Mold destroys house of family’s dreams

[Guest guest]

Can one of the professionals on this board give us their view or

thoughts on what may be taking place in this environment. I ask

because something just doesn't sound right.

KC

By Mann

shelley.mann@...

Boyett shows how mold has taken over everything in her Dacula

home. Boyett's house was ruled uninhabitable because of toxic mold,

allegedly caused

by an improperly installed air purifier.

DACULA — Before she was evicted earlier this month, walking through

Boyett's house was sort of like taking a tour of the Titanic.

Her grandson's shoes lay exactly where he took them off last

October. Her daughter's clothing was strewn on the floor — she

didn't have time to pick it up before the family moved out of the

house

If you looked closely, you could see the mold particles that coated

everything in the Dacula house. For Boyett, the mold was just the

beginning of the nightmare.

The mold started growing soon after Boyett installed an air

purification system from Pureatech, a Norcross air filter company.

Boyett believes the system may have been improperly installed,

leading to the mold growth, a charge Pureatech officials vehemently

deny.

A Buckhead woman recently won $556,000 in damages in a mold case

when a jury found a heating and air conditioning services firm

guilty of causing mold problems that led to sinus problems,

respiratory infections, frequent headaches and nosebleeds. Legal

experts believe she is the first plaintiff in Georgia to in a mold

case before a trial jury. The case gives Boyett hope that she may be

successful in the lawsuit she's filed against Pureatech.

An Institute of Medicine study from earlier this year found that

increased effort is needed to reduce mold-producing moisture in

buildings that has been blamed for respiratory problems, including

some asthma.

The beginning of the end

When Boyett noticed mold growing around the ductwork in her house,

she was concerned. When she saw a layer of white mold on a bamboo

plant in her bedroom, she got scared.

Her insurance agent, worried the mold might be toxic, advised Boyett

to move out of the house. Her grandchildren were confused about why

they couldn't take their shoes with them. They still ask about toys

that had to be abandoned.

" We had to walk out with the clothes on their back. They didn't

understand why they couldn't have their bikes, their toys, their

shoes, " she said.

Now, all Boyett's former belongings are lying in a landfill, double-

bagged in thick garbage bags.

Her insurance company promised Boyett they'd pay for a furnished

apartment across from the Mall of Georgia. They never paid. The

Boyetts lived in a hotel for almost a month before finding a rental

house. Today, they're leasing a house in Dacula they hope to

purchase one day.

Boyett, a single mother, bought the Dacula house, a modest bi-level

with yellow siding, more than three years ago. At the time, it was

her dream house. Now, she can hardly stand to go back inside.

" It would be better had my house burned. My things would be gone, "

Boyett said.

Air filter company

denies wrongdoing

Pureatech CEO Harry Youdell said there's no way his company's air

filter could be the cause of Boyett's problems.

" The filter systems contain no water and no moving parts. In and of

itself, it cannot create mold, " Youdell said.

Besides, he said, his workers installed the filter system at the

tail-end of a years-long drought.

But an engineering consultant hired by Boyett's insurance company,

Foremost Insurance, concluded that the mold was caused by continuous

operation of the house's Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning

unit, as instructed by Pureatech.

If the thermostat is set to fan " on, " the system fan will keep

blowing after the compressor stops, the report said. Warm air from

the conditioned space is blown across the wet evaporator coil, the

water re-evaporates and returns to the room with the air —the

underlying cause of increased humidity in the conditioned space,

according to the report.

The engineering investigation should have been more comprehensive

than just the HVAC system, Youdell said. Besides, he pointed out,

his company recommends monitoring the temperature and relative

humidity in the home.

According to Youdell, Boyett and her attorney asked him to buy the

house, but he refused, saying he's done his part. He offered to

clean the house, and once visited to install two portable

dehumidifiers. Instead, he alleges, Boyett is trying to use the

media hype surrounding mold to make some money.

A year later, Boyett said she just wants the moldy house saga to

end. She also said she hopes no one else will have to go through the

trouble she did.

" The biggest thing is I want to get the message out if someone else

has the same problem. They probably have it and don't know it — the

mold may not present itself for a very long time, " Boyett said.