Concerted Effort
Tackling the Challenges of Mold
Sorry for the delay posting this. I had planned to write on Sunday, but there was a power outage. I hope everyone who celebrated Father’s Day had an enjoyable time.
Now that we know how dangerous mold is, how does remediation begin? This depends a great deal on the extent of the damage and what was affected by the mold. There are companies with special decontamination warehouses where precious personal belongings can often be salvaged. Everything depends on the value to the owner, and this is sometimes measured in sentimental terms, not necessarily by the item’s monetary value.
The items least likely to recover from mold are those that had direct contact with the mold, meaning mold had begun to grow on the item . . . as contrasted to dry spores becoming airborne and landing on the item but not becoming vegetative. Soggy paper and books are unlikely to recover from major mold contamination, but if the pages are still in tact, there are ways to dry the paper and inhibit mold growth by use of essential oils. Currency, precious documents, and rare books may warrant this kind effort.
Once I was contacted by the owner of a house that had just been featured on the cover of an architectural magazine. She had many precious paintings and Persian rugs that were impacted so every strategy had to be tested to make sure that the product used would not damage the items. For the record, from time-to-time, I have accidentally spilled essential oil on beautiful hardwood floors, carpets, and books, and all survived without staining. They did retain the aroma for a long time, 2-3 years in the case of an ounce of clove bud oil that had a loose lid. This happened in my bedroom and was probably beneficial for my health since I inhaled it at a safe distance every night.
Timbuktu
Lemongrass is often used to preserve lumber and paper products. Recently, I spilled some on my desk and the aroma lasted about three weeks. I cannot say it was pleasant. It has insecticidal properties and can be quite irritating. However, if I owned antique editions of rare books, I would definitely consider keeping the books in a sealed container with lemongrass oil. This strategy is, in fact, how the Kingdom of Mali preserved its precious library.
Remediation
As mentioned in the last post, serious remediation should be handled by professionals and some building materials and furniture, especially padded chairs and sofas as well as mattresses and bedding, might not be salvageable. Insurance coverage obviously varies tremendously and who is responsible for what can be controversial but keep food on the table of the lawyers.
Having more than 20 years behind my own battle with mold and many interactions with other moldies, I can say unequivocally that if people understand the risks to themselves and other household members, including pets, they would move out. I know people whose houses were burned to the ground because nothing could be saved, but people can save themselves. I also know people who got stuck for years in unsafe dwellings or work places. In general, those who escaped had the best recovery experiences. This will be the topic for the next post. This said, if the property is remediated, it should be heavily diffused with essential oil before occupants return to their homes. I have formulated a blend that is safe for use, but it can be used full blast for weeks if the space is unoccupied. This would be the preferable strategy. Please keep in mind that regardless of the marketing pitch, the best one can do is to inhibit mold growth. One cannot really destroy the mold itself. One can relocate the mold, but it will survive in its new location, perhaps remaining dormant for years before the opportunity to become vegetative occurs.
Copyright by Dr. Ingrid Naiman 2024 || All Rights Reserved
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Note: Bioethika International is the main site with a complete list of available herbs. There are parasite herbs on Ayurvedic Bazaar. MoldHerbs.com has the herbs I used to recover from very serious mold exposure. ToxicTeeth.com has herbs for chelation. Referrals of new subscribers are always welcome. Just be sure you have permission from your friends before subscribing them.
Thank you so much!
Image Credit:
https://hmml.org/