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The Asthma & Allergy Foundation recently ranked Louisville, KY one of the worst cities in the nation for allergy sufferers.  Louisville residents, along with all other allergy sufferers around the nation, are preparing themselves for the dreaded mold and allergy season that is now upon us.

When the warmer weather comes, mold spores take advantage of the moisture in the air and begin to multiply.  Mold can cause many allergy-like symptoms such as itchy watery eyes, scratchy throat, and nasal congestion. Along with the health effects, indoor mold can also cause catastrophic property damage. So if you have any type of water damage such as flooding or water leaks, that will only intensify the mold growth.

Allergist offices are swamped with appointments for allergy shots and requests for medications. Many sufferers are also turning to acupuncture for treatment, saying it keeps them clear with no clogged sinuses.  

No matter what treatments are used, the mold and allergy season is here whether we like it or not, so make sure you are ready! If you’re feeling symptoms or think you may have a mold problem in your home, it is critical to take immediate action and have the mold professionally removed before your health conditions worsen.  Contact Guardian Preservation Services for more information on mold and mold removal or check out our website to get free mold facts.

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A family in Alabama is left homeless after their home was condemned due to toxic mold. The family, originally from Ohio, found their home on Craigslist and was looking to make a new start for themselves. Unfortunately, they didn’t realize that fresh start included not so fresh toxic mold.

When the family arrived at their new home in Alabama, they found quite the surprise waiting for them. Not only were workers who were supposedly repairing their home actually living in it, but the house had holes in the walls, black mold, birds living in the kitchen, and rooms that had no floors. While trying to call the owners to get their money back, city officials stepped in and condemned the home because of its unlivable conditions, structural issues, and electrical hazards.  This poor family just wants to get to the bottom of the matter and have a safe home to live in.

The one thing the family can be truly thankful for is that they did not have to spend one single night in that home. Toxic black mold is a serious health threat that could have endangered the entire family. Breathing in the toxic mold spores could have caused anything from allergic reactions to depression and memory loss.

If you have a mold problem, call a mold removal expert immediately. Mold does not go away on its own, so the longer you wait the problem and risks will continue to grow. Check out Guardian Preservation Services for more information on the harmful health effects of toxic mold and the safe and efficient way to get rid of your mold problem for good.

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Artist Ethan Gold‘s new album, appropriately titled “Songs from a Toxic Apartment” was literally written and recorded by Gold while he was living in a toxic apartment. The album, complete with 12 songs, is an interesting mix of emotions  and sad lyrics all that came about while Gold was hallucinating from exposure to mold and asbestos in his dilapidated apartment.

The album is a combination of natural and electronic sounds, and talks of feelings about isolation and angst. He also sings about being depressed, and as I’ve mentioned in previous posts, depression is a known side effect from mold exposure.

Though Gold was forced to eventually vacate the apartment because it was condemned, it’s very clear when listening to this album that the toxic mold in his apartment was severely harming his health and mental state.  There is no telling what damage could have been done if he stayed in that toxic apartment, even if it did make a good story line for his music.

Don’t endanger your health or the safety of your loved ones because of a mold problem. If you or anyone you know is living with toxic mold, call a mold removal expert immediately. Check out Guardian Preservation Services to learn more about the health effects from mold and the permanent damage it can do if not properly treated.  Unlike many mold removal companies, we use an organic mold removal method that is 100% safe, natural, and effective.

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Most companies strive to run their business ethically, following the laws and regulations that are required of them.  Unfortunately, there are some bad seeds out there. Corrupt businesses that take advantage of innocent consumers, break the law, and expect to never get caught.

A bad seed was recently exposed out of Orlando Florida.  A company that provided mold testing and mold removal has been accused of running a fraud scheme.  The owner of Protective Solutions in FL is facing more than three dozen criminal charges, including falsifying testing records, grand theft, and insurance fraud.  

Authorities are saying that the owner was providing fictitious laboratory reports to clients that were extremely technical, when in reality the tests never even took place.  He then proceeded to offer mold removal services, tearing out walls, carpet and flooring to remove mold that wasn’t there.  And if there was mold, it was not being removed properly. 

According to the Department of Environmental Protection, this fraud caused many clients to move or lose their homes.  Authorities say Protective Solutions raked in over $239,000 in fraudulent revenue and hit more than 29 victims in the process.  

This story is so disturbing to me because those innocent clients trusted the company to help them with a serious problem, and in turn their money was taken and the problem remained.  As a consumer, it’s important to know and trust the mold removal company you hire.  Do they inform you on their process and the steps they plan to take?  Do they use a third party laboratory that provides testing reports?  Do they provide you with a warranty?

Protect yourself from business scams.  If you have a mold problem and are looking for a credible, trustworthy mold removal company, check out Guardian Preservation Services.  We use third party labs, provide free educational materials and information on our processes, and we even give a lifetime warranty.

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Every few weeks I hear about some new government legislation about enforcing standards on indoor air quality and mold growth in public buildings, namely schools. There is a constant discussion about this in Florida, one of nation’s most hot and humid states where moldy schools and constant mold removal are a fact of life.

In 2003, a grand jury laid out a 44-page report strongly recommending changes to the state of Florida about forcing school districts to maintain their indoor air quality. The report emphasized the harmful effects of mold on children, none that I would disagree with. Since then, a handful of South Florida lawmakers have introduced bills that would require schools to aggressively monitor and address mold problems.

And yet today, no such legislation exists. But should it? This issue, like the mold itself, is very tricky and difficult to identify.

There is no question that mold should not be in public schools and these school districts should take stronger action. However, like many, I worry that government regulation would exacerbate rather than help the problem.

How can they enforce this standard without some kind of monetary penalty? If these schools had money, they would probably have more funds to clean up this mold.

The schools argue that this is a funding problem. They are trying to save money by raising the temperature in schools and shutting off the air conditioning on nights and weekends. These decisions contribute to the mold growth. Of course, more funding would also allow them to address mold problems.

As you know by now, mold is a problem that requires a proactive, rather than a reactive, solution. Mold removal is something you have to pay for when you made a mistake. Tallahassee attorney Mike Levine, who has represented school employees in mold-related lawsuits, has shared some incredible wisdom that the school boards and legislatures should pay attention to:

“The root of the problem is fourfold: poorly trained maintenance workers, long-neglected buildings, air-conditioning systems that were not designed for Florida’s weather and administrators who are slow to acknowledge problems.”

These are the problems that need to be addressed, not with more money or more government regulations. Education is more valuable when it comes to eliminating the factors that cause mold growth before they create a very expensive and unhealthy problem.

If the government wants to do something to address this problem, then they need to fund the EPA to put together a guide on how to build a maintenance program for public schools that frequently checks for mold and water intrusion. There is currently a guide on inspecting your home for mold that you can download from this website, but I have yet to find one for public buildings or offices.