It’s time for the public to join the mold-busters fight

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It's time for the public to join the mold-busters fight

By Craig S. Semon TELEGRAM & GAZETTE STAFF

Worcester Telegram - Worcester,MA

http://www.telegram.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?

AID=/20061029/NEWS/610290482/1101

WORCESTER— There's a fungus among us and it's not necessarily

something to fear, but something we should be aware of and care

about.

In the wake of news reports focusing on a Dudley family fleeing

their single-family home after a severe case of toxic mold, mold

remediation specialist Power of the Worcester-based

Commonwealth Environmental Services has spearheaded an effort to

bring mold experts, scientists, remediation specialists, contractors

and contractor suppliers together to better educate and inform the

public.

For its inaugural " Breakfast Mold Club " meeting, Mr. Power was

joined by his sister, Power, co-owner of Commonwealth

Environmental Services; Jon , an insulator contractor and

manager of Imperial/Worldwide Inc. in Shrewsbury; Daven Nataupsky,

representing Owens Corning/NES in Worcester; lab director

Stanca; and microbiology laboratory director Martha Kneizys, both of

Pro-Science Analytical Services Inc. in Woburn; and Mark Goldman,

senior air quality scientist and certified microbial consultant at

EFI Global in Andover.

Earlier this month, and Jakubowski, along with their

three children — , 9, Clair, 6, and 5-month-old daughter Lily —

left their home at 169 Klondike Road in Dudley. The couple bought

the home in September 2005. A month after they moved in, the family

started getting sick.

Pro-Science Analytical Services did the mold testing on the

Jakubowski home at no charge, and Commonwealth Environmental

Services will be doing all the demolition and mold remediation at no

charge. Imperial/Worldwide is donating the labor to install

CertainTeed DryRight moisture control fiberglass insulation (donated

by the manufacturer). In addition, Mr. Goldman has provided

consulting information, as well as his expertise.

" We're trying to bring the awareness from the very beginning to the

very end — from identifying the problem to removing the problem to

the rebuilding and the prevention of, " Mr. Power explained.

" There are some great products coming out now that are going to help

homeowners, business owners and contractors. Probably the most

difficult group out there that we, as a group here, need to reach is

the contractor. "

So what is mold? Mold is a fungus — a parasitic plant lacking

chlorophyll, a rigid cell wall, leaves, true stems and roots. We all

have mold in our houses, but not everyone has a toxic mold problem.

" Mold is ubiquitous in the world, " Mr. Goldman said. " It's in beer,

yeast, bread. It's in everything. Every breath we have ever taken

has mold spores in it. There are a thousand kinds of mold, obviously

beneficial ones and less than beneficial. "

A household mold problem usually triggers the senses in the form of

cold and/or flu-like symptoms.

" The most typical (sign you have a mold problem) is the odor, the

musty odor, which is a sensory and pulmonary irritant, which can

cause eye, nose, throat and upper airway irritation, " Mr. Goldman

said. " It can trigger an asthma attack if you already have asthma.

It can certainly aggravate allergies. "

One of the reasons mold isn't regulated is because of the huge

discrepancies in sensitivity to mold.

" Let's take an arbitrary number of 500 spores per meter cube is safe

for everyone at this table to breath in, " Ms. Kneizys explained. " If

I have a compromised immune system or I have asthma, I could react

at 100. It matters on the individual. "

The most dangerous indoor molds are Alternaria, Aspergillus,

Chaetomium, Cladosporium, Fusarium, Mucor, Penicillium and

Stachybotrys.

In air samples taken from the Jakubowski home, Ms. Kneizys found

under the microscope Penicillium-Aspergillius (which, according to

Mr. Goldman, is a strong indicator of water damage). A 500 spore

count or higher is a level of concern. The samples from that house

with the lowest mold spore count totaled 11,600 and in several rooms

(including the baby's room) the readings were " TNTC " or " too

numerous to count. "

And mold lives in a lot of hidden places too. Mold can live in the

attic, the basement, inside wall cavities and underneath carpeting

and wallpaper, as well as inside air and heating ducts.

Ms. Kneizys explained that you need three conditions to grow mold:

an organic food source (organic building materials and other

cellulose-based materials such as carpeting, upholstery and

clothing), moisture and relative humidity.

Mold in the home usually comes down to moisture. If you have a

broken water pipe, leaky roof or flooded basement, Ms. Kneizys said,

the homeowner has a 48-hour window to clean up and dry out before

mold starts to grow.

If you control moisture, chances are you can control mold growth

indoors. However, that is easier said than done, since some of the

luxuries of home (such as floor covering and even cooling units)

have created unintentionally favorable conditions for mold to

flourish.

" Since World War II, we changed the way we build buildings. In the

old days, they were plaster. They had hard wood. They didn't have

carpeting and they didn't have sheet rock and they didn't have air

conditioning, all things that contribute to mold, " Mr. Goldman

said. " People just are not equipped. In fact, many commercial

establishments and schools are not properly trained and equipped to

deal with the new products that are more sensitive. …We are getting

better. We're learning the lesson of getting cheap, but more water-

resistant, more breathable products. "

A common misconception is that a house has to be old to have mold.

On the contrary, Mr. Goldman said, newer homes can be more

susceptible to mold because there can be more moisture. Mr. Power

said his company has had as many mold remediation jobs, if not more,

in homes that are " brand-spanking new. "

Experts said the biggest misconception people have about mold is

that you can just wipe it with some bleach and it goes away. In

fact, it's going to come back again, if you haven't changed the

environment or gotten to the root of the problem that hides

underneath the surface.

With moisture control in mind, Mr. Power said, more folks are using

dehumidifiers, which are costly and time-consuming, while a more

efficient, less costly option is the Humidex, a moisture control and

indoor air quality system that creates " a healthy air exchange " and

reduces allergens, mold spores and contaminants.

With no federal regulation of mold at this time, Mr. Stanca said,

it's up to private companies, as well as the community, to spread

the word on the extent of the problem.

" Mold really is a big problem in schools, in offices, all over the

place, " Mr. Stanca said. " It's not only in houses. "