When building a new home or remodeling your old one, the most important decision that you need to make is who will do the job. The contractor that you hire to do this project is obviously going to influence how it turns out, not the budget or what type of materials you plan on using. You could do some of the remodeling work on your own and get away with it if you do your research ahead of time, but if you are planning on building a house and have no prior experience, then the best thing to do is to leave it to the professionals.
Finding a contractor in the phone book might not seem like a great idea, but for those of us moving to new areas and wanting to build a new home there, we may not have the advantage of talking to friends and neighbors in the area and getting references. No matter which method you use, you will want to get at least three different bids using the same exact building plans. Ask for references and do not be afraid to check up on them. Ask any of the references if they have had problems with mold or water damage in their constructions since they were first built. This should give you a decent idea whether the contractor can do the job you want.
You should visit the job site often and pay attention to how the contractor and his people are treating the building materials that you had them purchase for the job. None of these things should be stored directly on the ground, especially drywall and lumber, since these are porous surfaces. Mold will start to grow on these items and it will become built into the foundation of your home from the very start and even though your contractor will be liable should you have a problem later, it will be a huge inconvenience to deal with. It is better to monitor the care of your home’s building materials from the beginning. Have a mold inspector come at different intervals during the construction.
Make sure that your contractor has a plumber that knows what he or she is doing on the job to install the plumbing system. You want to make sure that the plumbing system is installed on your property correctly and that it is up to code. If you are having new plumbing installed in your home as a part of a remodeling or renovation project, you will want to have it inspected to be sure that it is up to code, especially if you live in an area with strict building codes.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Miami Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors and
Orlando water Damage companies.
Friday, September 28, 2007
Mold And Humidity Problems
Mold will grow just about anywhere, but it really becomes a problem for human beings when the mold spores found in your home land on a surface that is wet and is allowed to stay that way for more than about 48 hours. Mold spores are always present in the home in some capacity, no matter what kind of air purification you use, but there are a few things that you can do inside your home to stop them from forming colonies.
One thing that you need to understand is that mold cannot grow without moisture or in some cases, standing water. The areas of your home that have the highest humidity are the places where mold is the most likely to start growing. Laundry rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and basements are notorious for mold growth, so these are the rooms that you need to focus on.
Kitchens and bathrooms should have tile installed on the floors and never carpet. Tile will keep any spilled water from being absorbed by the sub-flooring and will allow you to clean up the moisture pretty quickly, whereas with carpet, it will not be as easy to soak up the spill. Something else to be aware of is that the carpet padding underneath it will need to be taken up and thrown away if it becomes moldy. So, even if you can clean the mold off of the carpet that you have installed, you will still have to remove it to install new padding. The best thing to do is not have carpet in these moist areas of your home.
Having exhaust fans installed in your home to help control the humidity is something else that you should consider. These will help remove not only moist air from the rooms they are installed in, but also help reduce irritants like pet dander and smoke. It might cost you a few hundred dollars to install these in the most humid rooms of the house, but it will be worth it in the end.
Something else you can do to control humidity is to keep wet items outside. This means you should not hang clothes up to dry in the laundry room or the basement and any wet clothing should be washed and dried as soon as possible.
Where there is mold, there is usually a water leak issue. This can be a leak in the basement or a household appliance or it can even be a plumbing leak inside the wall that you are not aware of. Getting rid of the mold problem in your home is directly related to how well you can manage the water problems in your house, so getting any leaks fixed as soon as possible is in your favor.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.
One thing that you need to understand is that mold cannot grow without moisture or in some cases, standing water. The areas of your home that have the highest humidity are the places where mold is the most likely to start growing. Laundry rooms, kitchens, bathrooms, and basements are notorious for mold growth, so these are the rooms that you need to focus on.
Kitchens and bathrooms should have tile installed on the floors and never carpet. Tile will keep any spilled water from being absorbed by the sub-flooring and will allow you to clean up the moisture pretty quickly, whereas with carpet, it will not be as easy to soak up the spill. Something else to be aware of is that the carpet padding underneath it will need to be taken up and thrown away if it becomes moldy. So, even if you can clean the mold off of the carpet that you have installed, you will still have to remove it to install new padding. The best thing to do is not have carpet in these moist areas of your home.
Having exhaust fans installed in your home to help control the humidity is something else that you should consider. These will help remove not only moist air from the rooms they are installed in, but also help reduce irritants like pet dander and smoke. It might cost you a few hundred dollars to install these in the most humid rooms of the house, but it will be worth it in the end.
Something else you can do to control humidity is to keep wet items outside. This means you should not hang clothes up to dry in the laundry room or the basement and any wet clothing should be washed and dried as soon as possible.
Where there is mold, there is usually a water leak issue. This can be a leak in the basement or a household appliance or it can even be a plumbing leak inside the wall that you are not aware of. Getting rid of the mold problem in your home is directly related to how well you can manage the water problems in your house, so getting any leaks fixed as soon as possible is in your favor.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
Houston Fire Damage Water Restoration Contractor companies and
Los Angeles Water Damage and Restoration Services.
House Flipping Issues: Mold and Water Damage
House flipping is an alluring business venture for almost anyone interested in making a lot of money in a short period of time, but it is not typically as easy as the home decorating shows make it out to be. While they do tend to show most of the problems that can arise while you are renovating a home for sale, what they do not do is put you and your money in the situation. It takes a lot of patience and resourcefulness and if you do not have at least both of these things, you will not succeed in this endeavor.
One of the biggest problems that can surface when you are renovating a home for resale is the presence of mold. Mold growing inside a home can be a huge problem to deal with financially and can completely ruin your budget and possibly the entire project. Before you purchase a property for any reason, you should have it tested for mold growth. As long as you do this and the house comes up clean, you should have no problem with mold growth.
Even if you have already purchased the home and find mold in it, all is not lost. Most of the time removing the affected building materials that have mold on them will fix the problem, but you need to make sure that the mold is dead to be certain. If the mold is dead and there is not a moisture problem in the home, you should be fine. You will run into more problems, however, if you discover that there is a water leakage problem in the home. Any water leaks in the house can lead to mold growth and water damaged materials need to be removed as soon as possible. Look for signs of water damage wherever the mold growth appeared to see if anything needs to be replaced. This is especially true in bathrooms, even if no mold was found there. Floors that have cracked tile in them need to be checked for signs of rotting, so you are certain that you are not installing a new tile floor only to have it collapse later on. The structural integrity of the floors is extremely important for a good flip, because if the brand new toilet, tub, sink, and vanity all fall through the floor later on, you will definitely have some explaining to do to your buyer.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
water damage restoration companies and
Dallas Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors.
One of the biggest problems that can surface when you are renovating a home for resale is the presence of mold. Mold growing inside a home can be a huge problem to deal with financially and can completely ruin your budget and possibly the entire project. Before you purchase a property for any reason, you should have it tested for mold growth. As long as you do this and the house comes up clean, you should have no problem with mold growth.
Even if you have already purchased the home and find mold in it, all is not lost. Most of the time removing the affected building materials that have mold on them will fix the problem, but you need to make sure that the mold is dead to be certain. If the mold is dead and there is not a moisture problem in the home, you should be fine. You will run into more problems, however, if you discover that there is a water leakage problem in the home. Any water leaks in the house can lead to mold growth and water damaged materials need to be removed as soon as possible. Look for signs of water damage wherever the mold growth appeared to see if anything needs to be replaced. This is especially true in bathrooms, even if no mold was found there. Floors that have cracked tile in them need to be checked for signs of rotting, so you are certain that you are not installing a new tile floor only to have it collapse later on. The structural integrity of the floors is extremely important for a good flip, because if the brand new toilet, tub, sink, and vanity all fall through the floor later on, you will definitely have some explaining to do to your buyer.
Jim Corkern is a writer and promoter of quality
water damage restoration companies and
Dallas Residential Water Damage Restoration Contractors.
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