Re: ^Testing carpet for mold and bacteria- how?

[Guest guest]

EPA recommends removing contaminated carpet - with sewage, 40 years old, and

current problems, cleaning the air isn't worth it if the source and

contaminated materials aren't addressed. That is well documented, though

companies

offering air cleaners don't mention that.

Replacing with tile and area rugs can be considered to be superior to wood

or more carpeting.

The self testing can be done for $25.00 - $40.00 at

_www.indoorairresearch.net_ (http://www.indoorairresearch.net) , Texas Tech

Health Sciences Center

(Send Us Samples, it says). This is a highly reliable lab that will issue a

report, as well. Just follow their directions. The mold testing industry can

get

way too expensive, real fast.

S

[Guest guest]

How would you test carpet? Press tape to carpet, or rub cotton swab on it or

bulk sample. I guess a bulk sample of carpet, I'd have to cut a piece from area

I can cover up or patch somehow. I don't understand advise to wash and test.

Can someone explain that? If I have carpet washed, then spores are airborne or

something. Person said wash carpet and then test air, so he is saying after

washing spores would be airborn? Was that Ken or ?

I don't mind letting go of drapery. They are on their last leg anyway, but

carpet is so beautiful even if old, 100% wool carpet and in near perfect

condition but will if it could be making me sick.

Thanks

nomoreschoolmold@... wrote:

EPA recommends removing contaminated carpet - with sewage, 40 years old, and

current problems, cleaning the air isn't worth it if the source and

contaminated materials aren't addressed. That is well documented, though

companies

offering air cleaners don't mention that.

Replacing with tile and area rugs can be considered to be superior to wood

or more carpeting.

The self testing can be done for $25.00 - $40.00 at

_www.indoorairresearch.net_ (http://www.indoorairresearch.net) , Texas Tech

Health Sciences Center

(Send Us Samples, it says). This is a highly reliable lab that will issue a

report, as well. Just follow their directions. The mold testing industry can get

way too expensive, real fast.

S

__________________________________________________

[Guest guest]

HAving gone through a complete mold remediation, I have learned many

lessons. One of the most important is to do things in the right

order.

You must first determine if mold/fungus is the problem. Don't

install any purifiers or anything until you know. If you do and

then later find out there's a mold/fungus problem then you have to

remediate the mold problem and you contaminated the new equipment

(air purifiers or other measures).

Get a test kit and find out once and for all if mold/fungus is the

problem. Do multiple plates in various areas of the house, properly

label them so you'll know the areas later. I think we discussed a

while back the best way to test. If you buy a kit it should come

with instructions. Contamination by your fingers or even breathing

on the open plate should be avoided. You want to measure what's in

the air for the period you are testing not what might be on you.

)

Once you know the test results 5-7 days later, you can make

decisions on the best actions. I agree, carpet that old and with

that much history should really be removed. We hated the idea of no

carpet at first but love it now. The floors are much easier to

clean and you know they are clean instead of having dirt and

whatever else is trapped in carpet.

Much luck to you in your investigation and decisions.

winslake

> EPA recommends removing contaminated carpet - with sewage, 40

years old, and

> current problems, cleaning the air isn't worth it if the source

and

> contaminated materials aren't addressed. That is well documented,

though companies

> offering air cleaners don't mention that.

>

> Replacing with tile and area rugs can be considered to be superior

to wood

> or more carpeting.

>

> The self testing can be done for $25.00 - $40.00 at

> _www.indoorairresearch.net_ (http://www.indoorairresearch.net) ,

Texas Tech Health Sciences Center

> (Send Us Samples, it says). This is a highly reliable lab that

will issue a

> report, as well. Just follow their directions. The mold testing

industry can get

> way too expensive, real fast.

>

> S

>

>

>

[Guest guest]

If you're going to use mold plates, a test which at the very best

usually just confirms what you already knew, at least get cornmeal

agar or Czapek cellulose media so that you have a fighting chance of

finding any viable Stachy spores.

Advice from Chin Yang of P & K microbiology.

-

[Guest guest]

Not only is that a good idea to try to reduce mold spores in the home, but

also dust mites which cause problems for a lot of people. We have no

carpeting, no drapes, and washable blinds (just the cheap kind you can buy at

WalMart

or Target) that can be washed with soap and water. We do have some washable

rugs - like in the entryways and the bathroom and some curtains over the

blinds in the bedroom - but the curtains are machine washable so they are

easily

cleaned when they get dusty. We also have an air purifier too - which

greatly reduces the dust in the house.....which also cuts down on how much

dusting

you have to do on the furniture too....an extra bonus!

[Guest guest]

Ya, window treatments can be expensive - especially if you have lots of

windows. The blinds we have, though, are the vinyl mini-blinds that you can

get

lots of places for really cheap. I just checked Home Depot online and they

have them for 4-6 bucks or so. I think my husband got ours at WalMart or

Target - in the store. I didn't see any online. However, if you have lots of

windows - that does add up! But they are very easy to clean, in my opinion.

If

they look dusty, I just take them down, put them in the tub (one at a time

so the strings don't get all tangled) and wipe them with soap and water and

rinse them off with the shower head. Then I hang it up to dry for a while and

then wipe it down to make sure it's dry before hanging it back up.

Of course, you can also just dust them while they are hanging up, which

works between the deep-cleanings. But it does help to be able to really wash

them down once in a while to keep the dust out of the house. My husband has

very

severe allergies to dust/dust mites, so this works great for him. And, it

helps to have curtains in the bedroom that can be taken down and washed also.

We don't have curtains other places in the house - just the bedrooms.

[Guest guest]

I gave up on all the testing, mold plates and such years ago as being

completely useless as a personal guide. I only perceive their use as

a demonstration for someone else.

So I don't know where to get them anymore.

Usually people have good mold indicators all around them without the

need for any plate.

Shower enclosures, toilet tanks, cutting boards and vegetables give

me all the signs I need.

Onions, in particular are exceptionally good for mold detection.

In my mothers house, you can leave onions out until they dry up so

pristinely that they look like they could be used as dried onions for

cooking.

In the mold castles that make me feel like crap, onions always show

concentrations of various molds.

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