Re: cross contamination prevention

[Guest guest]

Sue,

Good news on a new house?

They have given you excellent and comprehensive advise. Correct sequence even.

My only quibble is with their certainty. You may have to clean again or some

hard surfaces may still cause a reaction. Bring contents into the new house

slowly, even one at a time, as a precaution. If your son is not hypersensitive

you have a better chance of succeeding. Just be aware that we are usually more

reactive to where we got triggered than to most other places so be careful with

contents from the old house.

Carl Grimes

Healthy Habitats LLC

(fm my Blackberry)

[] cross contamination prevention

Hi All,

We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

completed last October....

He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

though...

This is what he advised us:

1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments may

have landed on our stuff from the contaminated crawl space and HVAC, so

he says we aren't bringing growing mold w/us...so since my son doesn't

seem to be hypersensitive (or if he is he doesn't know it), even if we

bring some with us it will dissipate over time (and for sure we are

bringing some with us as we go back and forth to the old house, clearing

it out and getting it ready for remediation, I don't know how it would

be possible to avoid all cross contamination), good news in our new

place is it's got lots of windows and we air it out every day, when it

gets cold at night, the air filters go on...

2) ok to bring hard furniture and other hard things that can be wiped/

washed clean, take it out of the contaminated space and wash/wipe clean

before bringing into the new space (I am pretty confident about this,

Dr. Thrasher and Dr. Rea said this was ok to do)

3) ok to bring clothing but first wash three times (Dr. Rea says this

is ok to do)

4) don't bring mattresses, upholstered furniture, comforters, pillows,

anything quilted including quilted clothing (I get it, mold fragments

can be less than 1 micron and 1 micron is the smallest pore size I could

find on mattress encasings in my online search)

5) many nonwashable items can be cleaned with a commercial HEPA vacuum,

using a protocol of vacuuming three different directions, so I am

thinking of having them do this with a few things like expensive guitars

and cases, some lamps, etc.

6) framed art work with glass in front can be taken to the framers and

have a new paper backing sealed on the back, wipe the rest clean; oil

paintings can be vacuumed

7) wool throw carpets can be beaten, washed after a 72 hour submersion

in water

8) cushions must be left behind but things like needlepoint covers can

be washed and then stuffed with new cushions

So my question to the experts on is do you agree with this

protocol, or is it flawed? And if so, why?

Also, this service is pretty expensive, can anyone recommend a

commercial HEPA vacuum so I could do it myself and then I would have an

awesome vacuum to clean with...

Thanks, Sue Vican

[Guest guest]

Hi Carl,

Yep, good news to have found a safer place, thanks for the feedback, it

would be easier if my son were hypersensitive, then we would know if

something were clean enuf or not, I think the stuff will be clean enuf,

and removed from the source, there will be so much less, plus windows

always open during summer daytime....

yes, well the certainty is part of the marketing I guess, after reading

your recent post on hepa filtration I am not going to assume that hepa

vacuuming, even 3 times, removes all the offending particles, I am just

going to count on greatly lower levels and dissipation over time away

from source, and not bringing the stuffed stuff....

Sue

>Sue,

>

>Good news on a new house?

>

>They have given you excellent and comprehensive advise. Correct sequence

>even.

>

[Guest guest]

Sue,

I fully agree with your statement that, " I am just going to count on

greatly lower levels and dissipation over time away from

source... "

If nothing else, that is THE key point. We keep waiting to act until

we find certainty and demanding absolutes when there aren't any.

And that is the main social and psychological issue. Our

craziness isn't what we do, but when we don't do something to

stop the exposures.

Carl Grimes

Healthy Habitats LLC

-----

Hi Carl,

Yep, good news to have found a safer place, thanks for the feedback, it

would be easier if my son were hypersensitive, then we would know if

something were clean enuf or not, I think the stuff will be clean enuf,

and removed from the source, there will be so much less, plus windows

always open during summer daytime....

yes, well the certainty is part of the marketing I guess, after reading

your recent post on hepa filtration I am not going to assume that hepa

vacuuming, even 3 times, removes all the offending particles, I am just

going to count on greatly lower levels and dissipation over time away

from source, and not bringing the stuffed stuff....

Sue

>Sue,

>

>Good news on a new house?

>

>They have given you excellent and comprehensive advise. Correct

sequence

>even.

>

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[Guest guest]

Sue: I am so glad you found a safe place to live. I am confused about Dr Rea

saying you can bring clothing with you. From what I understand, mycotoxins are

not water soluable and cannot be reomved and must be replaced. This is the

advice I was given and until I left all behind, I did not start to get well.

Comments anyone? Best of luck to you and your son Sue!

>

> Sue,

>

> Good news on a new house?

>

> They have given you excellent and comprehensive advise. Correct sequence even.

>

> My only quibble is with their certainty. You may have to clean again or some

hard surfaces may still cause a reaction. Bring contents into the new house

slowly, even one at a time, as a precaution. If your son is not hypersensitive

you have a better chance of succeeding. Just be aware that we are usually more

reactive to where we got triggered than to most other places so be careful with

contents from the old house.

>

> Carl Grimes

> Healthy Habitats LLC

> (fm my Blackberry)

>

> [] cross contamination prevention

>

> Hi All,

>

> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

> completed last October....

>

> He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

> cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

> contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

> able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

> said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

> contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

> though...

>

> This is what he advised us:

>

> 1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments may

> have landed on our stuff from the contaminated crawl space and

[Guest guest]

Sue, read this web site, http://www.stachy.5u.com/posts.html

If you want to know the worst case scenario.

Nothing that remediator has recommended would work for me, but I am highly

sensitive. I know a number of people who think they do not have to get rid of

all there things, but some of them are still very sick. A number of people have

to move several times because they are not careful enough. Why take the risk?

You won't know if the house is really safe if you bring things with you. I could

vacuum and wipe forever and never even get hard surfaces clean enough. I realize

not every mold victim has this level of sensitivity.

>

> Hi All,

>

> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

> completed last October....

>

> He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

> cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

> contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

> able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

> said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

> contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

> though...

>

> This is what he advised us:

>

> 1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments

[Guest guest]

Hi ,

thanks for the advice, it is very difficult because me son does not show

any obvious changes when he is around more mold vs. less mold, if he had

a severe reaction to some of his stuff, then he would not want to bring

it with him, and because other family members don't see him reacting,

they question the whole process and protocol.....at this point I can't

get my other family members to walk out the door without any of their

stuff, and frankly I'm not convinced that this would solve my son's

problems anyway which i believe are multifactorial, not just mold, also

it is going to cost a lot of money to buy all new bedding for the four

of us, remediate the house, and now we are paying for 2 places to live

on top of the sky high medical bills, so not looking to replace stuff we

don't need to replace. Dr Thrasher, who understands the nature of the

mold contamination in our house seems to think that washing and bringing

hard things will be ok......if this and the other therapies my son is

doing don't help, we may have to take the next step of abandoning all

our stuff and seeing if that helps, it is good to know that is an

option, but it just can't happen now, and hopefully won't be necessary

in our case, everyone is different. Also, our new place has incredibly

great ventilation, when it warms up each day I open all the windows and

it is like being outside, all the indoor air changes out I think so

whatever indoor mold stuff is in the air goes outside and we get new

air, that is completely opposite of our old house.

thanks, sue

>Sue, read this web site, http://www.stachy.5u.com/posts.html

>If you want to know the worst case scenario.

>Nothing that remediator has recommended would work for me, but I am

>highly sensitive. I know a number of people who think they do not have

>to get rid of all there things, but some of them are still very sick. A

>number of people have to move several times because they are not careful

>enough. Why take the risk? You won't know if the house is really safe if

>you bring things with you. I could vacuum and wipe forever and never

>even get hard surfaces clean enough. I realize not every mold victim has

>this level of sensitivity.

>

>

>

>>

>> Hi All,

>>

>> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

>> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

>> completed last October....

>>

>> He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

>> cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

>> contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

>> able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

>> said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

>> contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

>> though...

>>

>> This is what he advised us:

>>

>> 1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments

[Guest guest]

Diane,

This is what I understood from Dr. Rea, it is always possible that I

misunderstood, anyway at this point we have washed all clothing 4 times

and brought into the house, I can't get everyone here to give up their

stuff, so am doing the best I can and hoping for the best, at least it

is reducing the total load and I will continue to work on that for my

son & see what happens.

Sue

>Sue: I am so glad you found a safe place to live. I am confused about Dr

>Rea saying you can bring clothing with you. From what I understand,

>mycotoxins are not water soluable and cannot be reomved and must be

>replaced. This is the advice I was given and until I left all behind, I

>did not start to get well. Comments anyone? Best of luck to you and

>your son Sue!

>

[Guest guest]

>

> Hi All,

>

> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

> completed last October....

>

>_____________________

An added note on fabric types: A friend of mind suspects that natural fibers

wash better than synthetic -- not sure here.

BUT---polarfleece, microfleece type fabrics hold on to the scent like you would

not believe. I was wearing it for " protection " in smelly store, and had so much

trouble getting the scent out. I think I never succeeded, even with Moldergent,

which I only use on items I really DON'T to throw away.

[Guest guest]

Sue, it's good to hear that you found a place. I sure hope everything works out

for the best.

Tug

>

> Hi All,

>

> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

> completed last October....

>

> He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

> cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

> contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

> able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

> said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

> contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

> though...

>

> This is what he advised us:

>

> 1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments may

> have landed on our stuff from the contaminated crawl space and HVAC, so

> he says we aren't bringing growing mold w/us...so since my son doesn't

> seem to be hypersensitive (or if he is he doesn't know it), even if we

> bring some with us it will dissipate over time (and for sure we are

> bringing some with us as we go back and forth to the old house, clearing

> it out and getting it ready for remediation, I don't know how it would

> be possible to avoid all cross contamination), good news in our new

> place is it's got lots of windows and we air it out every day, when it

> gets cold at night, the air filters go on...

>

> 2) ok to bring hard furniture and other hard things that can be wiped/

> washed clean, take it out of the contaminated space and wash/wipe clean

> before bringing into the new space (I am pretty confident about this,

> Dr. Thrasher and Dr. Rea said this was ok to do)

>

> 3) ok to bring clothing but first wash three times (Dr. Rea says this

> is ok to do)

>

> 4) don't bring mattresses, upholstered furniture, comforters, pillows,

> anything quilted including quilted clothing (I get it, mold fragments

> can be less than 1 micron and 1 micron is the smallest pore size I could

> find on mattress encasings in my online search)

>

> 5) many nonwashable items can be cleaned with a commercial HEPA vacuum,

> using a protocol of vacuuming three different directions, so I am

> thinking of having them do this with a few things like expensive guitars

> and cases, some lamps, etc.

>

> 6) framed art work with glass in front can be taken to the framers and

> have a new paper backing sealed on the back, wipe the rest clean; oil

> paintings can be vacuumed

>

> 7) wool throw carpets can be beaten, washed after a 72 hour submersion

> in water

>

> 8) cushions must be left behind but things like needlepoint covers can

> be washed and then stuffed with new cushions

>

>

>

> So my question to the experts on is do you agree with this

> protocol, or is it flawed? And if so, why?

>

> Also, this service is pretty expensive, can anyone recommend a

> commercial HEPA vacuum so I could do it myself and then I would have an

> awesome vacuum to clean with...

>

>

> Thanks, Sue Vican

>

[Guest guest]

Dave,

thanks, i'm hoping for the best, hope you are having a good summer,

getting outside and feeling better sue

>Sue, it's good to hear that you found a place. I sure hope everything

>works out for the best.

>

>Tug

>

>

>>

>> Hi All,

>>

>> We have moved into a new space, had it checked out by a local building

>> biology consultant who says we won't find better & no mold--it was only

>> completed last October....

>>

>> He in turn referred us to another guy who does mold remediation but also

>> cleans people's stuff so they can take it to their new space w/o cross

>> contamination concerns... I asked him if his customers are generally

>> able to tolerate their possessions after his cleaning service and he

>> said yes, even those who are so sensitive that they can't enter the

>> contaminated space w/o reacting, I haven't done any reference checks yet

>> though...

>>

>> This is what he advised us:

>>

>> 1) none of our stuff has mold growing on it, just mold fragments may

>> have landed on our stuff from the contaminated crawl space and HVAC, so

>> he says we aren't bringing growing mold w/us...so since my son doesn't

>> seem to be hypersensitive (or if he is he doesn't know it), even if we

>> bring some with us it will dissipate over time (and for sure we are

>> bringing some with us as we go back and forth to the old house, clearing

>> it out and getting it ready for remediation, I don't know how it would

>> be possible to avoid all cross contamination), good news in our new

>> place is it's got lots of windows and we air it out every day, when it

>> gets cold at night, the air filters go on...

>>

>> 2) ok to bring hard furniture and other hard things that can be wiped/

>> washed clean, take it out of the contaminated space and wash/wipe clean

>> before bringing into the new space (I am pretty confident about this,

>> Dr. Thrasher and Dr. Rea said this was ok to do)

>>

>> 3) ok to bring clothing but first wash three times (Dr. Rea says this

>> is ok to do)

>>

>> 4) don't bring mattresses, upholstered furniture, comforters, pillows,

>> anything quilted including quilted clothing (I get it, mold fragments

>> can be less than 1 micron and 1 micron is the smallest pore size I could

>> find on mattress encasings in my online search)

>>

>> 5) many nonwashable items can be cleaned with a commercial HEPA vacuum,

>> using a protocol of vacuuming three different directions, so I am

>> thinking of having them do this with a few things like expensive guitars

>> and cases, some lamps, etc.

>>

>> 6) framed art work with glass in front can be taken to the framers and

>> have a new paper backing sealed on the back, wipe the rest clean; oil

>> paintings can be vacuumed

>>

>> 7) wool throw carpets can be beaten, washed after a 72 hour submersion

>> in water

>>

>> 8) cushions must be left behind but things like needlepoint covers can

>> be washed and then stuffed with new cushions

>>

>>

>>

>> So my question to the experts on is do you agree with this

>> protocol, or is it flawed? And if so, why?

>>

>> Also, this service is pretty expensive, can anyone recommend a

>> commercial HEPA vacuum so I could do it myself and then I would have an

>> awesome vacuum to clean with...

>>

>>

>> Thanks, Sue Vican

>>

>

>

[Guest guest]

Sue, doing better thank you. Im a little worried about winter and not getting

the fresh air Im currently getting but I'll cross that bridge when I come to it.

Thanks for asking.

>

> Dave,

>

> thanks, i'm hoping for the best, hope you are having a good summer,

> getting outside and feeling better sue