Helpful Tips
Fire Protection and General Safety:
Don’t store flammable materials in the furnace room or next to your furnace and hot water tank.
Ensure that adequate ventilation is provided to rooms containing gas/oil fired furnaces/boilers and gas/oil fired hot water tanks.
Any door leading from an attached garage into the dwelling must be exterior/fire rated door, equipped with a self-closing device.
Always having a fire extinguisher readily available.
Plan two evacuation routes. Keep fire evacuation routes clear of clutter.
Keep your cooking area well organized and free of clutter.
Handrails must be installed alongside all staircases containing more than three steps.
Eliminate any trip hazards or flooring defects. Keep your hallways and corridors clear.
Refraining from overloading electrical circuits.
Avoid permanent use of electrical extension cord.
Clear access must be maintained in front of the electrical panel, the furnace/boiler access and the main water shut–off valve.
Install at least one Smoke Alarm and CO Detector on each floor level.
Test and maintain Smoke and CO Detectors on monthly basis.
Emergency and family contact telephone numbers can be displayed permanently at or near the kitchen telephone.
MOLD REMEDIATION
Here is your direct link to everything you want to know about finding and treating mold in your home, and other related information that you’ll find really useful and interesting. Our topics will span mold inspection, mold remediation, and mold testing, as well as offer you helpful tips direct from our mold remediation specialists.
People know more about what to do with moldy food (throw it away!) than they do about how to treat mold in their home. As our experts go to mold remediation jobs, they often meet people who don’t know a lot about indoor mold or believe things that are simply not true. Because many don’t understand the mold problem correctly, they may have delayed treating the mold, or tried cleaning it up themselves without understanding how mold acts and grows.
MOLD WILL ONLY GROW IN THE BASEMENT.
Mold appears and reproduces in areas where there is moisture. Increased levels of indoor moisture, water leaks, or water damage (flooding) can all help the mold to grow and spread. While it is true that basements are more prone to mold growth, it’s not the only place in your home where mold can grow! Any area in your home can be an ideal place for mold to grow given the right conditions, whether it is the basement or not.
THERE ARE CERTAIN DANGEROUS MOLD STRAINS, AND THESE ARE THE ONLY TYPES OF MOLD YOU SHOULD WORRY ABOUT.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends that you eliminate any apparent mold, no matter what type of mold it is. Any mold can be a severe health problem to sensitive members in your family, such as children and infants.
IF YOU CAN SEE THE MOLD, YOU CAN TAKE CARE OF IT YOURSELF.
If the mold is only on hard, non-porous surfaces, or if the mold is in a small area, you have a good chance of success trying to remove it yourself. Otherwise, the mold that you can visually see is not the whole story, not by a long shot. Even if you try to remove it by yourself, you might not find all the places where the mold is growing, especially in porous materials like drywall and insulation. In fact, cleaning mold yourself can send more spores into the air, making the problem bigger, not smaller. To prevent the mold from spreading to other areas, you need a mold specialist to help you eliminate the mold from your home safely and properly.
Useful Tips for Prevention and Removal
In the restoration industry, one of the biggest threats to health and safety for home owners and businesses alike is mold.
Without proper clean up and containment, mold can lead to compromised health conditions and respiratory illnesses.
But there are effective ways to get rid of mold and leave your property uncontaminated and clean
This past week, Hurricane Florence barreled its way through the Carolinas, bringing with it substantial amounts of rain, high winds, and subsequent flooding. Though the actual hurricane was downgraded to a tropical storm over the weekend, the impact and damage have continued.
Most significantly, the entire coastal area has been hit with widespread and catastrophic flooding from a combination of record rainfalls and massive storm surges.
Tips on How to Remedy Symptoms of Mold
Does your home or office have the symptoms of mold?
Have a musty odor during hot and humid weather?
Make breathing uncomfortable?
Watery eyes and scratchy throat?
On most days in Texas the weather here is hot, humid and hazy. So, what does this mean for you and your family’s health?
An increase of mold related allergies.
Asthma related symptoms become uncomfortable
Indoor pet and dust mites only ad on to summer health risks
Weather related mold damage has caused many health related symptoms and making it unbearable to breathe in some cases. However, those homes who have not been completely destroyed, your home or business is still under a mold threat.
There are 3 C’s to remember when it comes to controlling mold in your home or office.
Cleanliness
( Try to keep your home in order. Especially the bathroom and any areas of your home or office that may be affected.)
Circulation
( Mold loves stagnant air flow! Try to keep a consistent air flow throughout your home or office for best results.)
Control
( Mold needs water to grow. Humidity in your home or office is also helps mold to grow.)
Mold Inspection & Removal
Mold is more than a smelly nuisance. For home and business owners, it can discolor and damage their property and cause serious health concerns. Indoor mold contamination has been identified as a major contributor to allergies and respiratory problems, property destruction, and poor indoor air quality. Mold can grow in as little as 24-48 hours any time excessive moisture is present indoors, whether the moisture is the result of a flood, a slow leak, broken pipe, or just high humidity. When your home or business experiences mold growth and mold damage, you can trust the highly skilled technicians at ServiceMaster By Mason to identify and remove mold, thoroughly clean and sanitize the property, and prevent it from spreading to unaffected areas.
We ensure all types of mold and mildew is thoroughly removed with the use of commercial grade anti-microbial agents and the most effective tools and technology for all types of mold removal, including black mold cleanup. ServiceMaster By Mason Owner, Ryan Mason, holds certifications from the Professional Mold Inspection Institute to perform air quality testing for microbial growth (mold) concerns in homes & businesses. We can assist property owners, real estate professionals, healthcare offices, assisted living facilities & more with sampling for air quality. Our testing will help identify the presence of mold spores and mold growth, types of mold, total air count/spores count to determine if normal or abnormal and more. We will carefully collect air, swab, tape or bulk item samples and send overnight express to a Certified Laboratory, getting you quick and accurate results. If you’re concerned about air quality and mold in your property, call us for detailed inspection and air quality testing, and professional mold cleanup and removal.
We know how to identify and eliminate the source of what caused mold, and implement the proper process in order to eliminate harmful mold. We can provide any needed property demolition, clean and remove the mold contamination, while restoring your property and peace of mind.
Special expertise is necessary for effective mold, mildew, and black mold cleanup and removal. Bleach or other retail cleaning products will simply stir up and spread the mold spores, contaminating other areas of your home or business. And visible mold growth in your home, office or housing complex is a likely indication of a greater problem lurking nearby. Mold in attics and mold in basements can use your hot air/cooling system to quickly spread to other areas in your property.
Water damage, a leaky pipe, or broken sprinkler head can often cause moisture to gather within the walls or ceilings of your property. In these circumstances, a full-scale mold infestation can quickly develop, and an immediate response is needed to limit the damage and health concerns, clean and eliminate mold or mildew.