My
new home: July 2004
In
May of 2003 I had my house tested for mold. They found
several mold types Aspergillu, Penicillium, Ascospores,
Cladosporium some of them extremely harmful. I’m
not sure if the mold was a contributing factor to my
health problem however, I’m sure it hasn’t
been helping.
 April
2003 we started the process of removing the mold. I
was very lucky that this was covered under my homeowner
insurance policy. My policy covered 100 percent as long
as the source of the mold was caused by water. They
discovered the source was an undetected leaky roof over
the guest bedroom and the laundry room. Apparently this
had been going on for years. The water ran behind the
sheet rock into the basement, from that the mold started
to grow on the paper of the insulation, then on the
sheet rock.
Everything had to be removed and treated
including all the sheetrock, insulation, right down
to the frame. All the exposed wood was treated. They
removed all the insulation in the house, and treated
the basement and attic. This process took four months.
 
Construction
is done! It took fourteen months.
The
new Guest Bathroom:
 
Laundry
Room: Before and After
 
Library:
 
 
The Kitchen before:
The New Kitchen:
Master
Bathroom before and after:
  Dining
room and Living room: 
Master Bedroom:
I
decided to take a look at the rest of my house, what
other things could be harmful? I wanted to have the
healthiest house I could. Here are some things I did
to make my house healthier.
Air Filters
I bought one for the house and one for my office.
With Pulmonary Fibrosis I wanted to be sure that the
air I was breathing everyday was clean. After a couple
of weeks of research, I found the Q Air Filters System—a
bit expensive but I felt it was worth it. I have both
air filters running twenty-four hours a day.
Dehumidifier
In Connecticut we have a lot of humidity, which
could be a big cause of mold if it’s not controlled.
I have one in the basement and one in my house. I also
have a humidity gauge.
Filter System
I put in a filter system on
the kitchen sink. I had the water tested and it didn’t
come back with flying colors.
Cleaning Supplies
I’ve been using commercial brands with
all the toxic chemicals. So one-by-one I’ve replaced
them with all-natural products. My favorite product
line is Seventh Generation. They have everything from
dishwashing products to natural laundry soaps.
Hardwood floors
I had all my wall-to-wall carpets removed and
replaced with hardwood floors. This keeps the dust and
dog dander down because it can’t be trapped in
the carpet.
Bedding
Since I spend a great deal of time in bed, I
wanted it to be the healthiest it could be. I read a
lot about dust mites and how people with allergies suffer
from them so my thoughts were if they are bad for people
suffering with allergies then they can’t be good
for someone with a lung disorder. So I put covers on
the mattress, the comforter cover and the pillows. I
also replaced all the sheets with 100 percent organic
cotton.
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