Columbus family is forced to abandon its home

[Guest guest]

Columbus family is forced to abandon its home

By JEAN WILSON/Telegram Assistant Editor

Friday, January 13, 2006

Columbus, Nebraska

http://www.columbustelegram.com/articles/2006/01/13/news/news2.txt

COLUMBUS - After a small amount of water seeped onto a corner of his

basement floor, homeowner Steve Wunderlich pulled off a piece of

wall paneling to see if he could find the source of the moisture.

WHAT LURKS INSIDE THE WALLS - Steve Wunderlich discovered last year

that his home located at 1821 28th St. has been inundated by mold.

From behind the basement paneling, to the inside of the upstairs

ceiling, the mold can be found all throughout the house. Telegram

photo by Amon Medinger

What Wunderlich discovered last May led to him and his family

feeling better than they had in years.

But the price they paid for their health was the abandonment of

their house at 1821 28th St., which at one time had a replacement

value of $180,000.

Current estimated worth of the structure - zero.

Wunderlich and his wife, Jacque, had found black mold on their

basement walls. The Wunderlichs soon were told it would cost about

$25,000 to gut and clean their basement. That's when Steve decided

he needed to have the main floor checked.

The cleaning cost went up to approximately $80,000. He was told only

full demolition of the structure would guarantee the elimination of

all the mold.

Almost every room had evidence of stachybotrys, a blackish,

toxigenic mold that can produce hay fever-like allergic symptoms.

" That's what we had throughout the whole house, " Wunderlich said.

Aspergillus/penicillium-like mold also was found in every room

tested. Wunderlich said his 11-year-old daughter is allergic to

penicillium.

Jacque said she and her two daughters experienced frequent

headaches, sore throats and fatigue. The Wunderlichs' toddler son

was constantly at the doctor's office for upper respiratory problems.

" It just wouldn't quite clear up, " Jacque said.

Wunderlich was on daily medication for allergies.

Some doctors believe homes with dampness/mold growth can cause the

following respiratory symptoms: runny or stuffy nose, sneezing, eye

irritation, hoarseness, dry or productive cough, wheezing,

nosebleeds or coughing up blood. Generalized symptoms are reported

as well, including headache, fever, fatigue and joint aches.

Once the family moved out of the three-bedroom house into an uncle's

finished basement, their health issues disappeared.

Wunderlich no longer needed any medication and an embarrassing

problem with foot odor was no longer an issue. He believes his

system had been ridding itself of mold-related toxins through his

feet.

The Wunderlichs bought the house about 12 years prior to the

discovery of mold. There were no moisture problems in their basement

May 12, 2005, although they ran dehumidifiers on both floors.

To all appearances, there was no mold in the house.

What they didn't know was it had creeped behind baseboards, ceilings

and wallboards. Even the attached garage had moldy insulation and

wallboards.

" It's not a good deal at all, " Wunderlich said. " I want people to be

aware of the potential problem that could exist. "

Their insurance policy covered up to $10,000 in mold damages caused

by a water line break or similar mishap, so there was no relief down

that avenue.

In addition to the house having mold, the family was told they would

have to get rid of all of their porous furniture, such as couches

and mattresses, in the house and everything that had been in the

basement. All clothing and bedding had to be washed. Photographs had

to be specially vacuumed front and back to get rid of the mold

spores.

Pillows and stuffed animals also were thrown in a Dumpster the

family had rented for furniture disposal.

Wunderlich said he was convinced of the logic of getting rid of all

of the furniture one morning after a rainstorm. The sanitation

company had removed the Dumpster, and underneath it the driveway was

black from mold spores that had been hidden in the furniture and

washed out by the rain.

" Down the driveway, down the street it went, " he said.

For months, the family paid for rent and utilities, while still

maintaining their house payments. Wunderlich and Jacque stopped

making house payments in December, which will begin another chapter

in the Wunderlichs' mold nightmare.

A deposit has been put down on an apartment. Buying another house

that someone else has lived in is not an option for him. He said if

he's ever able, he would build his next house, making sure the wood

is treated with a mold preventive material.

Steve said he's telling his story in hopes of preventing someone

else from going through what he and his family are going through. He

wants people to know what they might be up against.

" We want to wake up the community, " he said. " We want to wake up

everybody - let them know what this mold is all about. "