Reducing the threat of fire and mold

[Guest guest]

Reducing the threat of fire and mold

Building material treatment acts as both fire retardant and mold

preventive

By Phil Zinkewicz

http://www.roughnotes.com/rnmagazine/2006/february06/02p058.htm

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The first little pig decided to build his house of straw. The

second, only a little wiser, opted for wood. But if it had not been

for the third little pig, pigs number one and two would have been

roast pork sandwiches for the big bad wolf.

Home building is booming in America. According to a recent article

in Consumer Reports (CR), in 2004 consumers bought one million homes

in the United States, a near record. Average sales price was

$250,000, says CR; but a CR investigation has found that,

increasingly, buyers are discovering that their new dream homes have

serious defects and that they have little regulatory oversight to

protect them for what is often the purchase of a lifetime. For

example, according to CR, in Oregon a family built a semi-custom

home on a lot they owned only to discover mold—that horrible word—in

the walls four months later. That's only one case out of many. CR

says that construction defects lawsuits are on the rise nationally,

but the toxic mold situation makes things much worse.

Wouldn't it be wonderful if building contractors could construct

buildings where the risks of mold and/or fire are minimal? It

certainly would be beneficial for the Gulf Coast area, where homes

will have to be rebuilt from scratch. Shortly after Hurricane

Katrina, the National Association of Home Builders (NAHB),

testifying before Congress, said that the American Red Cross has

estimated that 275,000 homes were destroyed in Louisiana,

Mississippi, and Alabama as the result of the hurricane. That is

nearly 10 times as many as in any previous natural disaster in U.S.

history, said the NAHB. According to Arthur Sterbcow, president of

New Orleans-based Latter & Blum Realtors, Florida lost 20,000 homes

in the wake of Hurricane and San Francisco lost 27,000 homes

in the Northridge Earthquake. Referring to the number of homes lost

in the Gulf Coast because of Katrina, Sterbcow said; " That's a

number so large that it's almost impossible to get a sense of scale. "

So, the stage is set for a surge in home building construction, but

will there be enough contractors to take on the Herculean task? The

fear of being hit with mold lawsuits later on could be a

discouraging factor.

Mold exclusions on homeowners insurance policies have gotten a lot

of attention in the last few years, but less well known are mold

exclusions on the policies of home builders. Without some protection

from mold-related lawsuits, home builders are in a precarious

position.

Now comes a company called No-Burn®, based in Wadsworth, Ohio, that

says it can provide products for home builders to safeguard at the

time of construction against fire and mold, and it is offering an

insurance-backed warranty, backed by an off-shore captive, to fill

the gap caused by mold exclusions in home builders' insurance

contracts.

Ken Rusk, vice president of No-Burn, explains: " The seven-year No-

Burn warranty covers the home builder for all areas treated with No-

Burn MIH, a non-toxic compound designed to deny fuel for fires as

well as food for mold. The warranty, covering the home builder for

up to $50,000 in mold remediation-related costs, is the only

insurance-backed risk mitigation tool available. This warranty gives

the builder peace of mind that evaporated when his or her

traditional mold insurance disappeared.

" Just as important, " he continues, " the warranty improves the

builder's relationship with customers, reassuring home owners that

their new house is mold-resistant and that they won't be on the hook

for cleanup if the worst happens. In that sense, the warranty

separates the best builders from the good during the bidding process

for new construction projects. "

" The seven-year No-Burn warranty covers the home builder for all

areas treated with No-Burn MIH, a non-toxic compound designed to

deny fuel for fires as well as food for mold. "

—Ken Rusk

Vice President, No-Burn

Good-bye mold

The No-Burn encapsulation process is used on building materials to

protect them from fire and resist mold growth. Unlike fire, mold

thrives in the moist cavities of a structure. However, Rusk says,

mold and fire need the same basic food source—the wood framing and

paper-faced drywall installed in most homes. He says that all the

builder has to do is spray on the No-Burn product, first when the

wood framing is constructed and then again when the drywall is in

place. He says the No-Burn products are not only non-toxic but also

non-carcinogenic. In addition, they have been successfully tested by

the NFPA, UL, ASTM, and other safety organizations.

" Mold liability has sent the industry into such a panic, some

builders are actually setting money aside specifically for potential

future mold claim payments, " says Rusk. " Builders should not have to

create a costly `mold reserve' to guard against claims and the No-

Burn warranty eliminates the need for these kinds of extreme

measures. "

In addition to single-family home builders, builders of multi-family

apartments and condominiums with eight units or less can be covered

by the warranty. Says Rusk: " When you build a condo and mold breaks

out, you have all the same problems times eight. Builders are also

turning to No-Burn's mold and fire protection system because it is

the first warranty to offer formal certification, assuring

protection against the costs of mold remediation. In addition, home

builders are attracted to the No-Burn system because it creates

revenue without additional work or cost, " continues Rusk. " To

implement the No-Burn system, builders do not have to delay

construction or fill out a change order. A No-Burn specialist takes

care of the paperwork and the product application, even meeting with

the home owner personally to gain approval. The cost of using the No-

Burn is added to the cost of the construction job, and builders

enjoy an additional revenue source. "

Says Rusk: " We believe that a fundamental shift is needed in the way

society understands mold remediation. We have made it our mission to

show people that cleaning up mold efficiently should be secondary to

preventing it in the first place. "

Farewell fire

That's the mold part of the story, but what about the fire part?

Steve Shechter, director of communications for North American Safety

& Preservation Associates (NASPA), a subsidiary of the Akron, Ohio-

based Agency, is a man on a mission. He is trying to persuade

insurance companies to offer discounts on homeowners insurance to

insureds whose homes use the No-Burn products.

" No-burn is an intumescent fire retardant coating (IFRC) which,

through scientific development, has surpassed the performance

standards of older fire retardants, " says Shechter. " It is non-

toxic, easier to apply, and more economical. Technically referred to

as a topical `fire retardant,' it has the effect of transforming

ordinary wood to a non-combustible building material. Untreated

lumber, typical to single- and multi-unit home construction, burns

like kindling in a bonfire. I believe it will eventually go the way

of thatched roofs and aluminum wiring. If insurance companies

provide an incentive for using this technology, I believe it will

have a dramatic effect in reducing the numbers of annual deaths,

injuries and property losses resulting from household fires. "

One insurer is already providing an incentive. After attending a

live burn demonstration of No-Burn fire retardants at the Ohio Fire

Academy to evaluate the life saving capabilities of this technology,

Motorists Insurance Group of Columbus, Ohio, issued a premium

discount bulletin. Motorists' rate filings call for superior

construction classification for homes properly treated with No-

Burn. " This constitutes a 15% discount. The change was effective

September 15, 2005, in Kentucky, October 1 in Ohio and will be

effective January 1, 2006, in Iowa. " (As of press time, effective

dates had not yet been determined in Pennsylvania and West

Virginia.) NASPA presented its Innovator Award to Motorists last

September for exhibiting " a progressive vision and humanitarian

interest. "

However, Shechter believes the word must get out to other

insurers. " The insurance industry has long recognized, through

substantial rate credits, the value of automatic sprinkler systems.

It is in the best interest of insurers, regulators, insureds, and

the public to apply the same level of informed discretion to the

matter of combustibility and flame retardant technology. *

For more information:

No-Burn

Web site: www.noburn.com