Is your house making you sick?

It’s been an interesting week so far…including this past weekend. Let me start with some background….

My mother was diagnosed with Sarcoidosis when I was in my early teens.

Sarcoidosis is a disease in which swelling (inflammation) occurs in the lymph nodes, lungs, liver, eyes, skin, or other tissues. Almost all diagnosed people have lung issues, but they can also have skin irritations, joint pain, nervous system changes and more. Google Health gives a great overview. All in all, I remember it being very hard to detect and VERY hard to treat when I was in my early teens. My mother had a lot of pain, needed a lot of my help…and had to take a lot of drugs. We thought it was gone. She’s been working to counter the steroid shots every since.

I know to watch my mother if she gets over heated, get her potassium. There’s a great story about one of my birthdays, bears, and getting the park ranger to realize I wasn’t a dramatic teen and I really DID need to get my mother somewhere for OJ or Grapefruit Juice. Maybe I’ll share that one day.

I keep an eye on her at the gym to make sure any trainers don’t push her past her physical limits, yet, while she trains with me I routinely do so. I figure, by now, I know her limits and she knows when to tell me she’s really reached hers.

I learned to do laundry young. I learned to cook. I learned to manage a household long before most of my peers. I learned to heft all the groceries into the house in one fell swoop. (It still irritates my husband that I will carry in six bags of groceries rather than make multiple trips.) And, actually, when a family member falls ill or needs help, I’ve surprised my husband with my single minded focus to make things right or easier for said family member.

If something needs to be done to make things better or right, then I do them. I’m not used to having others around to help me or do them for me.

Flash forward to this week.

My wise aunt, in talking with my mother, mentioned that perhaps there was something in the house that was making her sick. She’s been having flare ups every summer when she finally turns on the AC. Now, we’re not saying she’s of utmost stellar health during the winter, but she certainly doesn’t have the same issues she does when summer kicks in.

In following that line of thought, we decided to check out her basement again. About 17 years ago, she’d had a pipe burst. I’d gone through then and hauled out a LOT of stuff…helped her clean out and up. Now, my husband went back with me…we did another attack. And then, today, I had ServPro out to do a looksee and estimate.

Can I tell you what I learned about Mold and how it can affect you???

Now, I’m not sure if this is backed up with scientific research. I haven’t spent the time tonight to go look. Honestly, I’m not going to. I’m giving you my honest responses to being in the house and some commentary from Barry, who’s been doing this a LONG time. (I’ll do more research later.)

First off, it’s a townhouse with a below ground, enclosed basement. Built in the 1970′s and the house I grew up in. (Yes, that gives you my general age…be nice.) It’s unfinished. Growing up, we’d never had the money to finish it. And then, when we had the money…it just never seemed important to follow through with.

With the onset of summer and the rains, the basement smells musty. Concrete floors, collections of stuff everywhere, from holiday decorations to linens to books I’ll never read again. Nick and I spent almost 2 hours with my mom categorizing things to be pitched. We pitched out a LOT.

I didn’t realize we probably shouldn’t have been touching any of it and just let the experts clean it all out.

Barry showed me where the mold was growing on the dark wood paneling of the walls, where it coated some of the books. He explained in detail about how the cinder-block walls allowed the water to seep in from the ground. We discussed humidity levels – hers are at 50% or more and they should be in the 30′s. AND, I learned…the reason she wasn’t having problems in the winter?

Gas Heat.

Seriously. In the winter, the gas heat kicks in and decreases the humidity levels and thus, puts the mold in a dormant phase. Then, in summer, when she turns on the AC and the humidity levels increase (cause let’s be honest, humidity in VA? YES.) then the mold flourishes.

Eureka. OMG, it is a perfect line up of all the problems. AND, it explained the massive headache I had after being down there for a few hours and the general ick feeling of needing a shower after having done all that work.

So now begins the battle. Honestly, everything NOT metal or hard plastic needs to go. But, she has items stored that represent her history, her past. And we’re going to fight about the damn chairs she hauled back from Chicago But, I’ve been trying to make things easier….realizing that ONE her house is contributing to her pain and illness and TWO, this house has been her life for MY life.

Some things I learned about mold:

1. It’s like grass. It takes root in items like wood, cardboard, clothing, paper, etc. If it’s not metal or hard plastic…throw it out.
2. It thrives in high humidity. I guess I’d know this if I paid attention to biology classes.
3. It can migrate. Don’t move items from one part of your house to another without proper barriers or cleaning. Meaning, the husband will be removing the boxes he brought home of his stuff from our son’s room…esp since our son has suddenly started with the sniffles.
4. Hirer professionals to do the cleaning, clean out and clean up. Make sure they’re certified. You don’t want the issue occurring again.

I’m sure there are more things I learned, but I wanted to share with you the highlights. I’m waiting on the estimate, but we already have plans to migrate Mom’s cat to our house. I’m sure our three cats will just love this….and hopefully, have this all done while she’s on vacation and can’t complain about all the things they pitch out.

I never even thought her house was contributing to her illness(es). Barry mentioned that while he wasn’t a doctor, he’s seen people with many physical and mental changes due to the mold in their homes. From physical aliments to mental ones. I know the headache I had when I left the basement today…I don’t wish that on ANYONE.

My recommendations?

• Check your house out for mold or mildew, especially if you’ve been ill a lot, have a below ground basement or unfinished basement.
• Call someone to vacuum your vents. You wouldn’t believe me if I tell you some of the things ServPro has found in vents. Just…no. I swear, our house is by far newer than my mothers, but I’m still having them come vacuum ours out next.
• Invest in a high quality air purifier, industrial grade. We have one in our home that was used in the Pentagon after 9-11. It works. So, I took it to her house and left it here. She needs it more than we do at the moment. If you want to know more about the one we have…leave a comment…I’ll have to check the make and model when I go back tomorrow
• If you’re going to store items in your basement, cover them in plastic or store them in hard plastic bins.

Any other recommendations? I’m not an expert, just sharing what I’ve learned so far to date!

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