Mold in home compels family to lobby for change

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Mold in home compels family to lobby for change

Salisbury couple urges Wicomico County to require HVAC installation inspections

By Greg Latshaw • Staff Writer • March 22, 2009

http://www.delmarvanow.com/article/20090322/NEWS01/903220304/1002

SALISBURY -- When Anita and Sam Brown replaced a failed heat pump at their

Salisbury house, they wound up with an even bigger problem.

That's because the new unit they had installed by a licensed contractor

malfunctioned this summer. The unit backfired moisture into the duct system,

which caused mold to build up. Whenever the Browns ran their heating or

air-conditioning system, they were unknowingly dispersing moldy spores to other

parts of the house.

In July, after detecting a " sickening sweet " smell of mold, the family turned

off the system. But Anita Brown, 40, is fearful her three children -- Sam, 14;

, 9; and Sheyene, 4 -- could still face respiratory issues. One came down

with pneumonia in September, and Brown's husband, Sam, 46, said he has gone to

the hospital several times because of shortness of breath.

The Browns said the problems that have ruined their home in the Mill

subdivision could have been prevented by a more thorough inspection process.

Anita Brown is urging Wicomico County to change its building code and become the

first county on the Lower Shore to require inspections of new heating

ventilation and air-conditioning systems. In the past month she has appeared at

two County Council meetings requesting immediate action.

Her proposal would hold HVAC installations to the same permit standards required

of new plumbing and electrical work done in houses in the county, said county

spokesman Jim Fineran.

" I hope that then other people won't have to go through this, " Brown said.

" We're (practically) left on our own in this issue. "

" It's well overdue "

Contractors generally don't want more government intrusion, but a permit system

is sensible for several reasons, said MaGuire, president of the Delmarva

Master HVAC Association.

Linking inspections to permits would cut down on unlicensed contractors doing

jobs and ensure the work done meets industry standards, he said. The added cost

of the inspection is minor compared to thousands of dollars in damages caused by

mold.

" It would protect the consumer and taxpayers. Mold issues are happening a lot in

this area, where poor work leads to lawsuits, " MaGuire said.

Yet inspections aren't the norm in land. Ten of land's 24 counties and

Baltimore city have offices to handle HVAC inspections, said Dori Berman, a

spokeswoman with the land Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation. On

the Eastern Shore, only Dorchester and Talbot counties require inspections.

Vic Disharoon, president of Wicomico Heating and Air Conditioning Inc., said he

finds it " ludicrous " there aren't inspection standards. After 34 years working

in the industry, he said changes are " well overdue. "

" It's essential No. 1 for a safety issue. We're dealing with dangerous

equipment. There needs to be some supervision and inspection, " he said.

County Executive M. Pollitt Jr. has asked his departments to evaluate

the merit of requiring inspections of new HVAC units. The work will include

contacting other counties and a report is expected within two weeks, said

Fineran.

Contractors said they approached former county Public Works director Rai Sharma

about the HVAC inspection issue. However, in February 2008, he abruptly resigned

in the wake of a scandal in the landfill division of his department.

Bob Lemley, owner of 1st Service Co. Inc. in Berlin, said improperly installed

systems can't harness a unit's new energy efficiencies. He doesn't understand

why more local governments don't require HVAC inspections.

" It seems like we're swimming upstream on this, " he said.

" Who would want to live in my house? "

What to do next is a dilemma for which the Browns have no answer. They don't

want to live in a home that could cause the family breathing problems.

But how do they move elsewhere, when it would require selling a house with a

mold problem? The estimated cost of eliminating the mold is between $40,000 and

$50,000, Anita Brown said.

" The house's value at this point is zero. Who would want to live in my house

knowing that it could make you sick? " she said

The Browns did not disclose the names of the contractors because of pending

legal matters. However, they did say they hired a " reputable company. "

Dr. Perella, a pulmonary doctor with Atlantic General Hospital in

Berlin, said breathing in mold can worsen existing breathing problems, such as

asthma. It also causes itchy eyes, a runny nose and headaches in others. More

severe systems are much rarer because toxic molds are composed of molecules that

are too heavy to go airborne.

Still, Dr. Curt Watkins, an allergist with Peninsula Allergy and Asthma

Associates in Salisbury, said media sensationalism has caused most people to

exaggerate the harm in mold exposure.

" Yes, molds can make you sick but not in the ways that most people complain

about, " he said.

To Anita Brown, who is an associate professor in chemistry at Salisbury

University, the fact that scientific research doesn't indicate molds are

dangerous today doesn't mean that theory won't change in the future.

" We can discover years later concerns we didn't have before. And that's a

concern I have for my children, " she said.

glatshaw@...

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