue that everyone says that it is and it will not cause you any harm if you leave it there, but this is completely untrue. They will possibly attempt to get you to agree with them or concede that you may not actually need the remediation done, but unfortunately, this is a trick. If they need proof that mold has been a problem since ancient times, something that you can do is quote the Bible to them.
The texts in Leviticus chapter 14 are the oldest written accounts of mold affecting a home or business building. The book actually calls the infestation a “leprous plague” and it states it as a growth that appears on the walls. Families went to priests for this problem just as they would for any other problem occurring that concerned their homes or their lives and as with any other problem, the advice was always followed. That advice was to take everything out of the home contaminated with the growth and to throw it away far from town in what the scripture called an “unclean place”. After this was done, the house was closed off for a week and when the priest came back to do another inspection, if the growth had returned, then the house was torn down. All the building materials were taken to that unclean place also.
It is thought that even the last plague of Moses could be attributed to mold growth on the grains that the Egyptians stored underground to protect them from the locusts. Stachybotrys atra is thought to have contaminated these stored grains and those who ate them would have likely become sick. In ancient times, the first born Egyptian male was given special privileges that other children were not, such as a second portion of dinner. These children were given special privileges because they were the heirs to whatever property their fathers owned. Since they received more food than the rest of their family members, it is likely it would have been enough to make them deathly sick.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Orlando water damage restoration companies and
Water Damage Restoration companies across the united states.
Basic Information on Mold
Mold has been a problem in areas populated by human beings for not only centuries, but as the Bible seems to relate to us, millennia and the effects on the health of human beings has been documented since that time. The scripture calls the mold infestations in homes and business buildings a “leprous plague” that must be dealt with as soon as it is noticed.
The symptoms of excess mold exposure are both many and varied. Allergenic molds cause, as the name implies, aggravation of allergies and respiratory conditions that already exist and can create new allergies that did not exist before the exposure. These symptoms can surface in the form of sneezing, watery eyes, a runny nose, or some quite unsightly skin rashes that are pretty itchy when left untreated. If these symptoms only show up when you are in your home and you do not have them when you are at work or elsewhere, you might want to consider having your home tested for mold.
While some of the most serious infections around the world are caused by mold exposure, one thing that has become a staple in the medical community is penicillin. Penicillin is produced from mold in the genus penicillium and has been used as a cure for all kinds of infections since the early 1900’s. Unfortunately, the penicillium genus also has a serious disease named after it that occurs mostly in HIV and AIDS patients in Southeast Asia.
Mold grows in humid areas of your home and you may not even know it is there if it grows inside your walls. Homes that have been damaged by floods may have mold growing behind the walls and you will not even realize it most of the time. Try to keep the humidity in your home as far down as possible and the temperature somewhere around 65 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Any moist rooms in the house should have an exhaust vent installed so the steam is allowed to escape. This will include the bathroom, kitchen, laundry room, and the basement. If you happen to do laundry in the basement and for some reason the dryer does not work or you do not have one, do not hang clothes up to dry down there, since this will create the humidity that you are trying to prevent.
Keep any water spills cleaned up. Whether the bath tub or the kitchen sink or the toilet overflows, cleaning up these spills as soon as they occur is essential to prevent water damage and mold growth in your house. Another important think to realize is that you should never have carpet installed in the bathroom and that cracked tiles need to be replaced as soon as possible.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami water damage restoration companies and
mold remediation companies across the united states.
The symptoms of excess mold exposure are both many and varied. Allergenic molds cause, as the name implies, aggravation of allergies and respiratory conditions that already exist and can create new allergies that did not exist before the exposure. These symptoms can surface in the form of sneezing, watery eyes, a runny nose, or some quite unsightly skin rashes that are pretty itchy when left untreated. If these symptoms only show up when you are in your home and you do not have them when you are at work or elsewhere, you might want to consider having your home tested for mold.
While some of the most serious infections around the world are caused by mold exposure, one thing that has become a staple in the medical community is penicillin. Penicillin is produced from mold in the genus penicillium and has been used as a cure for all kinds of infections since the early 1900’s. Unfortunately, the penicillium genus also has a serious disease named after it that occurs mostly in HIV and AIDS patients in Southeast Asia.
Mold grows in humid areas of your home and you may not even know it is there if it grows inside your walls. Homes that have been damaged by floods may have mold growing behind the walls and you will not even realize it most of the time. Try to keep the humidity in your home as far down as possible and the temperature somewhere around 65 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit. Any moist rooms in the house should have an exhaust vent installed so the steam is allowed to escape. This will include the bathroom, kitchen, laundry room, and the basement. If you happen to do laundry in the basement and for some reason the dryer does not work or you do not have one, do not hang clothes up to dry down there, since this will create the humidity that you are trying to prevent.
Keep any water spills cleaned up. Whether the bath tub or the kitchen sink or the toilet overflows, cleaning up these spills as soon as they occur is essential to prevent water damage and mold growth in your house. Another important think to realize is that you should never have carpet installed in the bathroom and that cracked tiles need to be replaced as soon as possible.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami water damage restoration companies and
mold remediation companies across the united states.
Allergies and Mold
Millions of people in the world suffer from all kinds of allergies, whether it is pollen, grass, foods, animals, or mold. Allergy symptoms are mostly seen from the spring to the late fall because of the fact that most of the allergies are due to seasonal plants and molds. Most plants and molds that cause allergies do not thrive during the winter and cannot continue to grow in freezing temperatures. They simply remain dormant and this is true of mold infestations inside homes. While the mold does not continue growing during the winter, it will thaw during the winter and be just as much of an inconvenience as they were before they were frozen.
There are all kinds of allergy symptoms that are associated with mold. The kind of reaction and the severity can vary from person to person, but the usual signs are runny noses, sneezing, watery eyes, and skin rashes. The presence of mold can also cause what is called Perennial allergic rhinitis. The allergy symptoms caused by mold are often aggravated and made worse by eating any food that has been made with mold or any other kind of fungus, like mushrooms. Even bread and beer, which are made with yeast can cause the symptoms to worsen. Cheeses that are made with mold, particularly gorgonzola and blue cheese, can also bring about the onset of these symptoms.
There are a few dozen species of mold that can cause allergic reactions, but most of the species of mold on the planet are not very allergenic. The majority of allergic reactions are caused by molds in the genii of Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Alternaria. The only genus that has a disease and a medicine named after it is Penicillium.
If you have some allergies besides just mold, you should probably keep an eye out for the allergen reports that appear on the news each day at different intervals. If you are a senior citizen or have a young child that is allergic to these things, you need to be careful about yourself or the child going out if the reports indicate a high amount of the allergen in the air. Depending on the severity of your allergy, it could possibly trigger a serious reaction.
If you discover mold in your home and fear that you may be allergic to it, you should have your home tested for mold immediately and if the test returns positive, you should relocate while the problem is being taken care of.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami water damage restoration companies and
mold remediation companies across the united states.
There are all kinds of allergy symptoms that are associated with mold. The kind of reaction and the severity can vary from person to person, but the usual signs are runny noses, sneezing, watery eyes, and skin rashes. The presence of mold can also cause what is called Perennial allergic rhinitis. The allergy symptoms caused by mold are often aggravated and made worse by eating any food that has been made with mold or any other kind of fungus, like mushrooms. Even bread and beer, which are made with yeast can cause the symptoms to worsen. Cheeses that are made with mold, particularly gorgonzola and blue cheese, can also bring about the onset of these symptoms.
There are a few dozen species of mold that can cause allergic reactions, but most of the species of mold on the planet are not very allergenic. The majority of allergic reactions are caused by molds in the genii of Cladosporium, Penicillium, and Alternaria. The only genus that has a disease and a medicine named after it is Penicillium.
If you have some allergies besides just mold, you should probably keep an eye out for the allergen reports that appear on the news each day at different intervals. If you are a senior citizen or have a young child that is allergic to these things, you need to be careful about yourself or the child going out if the reports indicate a high amount of the allergen in the air. Depending on the severity of your allergy, it could possibly trigger a serious reaction.
If you discover mold in your home and fear that you may be allergic to it, you should have your home tested for mold immediately and if the test returns positive, you should relocate while the problem is being taken care of.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami water damage restoration companies and
mold remediation companies across the united states.
Restoring Smoke Damaged Clothes
Anyone who has been the victim of a house fire will tell you that the cleanup that you have to do afterward is a huge chore and that a lot of things in your house will either have to be cleaned thoroughly or have to be replaced. Unfortunately, this includes something that everyone has to use on a daily basis: clothing. The vast majority of us have to wear clothing every day of our lives and if a fire were to affect our whole wardrobe, a lot of us would be in some trouble.
Fortunately for us, though, cleaning smoke damaged clothing is not always as difficult as some might make it out to be. You will need to sort your clothing fairly heavily, though, since there are so many factors involved. How soiled the clothing is, what it is made out of, and what color it is. This will be the most time consuming part of the whole task.
Some things will need to be dry cleaned, but you do not want to take these to a normal dry cleaning service. Make sure that the dry cleaning service that you are dealing with has experience in dealing with smoke damaged clothing items.
Sort your clothes. Lightly soiled clothing should be put into one group and heavily soiled items into another. Sort them further by dividing them into kinds of fabric. Put synthetic fabrics into one pile and organics such as wool and cotton in another. Further sort them by color type. Bright warm colors, cool colors, dark colors, and reds should be given their own group. Do not be concerned over whether there is enough in each pile to constitute a full load. Washing them separately like this is necessary.
Before you wash the heavily soiled clothing, take them outside and shake them out. The excess soot and ash need to be removed so that the water in the washing machine does not become too saturated with dirt to be of any real use. Heavily soiled clothes should be washed twice or more.
Use as much detergent as the washer requires and add about a cup of water conditioner to the mix. Some all-fabric bleach can also be used. Use as much water as your machine can handle for each load.
Synthetic items should be washed in warm water so that they do not start to wrinkle during the washer’s spin cycle. Wrinkles can be difficult to remove from synthetic fabrics.
Hang the clothes out to dry instead of using the dryer, but do not do this in your basement or a confined area. Clothes should never be hung to dry inside the house; only do this outside. After they dry, smell them and see if the smoke odor is still there. If it is, wash them again and repeat the drying process.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Orlando water damage restoration companies and
Water Damage Restoration companies across the united states.
Fortunately for us, though, cleaning smoke damaged clothing is not always as difficult as some might make it out to be. You will need to sort your clothing fairly heavily, though, since there are so many factors involved. How soiled the clothing is, what it is made out of, and what color it is. This will be the most time consuming part of the whole task.
Some things will need to be dry cleaned, but you do not want to take these to a normal dry cleaning service. Make sure that the dry cleaning service that you are dealing with has experience in dealing with smoke damaged clothing items.
Sort your clothes. Lightly soiled clothing should be put into one group and heavily soiled items into another. Sort them further by dividing them into kinds of fabric. Put synthetic fabrics into one pile and organics such as wool and cotton in another. Further sort them by color type. Bright warm colors, cool colors, dark colors, and reds should be given their own group. Do not be concerned over whether there is enough in each pile to constitute a full load. Washing them separately like this is necessary.
Before you wash the heavily soiled clothing, take them outside and shake them out. The excess soot and ash need to be removed so that the water in the washing machine does not become too saturated with dirt to be of any real use. Heavily soiled clothes should be washed twice or more.
Use as much detergent as the washer requires and add about a cup of water conditioner to the mix. Some all-fabric bleach can also be used. Use as much water as your machine can handle for each load.
Synthetic items should be washed in warm water so that they do not start to wrinkle during the washer’s spin cycle. Wrinkles can be difficult to remove from synthetic fabrics.
Hang the clothes out to dry instead of using the dryer, but do not do this in your basement or a confined area. Clothes should never be hung to dry inside the house; only do this outside. After they dry, smell them and see if the smoke odor is still there. If it is, wash them again and repeat the drying process.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Orlando water damage restoration companies and
Water Damage Restoration companies across the united states.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
