With More Storms and Flooding, Mold Proof Building and Renovation Is a No Brainer
by Paul E. McGinniss
Hyde Park, New York. Picture of Flooding in 2011 Caused by Hurricane Irene. Photo By Abbe Romer Via YNNI live north of NYC in the Hudson Valley/Catskills in the excellent, country cool Ulster County, NY. There's been a great deal of rain and precipitation lately. We're the source of New York City drinking water. Having lots of water is a seriously good thing as opposed to dealing with droughts common in other areas. But, too much water can also be a serious problem, not just because it results in flooding, but also because too much water and persistent humidity can create mold problems and serious Indoor Air Quality issues for homes.
As a real estate broker and green building and renovation consultant, I see too many homes that have serious water and indoor humidity issues resulting from: wet basements, leaky roofs, skylights and windows as well poorly vented bathrooms and laundry rooms. I dare to say the majority of houses we see for sale have some kind of water infiltration issue, too much humidity, bad indoor air quality, or mold somewhere in the house.
Luckily, new technology and clever products now exist which prevent mold growth. Thus, with smart planning, protecting oneself from mold and creating healthy indoor air quality is readily achievable.
Obviously, the first step in preventing mold growth is stopping water and moisture from coming into your house so that mold can not grow in the first place. A new structure needs to be protected from top to bottom to stop water or moisture from seeping in. When building a new house, make very certain that the foundation is done properly. This is especially important if you have a basement or crawl space where water or moisture can seep in from walls, the earth or the slab floor. When renovating, don't necessarily start with a new kitchen or new floors. Begin with looking at the basement, the roof and the exterior to make sure no moisture is getting in. And, if you are going to renovate the bathroom, use totally mold resistant or mold proof products, including the paint.
Here are a few cool mold-proof products which help make homes more healthy and resilient:
MOLD PROOF DRYWALL THAT ALSO ABSORBS VOCs OUT OF THE AIR
CertainTeed AirRenew gypsum boardI spotted CertainTeed's AirRenew gypsum board on BEC Green. It's totally awesome because it not only inhibits mold growth, but it also sucks VOCs from the air. We shouldn't have interior furnishings or products that off gas
chemicals like VOCs in the first place. But, having wall board that won't let mold grow and might suck up some extra toxicity can't be a bad thing. Now, if they would only combine this mold proof, air purifying product with phase change material (PCM) drywall which acts as a heat mass. PCM absorbs heat in summer keeping the air cool. In winter PCM absorbs heat from passive solar heat and releases it when the sun goes down which keeps you warm on winter nights. A drywall that prevents mold, helps to heat and cool your house and also acts as an air filter. What's next? Well, making those walls interactive and Internet ready might not be such a bad thing now that I think of it.
MOLD PROOF WOOD THAT IS ALSO FIREPROOF
Eco Red Shield™ Protected LumberThere's an increasing amount of mold proof wood options, as well mold proof insulation options too. So, there is no need to worry about mold growing inside the frame of a house or behind interior walls. Eco Red Shield™ Protected Lumber is coated with non toxic chemical solids which protects the wood from mold, termites, wood-rot and even has added protection from fire. Anyone who has had water issues and needs to renovate should definitely opt for a wood product like this, especially if redoing a bathroom or undertaking a basement renovation. And, a new structure framed with this type of smart building material will add future value to a resale. Treated wood is not prohibitively expensive either in terms of added cost to an overall budget. It's stupid to be penny-wise and pound foolish, especially in this day and age when freaky storms and turbulent weather keeps popping up everywhere. You might just have water getting into your house no matter how much you plan for keeping it out.
ATMOSPHERIC WATER GENERATOR THAT TAKES MOISTURE OUT OF THE AIR AND CREATES PURE FILTERED DRINKING WATER.
EcoloBlu Atmospheric Water GeneratorI wrote about this cute little bugger a few years back in New York House magazine after I met him at an X Prize Conference at the United Nations in NYC. You can get just any old dehumidifier to suck moisture out of the air, but the EcoloBlu not only does that, but also filters the water, purifies and stores it so you can drink it. You can even get a version of EcoloBlu that has its own solar panel so that if the grid goes down you can still generate purified drinking water. And, no more need to worry about storing bottled water for emergencies. With EcoloBlu you can also fill up your BPA free reusable water bottles with pure water and give up the insanity of buying bottled water. Plus, if you are worried about the quality of your tap water and don't have a point of use or whole house water filtration system, amazingly, EcoloBlu can actually also be used as a whole house filtration system as well.
Copyright Paul E. McGinniss 2012
Anna Cummins and Marcus Eriksen, co-founders of The 5 Gyres Institute
Plastic particles from the ocean. Pic Courtesy 5 Gyres. 
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